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Jacksonville officials outline manatee protection plan, zoning recommendations and outreach efforts
Summary
City planning staff described the local Manatee Protection Plan(MPP), its legal background, four zoning categories for boat facility siting, enforcement coordination and education and signage work, and noted Jacksonville Universitysupport for monitoring and reports.
Eric Hinton of the City of Jacksonville planning department explained the cityManatee Protection Plan to the Waterways Commission on March 13, summarizing legal authorities, plan components, defined boat‑facility siting zones and local education and enforcement efforts.
Hinton said manatees are protected at the federal level under the Marine Mammal Protection Act and the Endangered Species Act and that state protections stem from the Florida Manatee Sanctuary Act; state rules implementing those protections set manatee‑protection zones. Locally, Hinton said, the protections are implemented in part by Jacksonville Municipal Code Chapter 387, which establishes local manatee protection zones and related siting recommendations.
The plan uses four zoning designations to guide where boat slips and facilities are sited: preferred zones (no limit on slips), acceptable‑with‑conditions zones (a slip‑to‑shore ratio of 5 slips per 100 feet), unacceptable zones (1 slip per 100 feet) and a special development area downtown handled by the Downtown Investment Authority. Hinton described the calculation method used to convert shoreline length into allowable slips for an individual site and noted that inconsistency with the MPP can stop a project and force redesign.
Hinton described the three major components of the plan as education, law enforcement and facility siting. He said Jacksonville University (JU), the Jacksonville Zoo, Save the Manatee Club and St. Johns Riverkeeper support education efforts; Captain Jim Suber coordinates law enforcement task forces that include JSO, FWC, FWS and the U.S. Coast Guard and also organizes a JSO media day aimed at boating season.
Hinton described JUsupport: JU produces an annual MPP implementation report, tracks education presentations, provides manatee mortality data and boat activity data, maintains a habitat map, conducts aerial surveys, produces compliance studies and operates a manatee hotline. Hinton said regulatory signs are set by countywide review and that the city may post informational signs; over the last year the city posted about 25 informational signs, he said.
Hinton said Duval County(he used "Duval" interchangeably with Jacksonville in the presentation) has the most recent update to its MPP and that FWC and FWS have found the current plan acceptable. He encouraged questions and said city staff are available for follow up.
