NEW SMYRNA BEACH -- Volusia County spokeswoman Shelley Szafraniec asks: "Are you curious about Volusia County’s estuaries, oysters, mangroves,
and common problems associated with invasive plants?"
Then she encourages you to make plans to attend a Chicken Island restoration workshop from 10 a.m. - noon Saturday, April 4, at the Marine Discovery Center, 162 N. Causeway.
The workshop, formatted as a demonstration, will feature activities such as oyster-mat making, a tour of the greenhouse, and information on the roles of oysters and red mangroves in the estuary.
Participants also will learn about reef balls, how they work, and see one up close. Find out about the “alien invasion” going on in Volusia County - which plants are considered invasive and why, and what citizens can do about them.
Estuaries are considered “cradles of the ocean” because more than 70 percent of Florida’s recreationally and commercially important fish, crustaceans, and shellfish spend part of their lives in estuaries (usually when they are young), according to Georgia Zern, Volusia County Environmental Management program coordinator. “The overall economic
impact of the Indian River Lagoon is more than $731 million annually, so it is easy to see why maintaining the health of these estuaries is so important,” Zern said.
This event is sponsored by Volusia County Environmental Management in conjunction with the Marine Discovery Center.
For more information and/or to register, please contact Shelly Webster, Volusia County Environmental Management at (386) 736-5927, ext. 2330, or via e-mail at mwebster@co.volusia.fl.us, or Thad Nicholls with the Marine Discovery Center at (386) 428-4828 or via e-mail at thad@marinediscoverycenter.org.