Residents question state’s environmental policies on mangrove trimming in Sarasota Bay
Local water quality advocates have raised concerns about recent mangrove trimming in Sarasota Bay, but an inspection by the state’s top environmental agency said it did not find major violations.
Roughly 26 acres of mangroves south of El Conquistador Parkway were trimmed earlier this year as part of the ongoing construction for the Aqua by the Bay development. Speaking with the Bradenton Herald, representatives from environmental groups expressed concern with those modifications.
“It’s huge,” said Rusty Chinnis, a member of the Suncoast Waterkeeper organization. “They made a real mess of the place.”
“It’s pretty clear to me that there are significant violations of the permit,” added Justin Bloom, Suncoast Waterkeeper’s executive director. “There’s a lot of trimmed mangroves there were left on the floor of the mangrove forest. FDEP has chosen to ignore that, and they’re giving the developer a pass.”
Aqua by the Bay is a 529-acre development along Sarasota Bay, in an area that had remained undeveloped until 2020. The project is slated to bring 2,384 multifamily units and 510 single-family homes — likely to be in high demand given the area’s housing shortage — along with commercial retail space.
Mangroves are heavily protected under Florida law. In addition to protecting the shore from erosion, the coastal trees provide habitat for birds above the water and shelter for fish below the surface.
Trimming activities are regulated by the Florida Department of Environmental Protection, which requires photo documentation to be submitted before and after the work is completed.
In a May 16 letter to the property owner, FDEP said that photo documentation has not been shared. The agency described the situation as “minor non-compliance,” and warned that future violations could be subject to financial penalties.
“The mangroves appeared to be healthy and trimmed within the permit limits,” an FDEP spokesperson wrote in an email to the Herald. “However, no pre- or post-photographs or pre- or post-trimming notifications were provided to the department, which are required by the mangrove trimming plan.”
Reached for comment, Carlos Beruff, the developer of the Aqua By the Bay property, described the situation as a mistake that has already been corrected.
“The certified contractor that we use took the before pictures and, unfortunately, they didn’t get to FDEP. They now have the before pictures and the after pictures,” Beruff wrote in an email to the Herald.
Despite FDEP’s stance on the legality of the mangrove trimming, some locals remain concerned about the impact on the shoreline and how the modifications were handled.
“What we saw was concerning because it wasn’t just cutting down mangroves severely, but it looked like the material was dropped in the water and left to decompose,” said David Tomasko, executive director of the Sarasota Bay Estuary Program. “If this is within permits, it still needs to stop.”
“This is moving us in the wrong direction. It’s absolutely a bad thing for the bay,” he added.
In photos and videos shared with the Herald, mangrove clippings appeared to be left behind in the water. The permit requires the property owner to make “all reasonable efforts” to remove the trimmings from the site and distribute the remaining trimmings evenly.
Tomasko explained that he believed it was a bad practice to leave those clippings behind because the branches and leaves contain nitrogen, which can fuel harmful algae blooms.
“Whether or not people are in compliance or not, it’s not a good idea to leave that much mangrove material in the bay,” Tomasko said. “There’s an awful lot left in the water and it’s working against what we’re doing to improve water quality in the bay.”
According to the permit, Aqua by the Bay will be allowed to trim roughly 9 additional acres of mangroves at a later date.
