Ok..it's been a little time since my last blog. Well alot has happened since Vail and now it's time to get caught up. I have alot of blogging to do so I'll start with "Baynanza 08". I have been fortunate to grow up on Biscayne Bay. I spent many weekends fishing the flats with my Dad and watching my Mom cut the wake waterskiing. However, over the years with Miami's growing population the Bay suffered from pollution and the marine environment was in steep decline.The Bay needed a 911 water rescue and got it from Miami Dade County.
It was in the early 1980's that the County stepped in to save Biscayne Bay. Baynanza was created as part of a larger effort to save the Bay. Now in its 26th year, Baynanza is a celebration of the Bay and its importance as one of our most important ecological and economic systems. Even though Baynanza includes more than 40 great events spanning from March to April, it is the Biscayne Bay Cleanup Day that generates the most interest.
So to celebrate the Bay, we volunteered on April 19th with 6500 other people to clean the Bay. People cleaned the Bay from Haulover in the north all the way down to Black Point to the south. Armed with rakes, gloves and trash bags, we all collectively removed more than 30 tons of garbage that had accumulated along our shores and islands of the Bay. The Porifera group (Joe and Charles and ofcourse our coffee connoisseur Lisa) were on Monument Island which is located just south of the Venetian Causeway near Star Island. Our island had nearly 50 volunteers and collected over 120 bags of garbage in three hours. It was a great effort but the Bay needs more than one weekend of cleanup to keep its 69,000 acres clean.
Not all residents appreciate just how fabulous it is to live with one of the largest subtropical lagoons in the United States. It stretches from Haulover all the way down to Card Sound including Biscayne National Park.The Bay supports a diverse biological community from coastal wetlands to submerged aquatic habitats. Anyone who has driven over the Julia Tuttle Causeway can see the extensive seagrass beds at low tide. And for those of us who boat on the Bay are familiar with Miami Limestone (not so good)and ofcourse all the fish fauna. According to the University of Miami School of Marine and Atmospheric Sciences, there are atleast 512 fish species in the Bay and over 150 species of shrimp, crabs, and lobsters.
Matter of fact, Baynanza weekend we saw manatees, dolphins, herons, egrets and a huge loggerhead turtle. It doesn't stop there...many North American species use Biscayne Bay as a major stopover in the autumn migration. It is all that rich marine life that played an important role in the historic makeup of the Bay. The Tequesta and Calusa Indians settled along the shoreline of Biscayne Bay for its abundant wildlife. Their occupation along the waters of Biscayne Bay was unfortunately short lived after the Spanish made their landfall. Early explorers included Ponce De Leon who sailed into what was then Chequescha Bay. Over hundreds of years little by little what small footprints remained of the Bay's history were filled in by urban development.
However the Bay is still a beautiful aquatic preserve. There aren't too many places that you can go boating, sailing, or pilot an ultralight while watching a pod of dolphins, a manatee or osprey. It is truly unique and hopefully it will stay that way with people respecting the Bay and keeping it clean.
So be involved and be green...the next cleanup is scheduled for Saturday, May 10th. This time the cleanup brigade will be on South Beach starting at 1st beach and working its way north. Visit the Environmental Coalition of Miami Beach (ECOMB) website at http://www.ecomb.org/ for more info and to sign up.
Ciao,
Angie of the Green Girls
