Fort Lauderdale Coalition News and Events

From left to right, Nicole Morris and Brooke Mootry (from the Broward County Department of Health) and Robert Carew (from the Broward County Natural Resources Planning and Management Division), at the Ft. Lauderdale Beach Park site for the 24th annual International Coastal Cleanup. 164 volunteers collected 346 lbs of trash at the site. The Department of Health gave out small bags to separate cigarette butts to promote no smoking, and almost 10 lbs of cigarette butts were collected!

Habitat Stewards Linda Marshall and Frank McKey set up a booth at Driftwood Middle School Environmental Day

Kim Mayo shares information about migratory wildlife at a Community Outreach Event

Students learn how their certified schoolyard habitat benefits native and migratory wildlife

Tomas L. Chancey spreads the word about Flyways in Ft. Lauderdale

Soon after the start of 2010, Florida experienced an unusual cold snap with temperatures actually dropping below freezing in many places. Wildlife in northern Florida was especially hard hit with close to 2,000 sea turtles being 'Cold Stunned' from the cold weather. Shallow areas of the Indian/Banana River Lagoon regions had water temperatures drop into the 50s, resulting in many sea turtles needing help to survive.

Various state and county agencies responded and over 700 sea turtles were rescued from the icy waters and resuscitated at various locations including the Marine Science Center in Ponce Inlet, as well as the Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge near Cape Canaveral, FL.

It was decided that releasing the most effected turtles in South Florida was a much safer bet to minimize the stress to the animals while increasing their chances of long term survival. With John U. Lloyd Park in Dania Beach chosen as proper release site, Broward County’s Environmental Protection & Growth Management Department, Natural Resources Planning & Management Division Marine Section were requested to help in the release of several truckloads of recuperated Green and Loggerhead sea turtles.

The Disney Corporation provided a tractor trailer to transport the turtles to South Florida and with the coordinated efforts of several state agencies such as the Florida Department of Environmental Protection, Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission and the Florida Park Service; the release was conducted late afternoon on January 12^th.

Volunteers from the Natural Resources Planning and Management Division included Lou Fisher, David Stout, Pat Quinn, as well as Victor Suarez and Robert Carew, both Habitat Stewards with NWF. The first truckload contained 22 pre-adult and juvenile Green sea turtles and the second truck contained 17 pre-adult Green and one 300lb adult female Loggerhead sea turtle. All the sea turtles were safely returned to the warmer (70° F) waters of the Atlantic Ocean at the north end of J. U. Lloyd State Park.

(Photos by Robert Carew, Victor Suarez and David Stout.)

The National Football League in partnership with the US Forest Service and the Florida Division of Forestry made available tree planting grants throughout South Florida this year as a lead up to Super Bowl XLIV. NatureScape Broward received 2 grants to install native trees at schools in Broward County.

These pictures are from the ceremony at New Renaissance Middle School in Miramar that included a performance by the team cheer squad, a student poster contest, a presentation by Mark Torok of the DOF and the release of some rehabilitated birds and several butterflies (along with a container filled with ladybugs) into the newly planted area in front of the school.

Jack Groh, Director of the National Football League Environmental Program, discussed the carbon footprint of the Superbowl and had the 250 students and elected officials in the audience take a green pledge.