A rare deep-water coral reef found nowhere else on Earth, located just off the coast of Fort Pierce, faces an uncertain future as federal officials prepare to make a final decision on proposals that would reopen parts of the protected area to shrimp trawling. Dozens of community members gathered at the Blake Library in Martin County to rally support for the Oculina Bank, a reef that thrives hundreds of feet below the surface in deep, dark waters and provides habitat for more than 2,000 marine species.
The federally-appointed South Atlantic Marine Fishery Council voted in January to reopen more than 24 square nautical miles of the reef to shrimp trawling, an area larger than the island of Manhattan. The decision came despite tens of thousands of petition signatures opposing the move and warnings from scientists that trawling destroyed as much as 90 percent of the reef before federal protections were put in place decades ago. Dr. Grant Gilmore, a scientist who previously dived the rare reef, said the coral provides essential habitat and food for fish populations. Mark Perry, Executive Director of the Florida Oceanographic Society, expressed devastation at the council's vote, noting it was the same body that decades ago approved protecting the reef.
Unlike most coral that needs shallow sunlight to survive, the Oculina Bank lives in deep, dark waters. Perry and Gilmore were among scientists who spoke at the gathering, urging the public to help save the reef. Gilmore emphasized that corals are in trouble worldwide and that no more should be destroyed. The coral grows very slowly and has been present for a long time, Perry said.
The proposal now sits with NOAA, which will make the final decision. The federal agency is expected to release draft rules within the coming months, giving the public one more opportunity to weigh in before officials decide whether to move forward. Activists are urging residents to write letters to their congressmen and to those who might influence the decisions on protecting the coral.