Florida Ratings Indicator Type Info Status Beach Access 6   5   Water Quality 8  4  Beach Erosion 9   -  Erosion Response -  5  Beach Fill 7   -  Shoreline Structures 5  4  Beach Ecology 5  -  Surfing Areas 5  6  Website 8  -  Explain this chart

Florida 

Summary

Despite the popularity of surfing in Florida, there is relatively little readily available information on surfing areas and little recognition by the state of surfing as an important activity. The amount of water quality information available to the public is good and the state's website provides a wide variety of information on other beach health indicators. The state should develop a long-term plan to increase and maintain the number of coastal access locations to improve upon the existing average of one access site per 5 miles of shoreline. Some locations need parking nearby to be able to utilize existing access.

Indicators

(+) In October 2009 the Governors of North Carolina, South Carolina, Florida and Georgia announced an agreement to work together to better manage and protect ocean and coastal resources, ensure regional economic sustainability and respond to disasters such as hurricanes. The South Atlantic Alliance will leverage resources from each state to protect and maintain healthy coastal ecosystems, keep waterfronts working, enhance clean ocean and coastal waters and help make communities more resilient after they’ve been struck by natural disasters.
(+) Governor Charlie Crist signed bill CS/CS/HB 1423 to create the Florida Coral Reef Protection Act, which clearly defines the authority for the protection of corals and penalties for boat anchoring and grounding damage to the reefs of Palm Beach, Martin, Broward, Miami-Dade and Monroe Counties.
(+) In October 2008, Sarasota County Commissioners approved a virtual ban on building sea walls and generally made it tougher to build or reconstruct along the Gulf of Mexico.
(+) In June 2007, Governor Crist approved an expanded definition of beach access.
(+) The Florida Coastal and Ocean Coalition, which includes Surfrider Foundation, authored a report Florida’s Coastal and Ocean Future, A Blueprint for Economic and Environmental Leadership in September 2006 that has now been endorsed by 160 Coastal and Ocean Businesses, Civic, Outdoor, and Conservation Organizations. The Coalition followed this with the release of Preparing for a Sea Change - A Strategy to Cope with the Impacts of Global Warming on the State’s Coastal and Marine Systems, which calls upon state leaders to take the necessary steps to address the expected impacts of global warming on the state’s unique coastal and marine resources.
(+) An Ocean Outfall Study report was prepared in 2006 that identifies the six existing ocean sewage outfalls in Florida and evaluates options for elimination of these outfalls. The Delray Beach outfall was closed in early April 2009.
(+) The Florida Legislature has approved a bill to require that buyers of coastal property be given "meaningful disclosure" about the dangers of living in the potential path of killer hurricanes.
(+) Florida’s Beach and Shore Preservation Act defines a statewide setback of 50 feet from the line of mean high water.
(+) Commissioners in Sarasota County have included a handful of tough, waterfront measures described as cutting-edge protections for public access to Florida beaches in the county's comprehensive plan. Included in the document is a prohibition in certain areas against converting public waterfront businesses, such as marinas, to "non water-dependent uses." Other measures make public beach access a required part of any coastal development project and establish an official policy to use county funds to buy beach and waterfront property.
(+) People all over Florida voted to tax themselves to protect the environment in the 2004 elections. They approved bond measures in eight counties that will cost a total of $330 million to buy and preserve open space.
(+) Beach tourism contributes about $15 billion a year to Florida's economy.

(0) Over the last 50 years, about $1 billion has been spent on fill projects covering over 100 miles of beach. This works out to $10 million per mile.
(0) A series of hurricanes in 2004 caused hundreds of millions of dollars damage to Florida's beaches and beachfront property, intensifying arguments over building setbacks and the costs/benefits of beach fill projects.
(0) Over 60% of Florida's population lived within five miles of the coast in 1995.

(-) In January 2009 an article in the Miami Herald reported that the Florida Senate was considering halting the Florida Forever program to stave off more pressing budget cuts. The proposal would stop the state from issuing the remaining $250 million of $300 million worth of bonds that are issued each year to buy conservation land across the state. Although the move would save about $20 million in debt and interest payments each year, it would suspend a program to protect wild areas from development that has long been considered a national model.
(-) A Senate committee killed a bill that would have prevented day-cruise gambling ships from dumping sewage in the waters off Florida's coasts.
(-) In 2005, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers pumped $156 million of sand onto Florida beaches to replace what was washed away by rising sea levels and more intense storms, 20 percent more than the accumulated spending of the seven previous years combined. In nearly the same period, the federal EPA spent less than $300,000 to map how sea-level rise will affect coastal communities in Florida.
(-) If a beach monitoring sample exceeds the standard, an advisory or warning is not issued until a follow-up sample also exceeds the standard. In some cases, the follow-up sample is taken the same day, but in other cases it may take up to a week before the results of the follow-up sample are known. In the interim, no advisory or warning is issued.
(-) There is only about one public access site for about every 5 miles of shoreline. This corresponds to roughly one access for every 10,000 residents. This doesn't include tourists!
(-) 67% of the beaches in Florida are privately owned.
(-) There is increasing evidence that the practice of wastewater disposal by deep well injection may be affecting inland and coastal surface waters. Additional water quality concerns are discharges from cruise ships, harmful algal blooms, and antibiotic-resistant strains of bacteria.
(-) The hurricanes of 2004 did unprecedented damage to much of Florida's 800 miles of sandy beaches. They reshaped long stretches on both coasts, worsened already serious erosion, erased tens of millions of dollars worth of recent beach rebuilding and destroyed or seriously damaged some 2,000 seaside buildings.
(-) Volusia County received a new federal permit in November 2005 that allows beach driving to continue for 25 years, despite the potential harm to turtles and piping plovers.
(-) Over the last two decades, public access to Florida's 1,200 miles of coastline has diminished drastically.
(-) As much as 80% of the erosion on Florida's East Coast is attributable to the navigation improvements and historical sediment management practices at inlets, which have disrupted the natural flow of sand, virtually starving downdrift beaches.
(-) Nearly 56 million gallons of sewage spilled into Florida's waterways in 2004.
(-) Despite a presidential policy of "no net loss," Florida has lost at least 84,000 acres of wetlands in the past 15 years.

Victories

• Lake Worth Surf and Reefs Protected In a landmark decision, Florida Judge Robert E. Meale recently ruled against the town of Palm Beach in denying the town a permit to dredge and fill 1.8 miles of beach surrounding the Lake Worth Pier with 700,000 cubic yards of poor-quality sediment. In early 2008, the Palm Beach County Chapter, The Snook Foundation, and three individuals challenged the town and the State of Florida’s intent to issue that permit. The City of Lake Worth and Eastern Surfing Association also intervened in opposition to the project. The petitioners proved the dredge-and-fill project would destroy the beach and coastal environment by directly burying seven acres of reefs. The silty material would have also killed marine life, including endangered sea turtles, and seriously harmed the surfing, fishing and diving. This decision was upheld in August 2009 by the Florida Department of Environmental Protection when they threw out the project's application. More info.
• Litter Campaign in Miami Beach The South Florida Chapter has been pushing for several years to clean up the mass amounts of litter from South Miami Beach. As a result of their efforts the city is undergoing a major litter education campaign and has pledged to:
  1. Train code enforcement officers to patrol the beach and issue littering citations.
  2. Work with the County to increase the amount of trash pickups and to provide a trash transfer station in the South Beach area to allow for increased pickup.
  3. Start a recycling program for beach goers to take advantage of.
  4. Institute a cigarette butt ashtray program.
• Lee County Fertilizer Ordinance The use of fertilizer near major waterways is a contributor to the large and looming issue of red tide and algal blooms that can cause breathing problems and pollute beach water quality, impacting Lee's $2 billion tourism industry. The ordinance would limit any fertilizer application within 10 feet of a water way from June 1 to Sept 30. Fees for violation would be up to $500. The Chapter partnered with Sierra Club, SCCF, Nature Conservancy, PURRE, RGMC and Riverwatch.
• Clean Oceans Act in Florida The Clean Oceans Act sets up a mechanism for gambling boats to stop dumping 44 million gallons of pureed, chlorinated waste into the ocean every year. It requires gambling boats to register with DEP, pay berth facilities for waste hauling or use an onboard “closed system” treatment, and report waste releases to DEP. In addition it petitions the federal government to prohibit dumping in federal waters. This campaign was spearheaded by the Sebastian Inlet Chapter with major support from the entire Florida Chapter Network. More info.
• Florida Inlet Management Bill Florida has over 60 inlets around the state, many have been artificially deepened to accommodate commercial and recreational vessels and employ jetties to prevent sand from filling in the channels. A by-product of this practice is that the jetties and the inlet channels have interrupted the natural flow of sand along the beach causing an accumulation of sand in the inlet channel and at the jetty on one side of the inlet, and a loss of sand to the beaches on the other side of the inlet. This issue has exasperated the amount of large beach dredging projects instead of looking back at the inlets to solve the problem. The state’s beach management efforts to finally address beach erosion caused by Florida’s inlets (80% of the problem) will include recommendations to mitigate the erosive impacts of the inlet and recommendations regarding cost sharing among the governments. This campaign was championed by chapters throughout Florida. More info.
• South Florida Oceans Outfalls Closure Bill The six South Florida sewage outfalls, dump over 300 million gallons of wastewater into the sea and squandering 100 billion gallons of freshwater every year. This discharge impacts not only our coastal and ocean environment but it is also a waste of valuable freshwater that could be used to help out with South Florida’s drinking water shortage. This piece of legislation will remove over 300 million gallons of wastewater from Florida waters a year and by 2025 will have created a reuse system for it. Chapters throughout Florida partnered with Florida Ocean & Coastal Coalition and Palm Beach County Reef Rescue on this campaign. More info.
• Florida Beach Test Funding Protected During a year of heavy budget cuts it usually the items that are thought to be the most benign that are first to go. So when House Health Care Council puts beach monitoring in the same line item with birth registries and cesspools it bound to get over overlooked as important. A proposal to cut the entire state portion of beach monitoring would be a disaster to the public’s health and safety, especially in a state that derives 85% of its tourism from its coastline. Thanks to the efforts of the Florida Chapters funding won't be cut. The Florida portion of the federal Beach Act grant for next year is $526,320 and state funding will remain intact at $525,000. More info.
• Protected Beach Access at Bonaire Beach. The Town of Jupiter Island requested that Rep. Mahoney insert legislation that would give the Town first right of refusal to purchase a surplus Coast Guard property consisting of 10 acres, including 900 ft. of beachfront. The property being acquired from the Coast Guard was to be used for conservation and storm protection purposes. The bill did not include the property being opened for beach access. Properties designated for conservation should include customary recreational use. The Treasure Coast Chapter raised their voices and were able get an inter-local agreement between the Town and County Commission that not only opened the Coast Guard beachfront property for beach access but it also increased the nearby Hobe Sound Beach parking lot with 20 additional spaces.
• Protected Coral Reef from Pollution in Lake Worth. The City of Lake Worth was going to vote on a plan to use a coral reef as a city dump for reverse osmosis effluent. The pursuit by the City of Lake Worth to discharge 4 million-gallons-per-day of nutrient-laden wastewater onto a coral reef was derailed by public outcry after FDEP announced plans to issue a permit. At a public meeting in June 2007 coral reef experts testified that this plan was a disaster waiting to happen. The FDEP received more than 1,000 letters objecting to the permit from the public, environmental organizations, Palm Beach County Department of Environmental Resource Management and the Florida Fish and Wildlife Commission. As a result FDEP and the City chose to change the permit from ocean discharge to injection and only use the existing outfall pipe in an emergency.
  More info.
• Improved Beach Access in Walton County, FL Land that was granted to the public for use as a beach access in order to perform a dredging project was under attack by beachfront condo owners. Property owners were concerned that if the proposed parking that underlies the project is constructed, environmental problems will arise and more beach-goers will trespass on their property. Beachgoers had been parking on the side of the road on this dirt easement. The county attorney recently rendered the opinion that the property is public access. The Scenic Gulf Drive project will place over 100 parallel parking spaces adjacent to the Whale’s Tail Restaurant on Miramar Beach.
• Stopped new law that would allow more beach armoring in FL. The proposed legislative language would have changed existing policy to allow one type of armoring to be used anywhere and for any reason. FL Chapters rallied to prevent this, protecting beaches.
• Florida Access Legislation Florida Statute Chapter 161 Beach Management, had only protected lateral beach access when it came to coastal construction permitting. By adding several sentences to the definition of “access”, both lateral and perpendicular are now protected. The legislation was instigated by the South Florida Chapter's campaign to re-open access at Bal Harbour.
• Access Restored in South Florida The South Florida chapter regained access to a public beach which had been closed indefinitely by developers in the midst of a construction project and no temporary access was put in place. More info.
• Stopped Sewage Outfall at Delray Beach The Palm Beach County Chapter assisted/partnered with another local group and the county to eliminate dumping from a sewage outfall in order to protect endangered corals and the reef ecosystem. This is the first ocean outfall ever closed in Florida. More info.
• Treasure Coast destructive restoration project stopped The Treasure Coast Chapter protected nearshore sand shoals off the coast of Florida from dredging by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers when the Corps announced they had dropped a plan to use sand off the Fort Pierce coast for a beach fill project in Miami-Dade County.
• Save surfing access at Cocoa Beach Pier The Sebastian Inlet Chapter saved surfing access at Cocoa Beach Pier.
• Surfing access to Deerfield Beach FL The Palm Beach County Chapter secured surfing access at Deerfield Beach where it had been restricted.
• Ponte Vedra FL beach access The First Coast Chapter won an important victory when the Florida Seventh Circuit Court ordered obstructions removed to open beach access in Ponte Vedra.
• The South Florida Chapter made the South Pointe Continuum towers make a wider and nicer pathway to replace the old one connecting Penrods to South Point Park
• The Treasure Coast Chapter, aided by the Florida Sportsman communications network, area fishing and diving clubs and federal agencies, convinced the Florida Department of Environmental Protection to require St. Lucie County to replace all of the more than 200,000 cubic yards of inferior quality sand that was used to rebuild 3.7 miles of dunes after the 2004 hurricanes.
• Lake Worth surf saved Activists from the Palm Beach Chapter helped convince the Lake Worth City Council to reject a disastrous dredge and fill project that would have significantly degraded the Lake Worth surf break.