Local Team Earns National Forest Service Award

    A team from the Ocala National Forest that has been working on spring restoration has earned the US Forest Services' highest award in fisheries and watersheds. The Rise To The Future Award was recently bestowed on the group that has undertaken a sweeping program of projects designed to ensure the long-term sustainability of the forest's natural springs.
   Consisting of Clay Coates, Jorge Guevara, Carrie Sekerak, Jay Garcia, John Dysart, and Jonathon Mickett, the group works with The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, the Florida State Parks system, the St. Johns River Water Management District, Save the Manatee, the US Navy, and the University of Florida to conceive and undertake programs that include reducing erosion at boat ramps and the Alexander Springs run access, install vegetated barriers and path redesigns at Silver Glen Springs, and undertake eelgrass restoration.
   "While we are the 'face' of the accomplishments within our agency, the award truly belongs to a large group of collaborators including the public, other agencies, universities and students, and businesses," said Sekerak this week. Sekerak is the District Ranger on the Ocala National Forest.
   Leading the local Forest Service efforts in spring restoration is Coates, an Aquatic Ecologist on the Ocala National Forest. Beginning in 2019, he joined with representatives of other agencies to streamline and maximize restoration efforts along the St. Johns River and its tributaries.
   “We have the same vision, we just weren’t on the same page. We were all doing our things individually.”
   Collaboration has enabled restoration efforts to move more quickly. The Florida Native Plant Society contributed to a Silver Glen project that sought to reduce sediment discharge into the spring during rain events, and the current eelgrass restoration effort has been boosted by a joint partnership with the FWC.
   Eelgrass, decimated in recent years by storm events, has been a major focus for Coates.
   "My number 1 priority is the re-establishment of eelgrass," Coates said, pointing to recent projects at Silver Glen and Salt Springs. Coates describes eelgrass as a 'first line of defense' against both environmental degradation and wildlife loss.
   "If we don't have that, then we have sedimentation issues, we don't have cover for fish." Additionally, eelgrass is a food source for many aquatic animals.
   Coates has created an aquatic nursery at the Forest Service’s Pittman Work Center to help speed the process of providing new plants. When placed, young plantings are encased in cages built from US Navy surplus which protects them from grazing animal life.
   "We have four tanks, each planted with eelgrass from our four major springs. We're planning to use these plants to expand restoration efforts at Alexander, Silver Glen, and Salt Springs day-use areas and re-establish plants in the downstream portion of Juniper Creek."
   Both grazing animals and weather conditions can impact how well new eelgrass grows, a factor that requires ongoing management.
   "The plants we planted in Salt Springs (planted during the winter and thus didn't immediately thrive) did eventually begin to grow but they are currently still being damaged by some grazing. My assumption is the mesh size provided by the Navy is too large to use as an exclosure. We've tested the smaller mesh-size exclosures that FWC uses and seen better growth in those cages. We've also noticed that vegetation is resprouting from the seed bank inside the restoration areas even where it is not protected by exclosures. The only difference in this area is that the public has been asked to stay out there has been very little foot traffic in that area. With this information, we have developed plans to have close to two acres of vegetation planted and protected at Silver Glen and Salt Springs this summer."
   In his letter nominating the team for the award, John Dunlap of the National Forests in Florida wrote praised its efforts.
   “Their ability to build internal and external relationships has been crucial in recent accomplishments related to springs restoration on Ocala National Forest. They are truly invested in the resources that they are charged with managing.”