Palm Beach Mooring Buoy Endowment Fund
The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC), Palm Beach County Department of Environmental Resources Management (PBC DERM), and the Wildlife Foundation of Florida (WFF) have agreed to cooperatively partner and establish a network of mooring buoys to protect Palm Beach
County's most sensitive shallow reefs. These reefs are suffering from damage caused by the deployment of boat anchors by those who use the reefs for recreational and commercial purposes.
Mooring buoys are being installed to protect these valuable reef resources. The buoys will reduce damage caused by anchors and allow for recovery of previously damaged fauna and flora. It is expected that benthic cover will increase and associated species that live and forage in the benthos will also increase as a result of the recovery of damaged resources. A monitoring program will be conducted to measure the success of the buoys.
The first reef slated for buoys is Breaker’s Reef located a little more than one quarter mile offshore adjacent to the Breaker’s Hotel on Palm Beach Island. This reef is unique in that it represents the only area where coral reefs are extensively present in Palm Beach County at 20-30 ft depths. The biotic communities of this highly diverse reef are dominated by gorgonians and sponges, but stony corals are present as well as other benthic fauna and flora. Sea turtles, especially green sea turtles, also frequent shallow coral reef habitats to forage. Fifty-seven (57) species of fish and 22 species of hard corals have been identified on this reef. Divers have reported that damage to Breaker's reef from anchors is extensive.
Eight mooring pins and 4 mooring buoys will be installed at the Breaker’s Reef by a licensed marine contractor working under the supervision of FWC and PBC DERM staff. Maintenance will occur four times annually. Annual maintenance is $5,500 for each buoy.
The Wildlife Foundation of Florida has created an endowment fund to provide for ongoing maintenance of the buoys. Our vision is that your contribution will allow us to sustain this initiative for the long-term and truly make a difference in coral reef restoration.
For more details on this important program, please view the
Palm Beach County Mooring Buoy Program PDF file - (requires Adobe Reader)
All gifts are tax deductible as allowed by law.
