Park Advocates, Community Leaders Applaud Release of Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary Restoration Blueprint

​Bordering three iconic national parks, Everglades, Biscayne, and Dry Tortugas, the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary is home to the third largest barrier reef in the world.

The Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary (FKNMS) released the Final Environmental Impact Statement (FEIS) for the Restoration Blueprint, a major step towards finalizing this long-awaited plan for the Sanctuary.

​Bordering three iconic national parks, Everglades, Biscayne, and Dry Tortugas, the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary is home to the third largest barrier reef in the world, and the only one in the continental United States. This national treasure is under threat from marine heat waves, coral bleaching and disease, overfishing, and many other stressors.

​The long-awaited action plan to address these threats is the Restoration Blueprint – a plan more than a decade in the making that will improve protections for corals, seagrasses, and mangroves that safeguard Florida from hurricanes, while also protecting wildlife, water quality, and the economy of the Keys.

​“The Restoration Blueprint is the result of comprehensive community engagement, compromise, and input from all the agencies involved in managing the Sanctuary’s one-of-a-kind water, wildlife, and habitats,” said Marisa Carrozzo, National Parks Conservation Association Senior Coastal & Wildlife Program Manager and FKNMS Advisory Council member. “We are calling for all hands on deck to put this plan into action, and protect the Keys and our connected national parks for generations to come.”

​“As a Keys fishing guide and Councilmember for the Village of Islamorada, I’m excited about this milestone for the Restoration Blueprint,” said Captain Steve Friedman. “Developed with strong input from the fishing community, this plan will help preserve our world-class fishing resources.”

For full National Parks Conservation Association Press Release, click here