Florida turns degraded farmland into 700-acre coastal refuge drawing 240,000 visitors

Robi so
P ese vePhoto
c edit:
Li dsay
Rosegge /NOAA
Fishe ies

O
the
edge
of
Tampa
Bay,
whe e
ma g ove
fo ests
meet
ope
wate
a d
bi ds
call
f om
the
t eetops,
lies
a
place
that
was
eve
mea t
to
exist.
Robi so
P ese ve,
a
700-ac e
coastal
efuge
i
Ma atee
Cou ty,
Flo ida,
was
o ce
deg aded
fa mla d
slated
fo
developme t.
Today,
it
is
a
th ivi g
have
fo
fish,
wildlife
a d
people,
a
testame t
to
what
ca
happe
whe
a
commu ity
chooses
to
i vest
i
the
e vi o me t,
acco di g
to
the
Natio al
Ocea ic
a d
Atmosphe ic
Admi ist atio
(NOAA)
Fishe ies.The
t a sfo matio
bega
i
2003,
whe
Ma atee
Cou ty
acqui ed
the
482-ac e
p ope ty
with
suppo t
f om
state
a d
fede al
pa t e s.
Ove
the
ext
two
decades,
about
$17
millio
was
spe t
esto i g
wetla ds,
pla ti g
ative
vegetatio ,
emovi g
i vasive
species
a d
buildi g
ec eatio al
ame ities.
The
esult
is
a
p ese ve
that
ow
suppo ts
a
healthy
spo tfish
populatio ,
att acts
about
240,000
visito s
each
yea
a d
ge e ates
millio s
of
dolla s
i
eco omic
activity
fo
the
local
commu ity.F om
fa mla d
to
fish
habitatThe
o igi al
482-ac e
fa mla d
p ope ty
had
bee
app oved
fo
a
400-home
wate f o t
golf
cou se
commu ity,
acco di g
to
the
epo t.
But
i stead
of
maki g
way
fo
ew
homes,
the
site
u de we t
a
diffe e t
ki d
of
t a sfo matio .

Ma atee
Cou ty
led
a
effo t
to
esto e
wetla d
habitat,
emove
i vasive
species
a d
pla t
ative
vegetatio .
NOAA
Fishe ies
suppo ted
the
esto atio
th ough
its
Commu ity-based
Resto atio
P og am,
alo gside
othe
pa t e s.
The
fi st
phase
of
esto atio
was
completed
i
2008,
a d
the
a ea
was
ope ed
to
the
public.Robi so
P ese ve
quickly
became
a
favou ite
desti atio
fo
wildlife
a d
people
alike.
A
few
yea s
late ,
a
additio al
do atio
of
la d
expa ded
the
p ese ve
by
150
ac es.
With
fu di g
f om
the
RESTORE
Cou cil,
NOAA’s
Office
of
Habitat
Co se vatio
a d
its
pa t e s
esto ed
ea ly
135
ac es
of
coastal
habitat,
i cludi g
shellfish
habitat,
seag asses,
ma g oves,
a d
salt
a d
f eshwate
wetla ds.
The
p oject
was
o e
of
five
NOAA
has
suppo ted
u de
Co ecti g
Coastal
Wate s,
a
i itiative
that
esto es
Gulf
Coast
wetla ds
u de
the
RESTORE
Act
afte
the
2010
Deepwate
Ho izo
oil
spill.The
seco d
phase
of
esto atio
focused
o
c eati g
habitat
to
suppo t
popula
Flo ida
spo t
fish,
i cludi g
commo
s ook
a d
ta po .
Juve ile
s ook
eed
the
calm,
p otected
wate s
fou d
i
coastal
wetla ds
a d
ma g ove
fo ests
to
su vive.
Fishe ies
biologists,
esto atio
ecologists
a d
civil
e gi ee s
desig ed
featu es
to
p otect
juve ile
fish
f om
p edato s,
as
pe
the
epo t.To
make
it
mo e
challe gi g
fo
la ge
fish
to
each
juve iles,
the
p oject
team
c eated
wate
featu es
with
est icted
access.
This
mimicked
atu al
coastal
po ds
a d
c eeks
used
by
s ook
a d
ta po
as
u se y
habitat.
They
also
pla ted
ma g oves
i
st ategic
locatio s
to
act
as
ba ie s.
By
mi imizi g
the
umbe
of
la ge
fish
p edato s
e te i g
the
u se y,
juve iles
could
eat
a d
g ow
i
elative
safety.Measu i g
successNOAA
Fishe ies
fu ded
a
th ee-yea
mo ito i g
study
at
Robi so
P ese ve
to
dete mi e
whethe
the
esto ed
habitats
we e
fu ctio i g
as
i te ded.
Resea che s
mo ito ed
wate
levels,
sampled
fish
commu ities
a d
tagged
fish
to
t ack
thei
moveme t
th ough
the
p ese ve
a d
i to
the
su ou di g
estua y.Su veys
fou d
high
umbe s
of
juve ile
spo t
fish,
i cludi g
s ook,
sheepshead
a d
ed
d um,
usi g
the
esto ed
wetla ds.
Scie tists
also
oted
that
s ook
i
Robi so
P ese ve
we e
g owi g
as
fast,
o
faste ,
tha
those
i
othe
esto ed
o
atu al
habitats
i
the
egio .“We
fou d
that
the
esto atio
c eated
high-quality
u se y
habitat,”
said
K is
Kaufma ,
a
NOAA
ma i e
habitat
esto atio
specialist
who
has
ma aged
the
p oject
si ce
2017,
i
the
epo t.
“The
p otected
a eas
helped
educe
p edatio
o
you g
fish,
a d
the
habitats
also
p ovided
abu da t
p ey
so
the
fish
could
g ow.”Mo ito i g
also
showed
that
the
u se y
habitat
co t ibutes
to
the
b oade
fish
populatio
i
Tampa
Bay.
Tagged
s ook
we e
obse ved
leavi g
the
p ese ve
du i g
summe
spaw i g
seaso
a d
etu i g
late
i
the
yea ,
suggesti g
they
successfully
ep oduced.Eco omic
be efitsA
ew
eco omic
study
fu ded
by
NOAA
fou d
that
the
esto atio
p oject
suppo ted
239
jobs,
ge e ated
$12.7
millio
i
i come
fo
wo ke s
a d
p oduced
$32.7
millio
i
total
eco omic
activity.
But
the
eco omic
be efits
did ’t
stop
whe
co st uctio
e ded.
Resea che s
also
lea ed
that
outdoo
ec eatio
at
Robi so
P ese ve
suppo ts
a
additio al
25
jobs
a d
ge e ates
mo e
tha
$3
millio
i
eco omic
activity
each
yea .All
told,
the
esto atio
suppo ted
about
16
jobs
fo
eve y
$1
millio
i vested,
as
pe
the
epo t.“Rec eatio
co ti ues
lo g
afte
the
backhoes
a d
shovels
leave
the
site,”
said
eco omist
James
Maples,
co-autho
of
the
study.
“Whe
esto ed
places
a e
ope
to
the
public,
visito s
keep
comi g
fo
yea s,
a d
that
activity
suppo ts
local
busi esses.”Su vey
esults
show
that
both
local
eside ts
a d
tou ists
visit
Robi so
P ese ve,
with
ma y
etu i g
epeatedly.
Most
visito s
come
to
use
the
p ese ve’s
walki g
a d
biki g
t ails,
while
othe s
cite
kayaki g,
bi dwatchi g
a d
fishi g
as
easo s
fo
thei
visit.“This
p oject
shows
what’s
possible
whe
a
commu ity
chooses
to
i vest
i
the
e vi o me t,”
said
Mike
Elswick,
divisio
ma age
fo
Ma atee
Cou ty’s
Natu al
Resou ces
Depa tme t.
“Beyo d
co se vatio ,
Robi so
P ese ve
delive s
massive
public
health
be efits.
It
gives
people
a
easo
to
get
up,
get
outside
a d
expe ie ce
the
atu al
wo ld.”A
model
fo
esto atio Robi so
P ese ve
is
mo e
tha
just
a
pa k.
It
is
a
model
fo
how
deg aded
la d
ca
be
t a sfo med
i to
a
th ivi g
ecosystem
that
be efits
both
people
a d
atu e.
The
p oject
i volved
ma y
pa t e s,
i cludi g
the
RESTORE
Cou cil,
Ma atee
Cou ty,
the
Natio al
Fish
a d
Wildlife
Fou datio ,
the
Flo ida
Fish
a d
Wildlife
Co se vatio
Commissio ,
Mote
Ma i e
Labo ato y
&
Aqua ium,
the
Tampa
Bay
Estua y
P og am,
the
Southwest
Flo ida
Wate
Ma ageme t
Dist ict
a d
Oyste
Rive
Ecology,
I c.Today,
the
p ese ve
featu es
wetla ds
a d
ma g ove
fo ests,
alo g
with
ec eatio al
ame ities
such
as
walki g
a d
paddli g
t ails
a d
wildlife
obse vatio
towe s.
It
is
a
place
whe e
child e
ca
lea
about
atu e,
whe e
families
ca
spe d
time
togethe
outdoo s
a d
whe e
fish
ca
g ow
a d
th ive.Fo
the
people
of
Ma atee
Cou ty,
Robi so
P ese ve
is
a
sou ce
of
p ide.
It
is
a
emi de
that
eve
la d
that
has
bee
deg aded
ca
be
esto ed,
that
eve
a
small
i vestme t
ca
yield
big
etu s
a d
that
eve
a
si gle
commu ity
ca
make
a
diffe e ce.As
the
su
sets
ove
Tampa
Bay
a d
the
bi ds
etu
to
the
t ees,
Robi so
P ese ve
sta ds
as
a
livi g
symbol
of
what
is
possible
whe
we
choose
to
esto e
athe
tha
develop,
to
p otect
athe
tha
exploit
a d
to
i vest
i
the
futu e
athe
tha
the
sho t
te m.

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