Opposition mounts against wetlands reduction
When the Manatee County Board of Commissioners voted 6-1 (Commissioner George Kruse voted no) to go forward with reducing wetland buffers in the county, the audience at the meeting reacted…
Voting for politicians who protect water quality is enlightened self-interest. - Submitted
We must vote for candidates who support the environment
Readers of this column have seen me recommend checking politicians’ voting record before casting a vote for them.
Unless we elect lawmakers and other officials who work for the public good rather than corporate interests, expect more algae blooms like these that have plagued Anna Maria Sound since 2020. - Rusty Chinnis | Sun
Legislation Imperils Local Waters
By Rusty Chinnis At a time when the need to move water quality issues in a positive direction should be crystal clear, decision-makers (and, by default, the citizens who elected…
Fourteen-year-old Brice Claypoole is a fierce defender of the environment but doesn’t have a vote. That is up to us, but only for a while. – Rusty Chinnis | Sun
Empowering the next generation
You don’t have to convince an angler of the importance of a healthy grass flat or a robust stand of mangroves or persuade them that we’re losing this precious resource…
This photograph shows the importance of mangroves to protect property. The foreground property in Englewood was protected from damage during Hurricane Ian while the adjacent property with no mangroves was devastated.
Stand up for mangroves
Readers of this column are familiar with the rampant illegal mangrove trimming in Manatee County and the efforts of Suncoast Waterkeeper (SCWK) to address them. That frustration led to SCWK…
Volunteers from Sarasota Bay Watch and Suncoast Aqua Ventures work with residents to clear the canals of Holiday Estates of the debris left by Hurricane Ian. - Rusty Chinnis | Sun
Reel Time: Suncoast Waterkeepers lead post-Ian cleanup
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4YDCQTV-rdY&t=2s Hurricane Ian left a wake of debris in a wide swath of waterways across the state. One particularly hard-hit area on the Suncoast was Lemon Bay at the…
From left, front, Blue Economy panelists Dr. Tracy Fanara and Maya Burke, and at back Anna Maria Island residents and advocates Ed Chiles, Capt. Scott Moore and Dr. Bob Carter. - Rusty Chinnis | Sun
Becoming a blue economy
The title of the program, “Becoming a Blue Economy” at The Center of Anna Maria Island would have been enough to attract my attention. Add the subtitle, “Sustainability Forum,” and…
Suncoast Waterkeeper Executive Director Abbey Tyrna takes a water sample from one of the area’s creeks. – Rusty Chinnis | Sun
Meet Suncoast Waterkeeper Executive Director Abbey Tyrna
Suncoast Waterkeeper’s new Executive Director, Abbey Tyrna, brings an impressive record of accomplishments to the organization. Tyrna received her doctorate in geography in 2015 from Pennsylvania State University, where she…
An aerial view of the mangroves west of the Aqua by the Bay development reveals mangroves that have been cut excessively and appear to be dead or dying. - Rusty Chinnis | Sun
Pursuing a developer’s destruction of mangroves
People who fish locally know the importance of mangroves. Intertwined with their twisted roots is a web of life that’s inextricably bound to the snook, redfish, trout, flounder, grouper and…
Hopefully, Suncoast Waterkeeper’s legal challenge and settlement with the City of Bradenton addressing the release of polluted water into the Manatee River will help prevent blooms like this one at Robinson Preserve in 2020. – Rusty Chinnis | Sun
The smelly, fish-killing prices of inaction
Red tide. They’re probably two words nobody on or near Florida’s West Coast wants to hear, and I can understand why — sort of. Someone who owns a resort hotel,…