Kristie Anders
Education Director, Sanibel-Captiva Conservation Foundation

The trampoline analogy is how Kristie describes an ecosystem that bounces back until too many springs are gone. The resiliency of an ecosystem after a hurricane is a great example of that. But Kristie thinks we are getting close to the point where parts of an ecosystem, the springs, are missing so that it's harder for the ecosystem to bounce back.

"Ecosystems are far more complex than people can imagine," she says. To her, seagrasses are "underwater meadows." They grow tall and fold over to create little tunnels for puffer fish, mini seahorses, blue crabs, hermit crabs and other species to live and feed. As many of those seagrasses have disappeared due to changes in the water quality, so too have the creatures that depend upon them.

As a result, Kristie is seeing less diversity in the ecosystem and fewer numbers in some species. We have an affinity for the "charismatic wildlife" like the manatees, which can eat up to 100 pounds of seagrasses in a day, she says. But they won't make it if the seagrasses don't make it. Similarly, the dolphins, fish and shore birds that also depend upon the health of the waterways are being impacted.

It's a domino effect, and Kristie sees the impact first-hand as she motors her way to work each day in her boat. There is a lot more tumbleweed algae and more algae growth on turtle grass blades, the most prevalent seagrass in the estuary. The fish population isn't what it used to be. Lower water visibility is causing boaters who don't know the waters to run across turtle grass beds and rip them up by the roots with their boat propellers. That's compounding the damage to the seagrasses, with further loss of the plants and prop scarring of those that remain. Higher turpidity in the water also kills oyster beds, since the oysters can't filter feed in heavy sediment.

Kristie even sees the effects in the upper reaches of Pine Island Sound, where she lives. That area is some of the healthiest in the region, but it too is changing as a result of water quality issues.

And those changes aren't all due to Lake Okeechobee releases and pollutants flowing downstream from Orlando. "Not everything that's happening in our estuary is a result of water releases from the Lake," she says. The cumulative effect of population growth in southwest Florida is part of the picture. As just one example she points to the 90,000 septic tanks in Lee County.

"We have to take personal responsibility," she asserts. "We can't look upstream and say ‘it's their fault' because it's not. We need to look carefully at what we put on our lawns and our plants. Native plants don't' require pesticides and herbicides, so landscaping with them has less environmental impact."

She also urges boaters to be more careful not to run aground or rip up seagrasses and to use catches for gasoline from their engines. And she urges fishermen to catch and release whenever possible.

She describes how the Conservation Foundation is seeking to add a series of sensors to the area's river and estuary to measure the quantity of blue light, salinity levels, and nutrient amounts to try to determine the exact sources of what's happening in the waterways to cause the changes. The first sensors are in the test phase, and the remaining sensors are scheduled to be placed by the fall of 2007. The program is funded by the City of Sanibel and private contributions from people who want to make a difference and who are saying "we can do this."

It reminds her of the thousands of letters local residents recently generated to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to object to a new water release schedule from Lake Okeechobee. It "blew away" leaders at the Corps, she says; and it caused them to reconsider the release schedule to be more favorable for the area.

So Kristie urges everyone in the area – residents and visitors alike – to realize the power they can have to affect change. To her, it's a matter of keeping the momentum going and of people feeling empowered to face a complex and seemingly daunting task.

"Citizens are finding out how empowered they can be, and that's a very good thing."