With this starvation crisis reaching a critical point, it’s evident that the only way we can save the dwindling sea cow population is by restoring seagrass beds.
John — if we’re going to put everything on the line to defend the “sea cow,” we must restore its habitat.
More than 1,000 manatees died in the last year alone due to starvation, driven by pollutants and toxic algae blooms that have decimated their food sources. Now, 96% of seagrass has been lost in the most critical manatee habitat, the Indian River Lagoon off Florida.
That’s why the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service took drastic measures by starting a pilot feeding program to supplement the manatee’s diet of seagrass with lettuce. And while it seemed like there may have been some initial success based on the sightings of manatees munching on the salad greens, wildlife agencies now say that they have no way of measuring the effectiveness of the feeding programs in preventing deaths.
With this starvation crisis reaching a critical point, it’s evident that the only way we can save the dwindling sea cow population is by restoring seagrass beds.
This won’t be easy as longstanding restoration and protection of the lagoon include:
Updating wastewater treatment plants;
Making septic-to-sewer conversions;
Treating stormwater runoff and;
Dredging muck that is attributed to the seagrass die-off from the bottom of the lagoon.
The EPA has estimated that restoring the Indian River Lagoon will cost $5 billion and take twenty to thirty years to complete. With climate change intensifying toxic algae blooms that are choking aquatic life, the manatee cannot wait any longer for their food supplies to be restored.
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