Setting the Hook

From the Chairman and the President

As the 7th International Science Symposium came to a close, one message was clear. If we care about the flats fishery, and if we want to conserve it, then science has shown us the way—improve water quality, conserve coastal habitats, and ensure effective management.

The answer seems simple enough, but we know the process of change rarely unfolds in a straight line. In this case, the way forward will continue to be challenging as competing interests vie for access to the resource. Similarly, we won’t be given the luxury of time, or the choice to focus on one challenge to the exclusion of all others. Instead, our approach will need to be integrated and comprehensive, working on all of them simultaneously and with everything that science can bring to the fight!

This approach is readily evident in the scope of work across BTT’s research and conservation programs and can be seen again in this issue of Bonefish & Tarpon Journal.

BTT has long supported Everglades restoration, and our commitment is unwavering. It was gratifying to take part recently in the groundbreaking ceremony for the long-awaited EAA Reservoir—a major and hard-fought centerpiece in the restoration plan to send water south to Florida Bay. The occasion reminded us of our past trips to Tallahassee and Washington, DC, to advocate for the project’s authorization and funding, our calls to action, and our collaboration with Now or Neverglades partners to promote the coalition’s petition. Yet, after marking the occasion on a remote corner of ground south of Lake Okeechobee, we returned to unfinished business in the Everglades and, simultaneously, in response to new water quality challenges emerging across Florida.

Case in point, following last year’s alarming report of pharmaceutical contaminants in bonefish, BTT will soon release the results of a similar study on redfish. Our scientists sampled redfish from nine major estuaries statewide looking for traces of 95 common psychoactive and heart medications, antibiotics, pain and allergy relievers, opioids, and other medications. The results? Drugs were found in nearly every sample—94 percent of the 113 fish tested—and at higher and concerning levels in half of the fish tested.

These results make clear that the problem we first documented is not limited to bonefish or to the waters of South Florida and the Keys. Rather, pharmaceutical contamination is widespread across Florida’s marine habitats—a dire consequence of a wastewater infrastructure not up to the task. In her article, “No Time to Waste,” Alex Marvar reports from the 7th International Science Symposium on both the causes and remedies. Scientists and policymakers agree that it isn’t too late to save the state’s fisheries from pharmaceutical contamination—at least, not yet. But action is needed now, especially given the favorable opportunities to capitalize on state and federal funding for infrastructure.

The ever evolving and always complex water quality issues such as these remain our top priority at BTT. If we lose our water, we lose our fishery! But there’s more to the story—another perspective that should be of equal concern to flats anglers. Even if we were able to restore our waters to an earlier pristine state, we could still run the risk of losing our fishery. Yes, even with all of our current water woes addressed, the flats fishery would still face threats at scale stemming from the loss of coastal habitats that are so essential to sustaining the fishery. Likewise, we can’t assume that fishery management approaches from an earlier time will suffice in the face of the dynamic environment of today, from a changing climate to increased pressure on the resource. Our friend Sandy Moret speaks often and eloquently about the “weight of humanity” on the water.

In response, BTT has expanded its habitat restoration and

Carl Navarre, Chairman

Jim McDuffie, President

conservation efforts in recent years to include the largest mangrove restoration project in Bahamas history, restoration of a creek system on East Grand Bahama blocked for decades, planning to restore two tracts at Rookery Bay on Florida’s Gulf Coast, and the habitat-related recommendations advanced last year in the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary (FKNMS) plan.

Mike Adno reports in “Charting the Way Forward” about how BTT, the Lower Keys Guides Association and the Florida Keys Fishing Guides Association collaborated on their responses to the Sanctuary’s Restoration Blueprint, with a focus on preventing habitat loss and degradation, improving water quality and reversing fishery declines. This represents the first update to the Sanctuary’s management plan in 15 years, and decisions codified in the revised plan will potentially impact the flats fishery for decades to come.

Habitat loss is also evident in Chris Santella’s piece, “BTT Expands Presence in Belize.” Alongside the country’s angling community, BTT has advocated against irresponsible development at Blackadore Caye, Cayo Rosario, and Deadman’s Caye at Turneffe Atoll. The groundswell of opposition by guides, lodges and other stakeholders is enabling BTT and its partners to put a bright spotlight on unwise coastal development and its impacts on the fishery.

As with the unprecedent changes in water quality and habitat over recent decades, we have also witnessed how environmental changes and resource use have necessitated changes in fishery management. BTT’s research helped make the case for a spawning season closure at Western Dry Rocks (WDR) in the spring of 2021. Our work continues today through monitoring at WDR and three other unprotected sites used by spawning permit. The resulting data will enable the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) to make informed decisions when this management action sunsets after seven years.

In this issue, you will also read about two other management issues of growing concern to BTT. In his excellent article, “The Pogy Problem,” T. Edward Nickens explains how menhaden, a critically important forage fish for many species, including tarpon, are being exploited by two foreign corporations—and how BTT is partnering with other conservation leaders to advocate for management changes. And in “The Uninvited Guest,” fishing guide Mike Conner writes about angler interactions with sharks and the subsequent depredation of flats species, which have many anglers calling for a broader discussion on management actions and ethical practices by anglers. As this edition of the Journal goes to press, BTT has just announced a new project to research shark-angler interactions in the Keys at different locations and with different fishing methods.

We hope you will find this issue of Bonefish & Tarpon Journal informative, entertaining, and emblematic of your support and commitment to the cause. And we hope it will renew your own steadfast resolve to help BTT deliver the grand slam of flats conservation—clean water, intact habitats and effective management!

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