Chief Communications Officer
Join us as we dive into the key takeaways from our recent forum! We gathered together to shed light on how climate change affects our community, and the discussions were enlightening and impactful.
Over 100 residents attended the meeting to examine the serious threat to our environment and quality of life in Estero. Since Estero is only 13 feet above sea level, the meeting aimed to surface comprehensive solutions addressing our pressing environmental issues.
Those who attended were very focused on the issues and raised over 30 questions for the panel! Given the time constraints, while only a few of these could be addressed, Engage Estero will aim to address these questions and focus on the local actions that could be implemented during a second meeting on this topic in the next few months. There were many comments worth noting during the meeting.
Greg Tolley, Professor of Marine Science and Dean of The Water School at Florida Gulf Coast University, moderated the forum.
The Expert Panel included:
➢ Mike Savarese, Professor, Department of Marine and Earth Sciences, FGCU.
➢ Matt DePaolis, Policy Director, Sanibel-Captiva Conservation Foundation
➢ Codty Pierce, The Calusa Waterkeeper.
➢ Jenny Morris is an FGCU 2nd-year master’s student in environmental science who is actively engaged in research focused on climate change in Southwest Florida.
Captain Cody Pierce commented on the question regarding what pressing climate change and warming issues threaten the environment and quality of life in the greater Estero area.
He stated, “It was clear that there is considerable concern regarding Estero Bay. This is primarily linked to the increasing water temperature and increasing sea level. While sea levels continue rising, higher temperatures also increase bacterial growth. The coliform bacteria are an indicator of whether we have healthy drinking water or not.
There’s also an interesting relationship between blue-green algae and temperature. Higher temperatures increase the reproduction of the blue-green algae as temperatures increase. Those who live in Sanibel or up and down the Caloosahatchee River have been looking at this a great deal because it’s the most harmful of the algal blooms that can cause human health effects.
We can relate temperature to almost all issues outside of direct human impact, such as the destruction of wetlands. We must address and continue to observe this increase as the climate is warming. We are facing water quality challenges. We’re being faced with inundation challenges that come from the Gulf, and it’s something that, unfortunately, we still haven’t quite figured out how to mitigate moving forward.”
Matt DePaolis pointed out that species, especially in the wetlands, will suffer if they lose their habitat due to rising temperatures. He said, “We’re going to see a decrease in biodiversity. We all enjoy seeing different mangroves, swamps, and these species. So, we must consider how climate change will also affect the species in these areas.”
Mike Savarese said he would prioritize what’s happening to sea surface temperatures, which we’re all conscious of, adding, “I don’t know how many consecutive days of heat index days over 95, or over 100 this year. That’s tangible, and we can experience and be discomforted by it. But the warming of the oceans is also very, very serious, particularly the warming of the Gulf of Mexico. Five hurricanes since Ian in 2022, and look at the devastation they threw our way.
So much of that is related to the Gulf of Mexico being remarkably warm. It’s warming twice as fast as the global ocean. So, if you compare the Gulf of Mexico’s temperature trajectory against the average for the entire ocean system, for the planet. We’re warming at twice that rate!”
Greg Tolley mentioned the mathematical analysis he had done to examine the levels of water surges experienced since 1990. He pointed out that current surge levels from Hurricane Ian were approximately 22 inches higher than they would have been in 1990.
Other points raised were centered on:
The panel explained that global warming issues are multifaceted. It stated, “We are part of the problem here, and we need to think outside the box about how we accomplish and accommodate mankind moving forward as we adapt to these changes.”
The Panel then responded to a question that focused on the issue of water pollution in greater Estero. Captain Pierce said there is a real nutrient problem in our area. These are mainly due to organic and inorganic nitrogen.
We are looking at the Florida Basin Management Action Plan, the platform for mitigating and restoring many of our estuaries. The primary source of nutrient loading in the Caloosahatchee is nitrogen from inland agriculture, which accounts for 80% of the nitrogen.
When this is coupled with our coastal area problems due to inorganics from fertilizers, dog waste, and grass clippings, the combined impact is starting to cause many water issues for us here in Southwest Florida. Furthermore, it was also pointed out that the leaky septic tanks installed many years ago also add to the problem; even though The Village plans to address this, progress is very slow. The panel agreed that there was a desperate need to address this issue before we could address these other issues.
Greg Tolley added a very important point about population growth and its impact on the issues under discussion. He said, “I like to tell my students I think there are two existential threats in South Florida right now. The 1st is climate change; the second is population growth. I don’t have the data after the recent hurricanes that might change things.
But before the recent hurricanes, about a thousand people moved to Florida daily, which put tremendous stress on our infrastructure. It also changes land use, whether we have agriculture, wetlands, or condominiums. I’m not saying development is bad, but we must be responsible in moving forward because the numbers are overwhelming.”
Mike Sevarese spoke about the mitigating issues that should be considered going forward. “Because the coastal areas in our area are vulnerable, the dune system isn’t quite as developed here as in other parts of Florida. While adjusting on a local basis might be considered insignificant in the overall context of global warming, all communities needed to try to address what could be practically done. It was felt that:
Other panel members added the need to:
There was criticism leveled at those involved in planning the berms because there was thought to be no concerted planning. The berm placed along Lee and Collier County at an exorbitant cost wasn’t planted. If it had been by the time Debbie arrived earlier this summer, the berm would not have been mostly gone. Emergency berms from FEMA are supposed to last 5 years but lasted less than 2, and Helene and Milton took it out the rest of the way. Now, southwest Florida has plants ready to be planted on a berm that no longer exists! Wasteful and badly thought-out solutions are not going to help!
There has been no discussion with individuals researching how dunes work and how they must be constructed. One example cited was, “There are ways to design hybrid dunes that behave like dunes during normal conditions, but then, when the dune is lost, the interior seawall, or more hardened structure, is revealed and provides that protection after the dune is gone, and for some reason, that concept has not caught on here in Southwest Florida.”
Several panel members recommended a hybrid approach (which combines dunes and a concrete basic structure). They also pointed out that on Sanibel, the dunes provide natural wave energy dissipation. Because of this, parts of Sanibel with multiple dune ridges were largely unscathed after five storms!
There was general agreement that there needed to be more communication between businesses, the public, and elected officials. There was a need to ensure that those elected to represent the community should start prioritizing the initiatives the public wishes to see action on. It was felt that was probably the greatest source of change that should be implemented.
Also, given the resilience and the actions taken in Sanibel, there was a feeling that much could be learned from their example. “Sanibel is a great example of what a community united behind a shared set of values can do and accomplish because governance starts at home. If you have a dedicated group of citizens engaging with your local government.”
It was considered important to look at examples of positive change to see what could be learned from the work done in those communities. While Sanibel was one good example, Crystal River was, too. “Crystal River is a place some of you may have heard of. It’s up on the west coast of Florida, just north of Tampa. Crystal River is one of the few communities that acknowledged the importance of its natural resources and prioritized the need to protect and nurture the area, which has proven very successful. They reduced nutrient runoff, addressed the move from septic to sewer, and ensured the sustainability of the measures.
In a subsequent question, Jenny Morris emphasized the significant role of Mangroves. She pointed out their significance in reducing the effects of storm surges. She said, “If you’ve ever watched any videos that show how high the surge is before it hits the mangroves, and then after it comes through, you’ll know that it’s a total difference. First, I’m from the Bahamas, and we went through Hurricane Dorian.
If a lot of our communities didn’t have those mangroves in place, the damage would have been far worse than it was. Having mangroves in place is very important.” Given their significance in the face of any storm surge, they are also very important on the back side of barrier islands like Sanibel. In that position, they prevent much of the sand and topsoil from being swept completely away.
All panel members agreed there was a desperate need for more education for the public and students. Time is of the essence! On this point, Jenny Moris said, “Firstly, if we don’t teach it, many of the next generation won’t be able to assist in the current climate change issues. We need people to know about it. During the summer, I worked with a few students who visited FGCU, many of whom had never even walked through the cypress dome. They didn’t even know a lot of these things existed. They had never seen the plants; they had never seen the trees. If people don’t know about something, they can’t protect it!”
It is easy to take for granted that because we live in an environment exposed to the effects of increasing temperatures and their consequences, most people would appreciate the need to address the situation, but that is not the case.
Given the urgency of the problem, community education is needed. It was made clear that focusing only on educating children up to 12 years old by the time they are eligible to vote will be too late for them to do anything! “2030 is just around the corner.”
A Need for Collective Thinking Regarding Planning and Paying for Remedial Action
It was interesting to hear many suggestions about what could be done to help address the trends being discussed. Some of the suggestions were:
The panel felt the planning authorities and state and local government officials need to appreciate the potential economic dangers that could lie ahead from over-development. “Development is so important to raising revenue because of the importance of property taxes. But at some point, the desire to live here may go away. I would say the harsh realities of climate change will affect the habitability of those neighborhoods.”
As residents are painfully aware, the increased insurance costs are causing people to either “gamble” by stopping their coverage or to continue paying ever-rising costs until they decide to move out of the state.
Although it seems that a difference of opinion exists about the cause of increasing temperatures and its impact on seal level increases, the most important objective should be to mitigate the effects being caused. It is evident that, left unchecked, the increased frequency and severity of hurricanes and the rise in sea levels in our area with little or no remedial action will lead to a loss of tourism and a reduction in home values. Perhaps the impact not only on our quality of life but on property valuations will encourage the public to take the situation more seriously and engage in action to encourage our elected officials at local, County, and State levels to take the action that many of the panel outlined.
Given the wealth of information debated during the Public Forum, covering all aspects of the information in this report is difficult. Engage Estero urges those who would like to learn more details to please review the recording of the meeting by logging into https://esterotoday.com/event/nov2024/
Although only a few of the audience’s 34 questions could be addressed, they have been saved and will be used in a future follow-up Public Forum in 2025. In addition, because it was difficult to devote any time to the individuals who presented an alternative view on the cause of global warming during the meeting, we plan to address this at the start of the next Public Forum on this subject together with the practical steps that the community can take in the immediate future.
Engage Estero is an all-volunteer, nonpolitical, nonprofit Community Engagement Association. We exist to inform citizens of significant community issues and encourage citizen engagement to impact the quality of life in greater Estero favorably.
