Today on Marine Science Minute with Florida Sea Grant: Seagrass safe boating.
March 1st may be World Seagrass Day, but safe boaters celebrate seagrass all year long!
Florida’s waters are home to valuable seagrass meadows, underwater paradises for marine life and protectors of water quality.
However, anchors and propellers can drag across seagrass and create damaged areas, called scars, that take a long time to heal.
To avoid this, seagrass safe boaters check water depths, use marked channels, and tilt their motors up in shallow areas. If it’s too shallow, push, pole or drift to deeper water. Attempting to motor off seagrass makes a larger and deeper scar. You can visit be seagrass safe dot com take the seagrass safe boating pledge.
For information about this and other coastal topics, contact your county extension office or visit Florida Sea Grant at flseagrant.org.