Inaugural Biscayne Bay Marine Health Summit Report
1 Inaugural Biscayne Bay Marine Health Summit Report Prepared by: Tiffany Troxler1, Frank Leone1, James Fourqurean1, Joel Trexler1, Steve Sauls1, Dave Doebler2, Luiz Rodriguez3, Dara Schoenwald2, Camila Quaresma-Sharp4, Candice Allouch1 1Florida International University, 2VolunteerCleanup.org, 3Eco-Logical Solutions, 4Sharp Dentistry 2 Steering Committee Luiz Rodrigues, Eco-Logical Solutions, Founder Steve Sauls, FIU VP for Governmental Relations (retired) Irela Bagué, Bagué Group Albert Gomez, South Florida Resilience System/City of Miami Sea Level Rise Committee Dave Doebler, Co-Founder, VolunteerCleanup.org Acknowledgements Suggested Citation Troxler, T., F. Leone, J. Fourqurean, J. Trexler, S. Sauls, D. Doebler, L. Rodriguez, D. Schoenwald, C. Quaresma-Sharp, C. Allouch. 2017. Inaugural Biscayne Bay Marine Health Summit Report. Florida International University, Miami, Florida. 36p. This is publication number 6 of the Sea Level Solutions Center in the Institute of Water and Environment at Florida International University. 3 Foreword by Steve Sauls The sold-out Biscayne Bay Marine Health Summit yesterday @FIU’s Biscayne Bay Campus was a great success. Over 200 registered participants gained greater awareness of the bay as an ecological system and the challenges it’s experiencing today including inundation of marine debris, other pollutants, and massive die off of sea grasses which will take years to recover. The diverse group of environmental advocates, governmental officials and private sector participants pledged to collaborate to support healthy bay initiatives including the Biscayne Bay Restoration Initiative (BBRI), and implementation of NOAA’s Florida Marine Debris Reduction Guidance Plan as part of a new 10-year action plan. The Summit also began the process of formulating a rigorous research agenda, called for a more comprehensive water quality monitoring and assessment plan, and need for greater communication and public outreach.
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