For the Key West Salt Ponds, environmental degradation is nothing new. Since our island was first settled, the Salt Ponds have been diked for salt production, used as a dump for toxic waste, encroached upon by development, bombarded by airport noise and choked by a lack of adequate water flow. And now the Salt Ponds are in danger of being loved to death.
This newest threat stems from the City of Key West's failure to exercise responsibility for protecting the Salt Ponds from potentially destructive commercial exploitation. For several years a local company has been conducting commercial kayak trips into the Salt Ponds— consisting almost entirely of cruise ship passengers— bringing as many as 20 kayaks at a time into the narrow creeks and shallow ponds. And while kayaks themselves are a relatively low-impact way to explore the water and mangroves, the scale and frequency of the trips cause serious concern about their effects upon this already stressed natural area.
One major problem is that these trips are booked regardless of the tides, a serious factor when you consider the narrowness of the creeks leading to the Salt Ponds and the shallowness of the ponds themselves. Inexperienced kayakers, many trying the activity for the first time, often run aground and grab onto mangrove roots to pull themselves through narrow passages. Large, frequent trips also have a negative impact on wildlife, especially on the birds which are regularly flushed from nests and perches by repeated intrusions by big, noisy groups. And in the process, those visitors taking part in the kayak trips are given the idea that the Salt Ponds are a kind of theme park attraction, denying them the natural experience they were seeking in the first place.
Fortunately for the future of the Salt Ponds, the Florida Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) has stepped into the picture. In a recent letter to the City Manager, the DEP advised the City that commercial kayak trips violate the terms of the management plan allowing the city to lease a large state-owned tract within the Salt Ponds.
The letter notes that the management plan has not been updated since 1991, despite a requirement that updates be done every five years. The DEP recommends that the City embark upon an immediate revision process, including public hearings, and submit any proposed changes in the use of the property for review.
Meanwhile, the City is halfheartedly defending itself against a legal challenge to an ordinance excluding commercial activity from the Salt Ponds.
In an attempt to reach a compromise between those who want to protect the Salt Ponds and those who would exploit the area without regard for its protection, the City has abdicated its responsibility by asking the so-called Salt Ponds Alliance to look at the situation and make some recommendations.
What the Alliance came up with is a strategic plan that would use public land for private purposes.
The situation is complicated by a reversal of the usual Key West political alliances. Last Stand, long known as one of the foremost environmental champions on the island, is one of the leading forces within the Salt Ponds Alliance, which favors commercial activity.
On the other side, City Commissioner Harry Bethel, not generally known as a tree-hugger, has voiced strong opposition to any commercial trips in the Salt Ponds. And now Bethel has a new ally in the fight, a citizens group called the Guardians of the Salt Ponds, which has hired an attorney to block the City's attempts to weaken its ordinance prohibiting commercial use there.
The battle ahead should be interesting.
The Salt Ponds are a perfect example of how many powerful people— in government and the business community— view our island. Their primary concern is how the most money can be squeezed out in the shortest span of time. They give only lip service to preserving the natural beauty, quality of life and unique culture that make Key West such an attractive place to live in and to visit.
As is always the case, it will probably take the death of the Goose That Laid The Golden Eggs for them to realize that there is a problem.