Our beaches are an important nesting area for endangered sea turtles. Sharing the beach with sea turtles is a great privilege but we must take some measures to protect the turtles.

Artificial lighting can cause sea turtle hatchlings to die by straying away from the safety of the gulf. Please be extra careful to keep exterior lights out, as much as possible, and close the window treatments when interior lights are on. These measures should be taken from dusk to dawn during the nesting/hatching season – May1-Nov 1.

Also, any beach furniture (tents, chairs, etc.) taken to the beach should be removed at night. Bonfires and fireworks are not allowed on our beach.

By using these simple measures you can help save these sea turtles from extinction.

If you see sea turtle hatchlings call Bruce Drye immediately at 927 2103 – day or night or FWC at 1-888-404-3922!

Thanks and enjoy your stay at the uncommon Florida

St. George Island Civic Club Volunteers Restore Dunes and Vegetation

and

Build boardwalks at public accesses to protect habitat

Project overview

Background info: In early 2007 STAR, Inc offered to assist Franklin County by writing a habitat restoration grant request to assist with funding a dune restoration on parts of the Gulf Beaches section of St George Island (SGI). The beaches of SGI are important nesting habitat for endangered and threatened sea turtles. The dunescape of the beaches helps to not only protect the sea turtle nesting habitat but also helps protect near shore infrastructure. The restoration effort consisted of erecting sand fence, planting native dune vegetation on the county beach area, and building dune walkovers at several public access points leading to the beach.

Franklin County with the help of STAR took on the project to “re-grow” the badly damaged and almost non-existent frontal dune system and to protect dunes at high traffic public accesses on the Gulf Beaches area of SGI. Grant funds are from The National Association of Counties in conjunction with National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration and the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation.

The St George Island Civic Club expressed a willingness to participate and STAR, Inc. assisted in getting another similar grant for the club to help fund help their restoration efforts which were identical to, and a continuation of, the above described project and also on County public beach area. The funding source for the SGICC grant is the National Oceanographic Association in association with the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation.

The projects are almost completed and will wind-up work by March 1^st 2008. then we’ll just monitor and watch Mother Nature rebuild the dunes.