Save the Manatee: Demand Herbicide Ban On Indian River Lagoon, Florida

Please sign Petition to give support for designation of aquatic herbicide ban for Indian River Lagoon in Florida, as a Federally protected estuary. 

The Indian River Lagoon became an Estuary of National Significance joining National Estuary Program (NEP) in 1991. 

Indian River Lagoon in Florida is dying - with loss of species including 1101 federally protected manatees died in 2021. The lagoon needs an aquatic herbicide ban because 96% of seagrass is gone due to pollution.  This is food/shelter for countless species.

This is a picture of a manatee dying and crying out in pain of starvation.  There is loss of 96% of seagrass food according to MRC Lagoon Report Card 2022. 

Blue Springs has had an aquatic herbicide ban designation for years as a Federally protected Springs. The Indian River Lagoon is also Federally protected.  The areas of the lagoon with herbicide bans are improving verus those increasing herbicides are declining.  There is also scientific literature as referenced by NEP president.  A ban would be helpful because: 
1. Impacts to the seagrass Ruppia;
2. Impacts to microalgae/cyanobacteria growth (lab study)
3. Persistence in seawater
4. Glyphosate increasing in Manatees since 2009

A ban on aquatic herbicides in the Blue Spring region has been in place for years.  According to news article, an aquatic herbicide ban worked to help manatees at Blue Springs. "For now, the St. Johns River around Blue Spring has enough food to support the hundreds of manatees that rely on it. 

In March 2022, a Brevard commissioner proposes culling manatees to curb starvation. Manatees are federally protected species and have been starving to death in Florida waters in 2021, with a record-breaking 1,101 deaths reported by the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.  The deaths continue this year with 479 manatee deaths, in Florida with about 65% of dealths in Brevard County; other counties doing aquatic bans are doing much better. 

Pollution has decimated 96% of the seagrasses and vegetation that manatees rely on to survive.  

The rash of deaths has been so devastating, particularly in the Indian River Lagoon, that wildlife officials announced they would take the unprecedented step to feed manatees in Brevard County this winter.

Florida State sprays Aquastar (58% Gylphosate) in ditches that manatees feed in and drains to lagoon.  Brevard County had the highest deaths of manatees and the highest glyphosate level in manatees in the lagoon - and Brevard increased the budget for herbicide spraying by 2.5 times in October 2021.

By contrast, both Indian River County (2020) and Martin County (2019), as counties on the Indian River County have banned glyphosate by Public Works and contractors in their counties to help the lagoon.   Indian River said, "Indian River County has stopped spraying glyphosate, a chemical believed to cause cancer and possibly algae blooms, at 40 parks and the Sandridge Golf Course." The Martin County article said, "Martin County this week became the second Treasure Coast government to stop using glyphosate, the chemical found in Roundup, a weed killer suspected of causing cancer and feeding toxic algae blooms." and "Stuart stopped using the chemical in September." (2019)

We hear a lot about fertilizers and septic tanks being responsible for algae blooms that shade and kill the seagrasses on which manatees feed. That is a major problem, yet nobody is talking about what effect herbicides may be having on seagrasses and other plants eaten by manatees and other animals."

"Recent U.S. Environmental Protection Agency data shows that Atrazine, Simazine and Glyphosate used on farms and lawns kill good algae, like diatoms, and can harm fish and invertebrates, including endangered species." "Herbicides may promote blooms of toxic cyanobacteria, like the green slime, Microcystis, pouring from Lake Okeechobee, which is implicated in Parkinson's disease and dementia?" https://www.tcpalm.com/story/opinion/contributors/2022/01/29/you-can-help-manatees-cut-pollution-indian-river-lagoon-opinion/9248663002/

MRC has also said for past 2 years that the science is showing that it is more than nutrient loading. MRC said last year that in 2009 the seagrass in aerials was as much as 1943 - but something changed in 2010. In 2010, the state laid off 1300 workers doing mechanical harvesting and switched to broadcast spraying of herbicides as a cost-cutting measure. 

BREVARD'S SAVE OUR LAGOON PLAN DOES NOT INCLUDE POLLUTION  - AS REQUIRED TO DO SO BY FEDERAL NEP COMPREHENSIVE PLAN AS APPROVED BY EPA.  The NEP Plan also discusses glyphosate as impact to the lagoon.  Tetratech wrote both the NEP and Brevard's Save Our Lagoon Plan - same people, so they know.

This is basis of requiring IRL Council to deny approving the SOIRLPP.