Southport Turning Notch Coral Relocation

About the Program

Category: County Resiliency (Best in Category)

Year: 2021

Broward County Port Everglades Department’s Southport Turning Notch Extension (STNE) Project will create five new cargo berths. Future cargo activity at full build-out will annually generate $29.1 million of direct induced and indirect state and local tax revenue, $252.2 million in taxes throughout the State, $3.4 billion in income to related job holders, $103.2 million of sales revenue for local businesses and $29.1 million of direct induced and indirect state and local tax revenue. The STNE was authorized to expand the basin from 19.01 acres to 46.83 acres, extending the notch westward from 900 feet to 2,400 feet; and to construct a concrete bulkhead and associated facilities. Though mitigation was necessary to undergo this extensive work, part of the Broward County mission is striving for excellence in environmental stewardship; therefore, Broward County goes above and beyond regulations. Broward County decided to solely fund the removal, relocation and monitoring of the vulnerable coral colonies located in the STNE by adhering to and surpassing strict county, state and federal regulations. When threatened by predatory parrot fish, Port Everglades voluntarily caged the corals to further protect them. This program, unlike any other, was a contribution to science; and it demonstrates the organization’s simultaneous dedication to the local environmental and economic vitality.