pace of land development in Crystal River, both agencies com- 

 mitted themselves to pursue vigorously regional manatee 

 habitat acquisition projects. 



At the end of 1987, the Commission had made tentative 

 plans to work with the Service and the State on intensified 

 habitat protection efforts in 1988. In recognition of the 

 importance of such activities for manatees elsewhere in Florida, 

 the Commission had made known its interest in supporting a 

 study, similar to the study on Crystal River manatees completed 

 in 1984, on habitat protection needs for manatees along 

 Florida's east coast. 



Regulations and Law Enforcement Pertaining to Recreational 

 Boaters and Divers — Two activities that will affect recovery 

 of manatees in Florida are boating and recreational diving. 

 In addition to the prevalence of boat kills and injuries noted 

 earlier, manatee harassment by divers at warm-water refuges 

 during winter months could force animals to abandon the areas 

 and thereby expose themselves to thermal stress and perhaps 

 death. Both activities are increasing as human population 

 grows . 



To help protect manatees, 21 local boat speed regulatory 

 zones have been established by the State, and similar areas have 

 been established by the Fish and Wildlife Service in certain 

 National Wildlife Refuges. Within these zones, boats must 

 travel at slow or idle speeds to allow manatees time to avoid 

 collisions. The Service has also established small manatee 

 sanctuaries in Kings Bay into which entry of boats and divers 

 is prohibited so that manatees can escape human disturbance. 

 Enforcement in these and other areas is provided cooperatively 

 by the Florida Marine Patrol, the Fish and Wildlife Service, 

 the Florida Game and Freshwater Fish Commission, and the U.S. 

 Coast Guard. 



Despite these efforts, 1987 was a record year for boat- 

 related manatee deaths, and virtually all manatees in Florida 

 bear scars from non-lethal encounters with boat propellers. 

 In addition, diver harassment increased as the number of people 

 swimming with manatees in certain refuges grew. While the 

 failure to satisfactorily address these problems is discourag- 

 ing, it does not mean that the regulatory and enforcement 

 efforts undertaken to date have been misdirected. Rather, it 

 appears that the level of effort has been insufficient to 

 keep pace with the increasing numbers of boaters and divers. 



Therefore, in its 19 November letter to the Service, the 

 Commission recommended that regulatory and enforcement 

 approaches be re-evaluated to determine how existing efforts 

 might be modified or expanded to make them more effective. 

 One such approach suggested in the Commission's letter is 



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