Opinion-Editorial
For Immediate Release: April 25, 2003

What is going on in Florida? Never has the subject of manatees been so contentious. Never has the vocal opposition to manatee protection been so outrageous, mean-spirited or confused.

Some confusion is understandable as several actions are occurring in the same time frame on both the state and federal levels. The Florida Fish & Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWCC) wants to downlist manatees from their endangered status at the state level. There are also the federal efforts to add manatee protection in three waterways and to adopt Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA) Incidental Take Rules. Confusion, yes. But vengeance on the part of the state — why?

The settlement agreement that resulted from a lawsuit filed by Save the Manatee Club (SMC) and 17 other groups against the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service (Service) and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Corps), committed the Service to designate new manatee protection areas throughout Florida. The additional speed zones in the Caloosahatchee River and other areas are the result of that agreement. FWCC could have addressed this obvious need but has repeatedly failed to do so. That is why the federal government had to step in and the state doesn't like it one bit!

The Service also committed to adopting incidental take rules under the MMPA. Since manatees are a federally listed endangered species, federal agencies cannot, by law, issue permits or take other actions that adversely affect manatees, in the absence of effective protections – a fact that is clearly spelled out in both the MMPA and the Endangered Species Act. Compliance with these federal laws is the only way to ensure that development and other activities can occur consistent with the needs of the manatee. Finally, the agreement was signed by all parties, including the intervenors - marine industries and developers. Ask yourself, why are they complaining now when no action has been taken contrary to what they agreed to?

So, what is going on? Boating groups that once blasted the governor and FWCC over manatee speed zones, now want the state to "take the lead" on manatee issues and keep the feds out. The state is considering entering a lawsuit with a local government against federal manatee protection efforts because of rumors concerning a dock building moratorium that does not exist. In fact, in the past year 859 single-family docks have been permitted by the Corps in southwest Florida alone- 281of those in Lee County.

Save the Manatee Club has apparently been declared fair game in this public debacle. Members of our staff are defamed and lies about our finances and motives have been spread in letters to the editor, on fishing forums, and special interest web sites. Commissioners rant against us publicly at their meetings and have ordered their staff to remove all reference to SMC from FWCC web sites. A legislator has sent emails to our supporters, telling them they are being "rooked" by us.

SMC is a public interest advocacy group, effectively working for comprehensive manatee protection. We have long supported state manatee programs, contributing hundreds of thousands of dollars, and intervening in lawsuits, on the state's behalf, at least 13 times. Perhaps most importantly, we played a vital role in establishing the manatee license plate in 1990. Since then we have been the primary voice for keeping the plate's trust fund intact, ensuring that the vast majority of state funding for manatee protection is generated through voluntary donations, not tax dollars. This year we are fighting an outrageous bill intended to gut funding for the state's manatee research and management programs.

Not to be outdone by the legislature, the FWCC commissioners just voted to fast track downlisting manatees at their May meeting, deciding not to wait for more scientific information, although they decided just that earlier this year. Moreover, they are going forward without reconciling widespread scientific criticism of their "one-size-fits-all-species" listing/delisting criteria. In light of three recent years of record-high watercraft-related manatee mortality, as well as new scientific population modeling information that paints a dire picture for the recovery of the species, the FWCC should not downlist manatees until they have strong scientific evidence to show that it is warranted. Ironically, the latest scientific information indicates exactly the opposite. The FWCC clearly does not want to deal with manatee issues and they are abandoning all sound reasoning to do so.

While the state complains and attempts retaliation for the proposed new protections, there is unanimous agreement among experts that the manatee population is declining in southwest Florida and may be declining on the Atlantic coast, as well. The proposed federal actions are based on the unavoidable scientific reality that watercraft-related manatee mortality remains too high and must be reduced. Unless the state is willing to accept this reality and work to develop improved protections, it cannot attain its objective of relieving the economic hardship it claims is occurring in southwest Florida. The key to solving the problem is clear - government agencies and Florida's citizens must work together to reduce manatee mortality with real, long-term solutions. If the state really wants to resolve conflict surrounding manatee issues as they have claimed, they are going about it in precisely the wrong way. Their petty revenge tactics are counter-productive to their stated goals and that of recovering this extraordinary animal.