How to save the Weeki Wachee River - Officials begin their plan - Tampa Bay Times

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BROOKSVILLE — Last week USA Today published a story touting the wonders of the Weeki Wachee River as the ideal place to kick back in a kayak, check out the rope swings along the river and pull off on a sand bar to have lunch and play in the water.

While Hernando County tourism promoters love getting widespread attention, this was not the message that they or the myriad of other agencies trying to protect the future of the river wanted to see.

On Friday representatives of those agencies met for the first time as the Weeki Wachee working group to begin a plan to protect the river’s future. A year-long study documented how public usage of the river which has ramped up in recent years has degraded water quality, damaged the surrounding vegetation and put the river’s future environmental integrity at risk.

Led by Hernando County administrator Jeff Rogers, the group started discussing the issues they will have to unravel to begin to implement recommendations made by the study, which was jointly paid for by the county and the Southwest Florida Water Management District. Much of the seven-mile-long river is surrounded by state-owned lands managed by the district and by the Weeki Wachee Springs State Park.

A rope swing, docked kayaks and people wading along the Weeki Wachee River bank are factors that have contributed to erosion and damage to vegetation. [ Southwest Florida Water Management District and Hernando County ]

Hernando’s tourism manager, Tammy Heon, said that the USA Today story highlights how important it is to educate people about how to responsibly enjoy the river in a passive way that doesn’t further damage the trees, sand bars and river banks. “The world loves our river and our job is to educate the world on how to treat our river,” she said.

Some of that has already started from the water management district. Michele Sager, the district’s lead communications coordinator, shared a video released earlier this year which hammered home important messages. That video, which can be seen here, encourages kayakers to stay in their craft, only anchor in the water and not on the banks if they don’t, not to trample vegetation or sand bars, not to climb trees or use rope ladders and be sure not to litter.

Sager outlined other plans for the district’s communications plan but noted that her agency doesn’t want to fall out of sync with whatever regulations the working group wants to put in place.

Rogers talked about potential rules to prohibit or limit kayakers from leaving their vessels but noted that the Hernando County Commission is not a fan of prohibiting the activity completely. He also outlined other questions that need to be discussed including what to do with river-based vendors who have been selling food from their boats and how to handle disposable containers.

Since the findings of the study showed it was the activities on the river causing the degradation, Rogers noted that any discussion about limiting the amount of boat traffic or boat types on the river should not happen until other measures are tried.

State agency representatives said they were already taking down rope ladders when they were found on public land, but that they seem to be replaced quickly. They also encouraged informational signage to educate and give law enforcement the power to hold visitors accountable even though such signs often also disappear.

Those at Friday’s meeting agreed that they needed to work together and with their agencies and governing bodies to make any future plan work. To forward the understanding of which agencies can do what will be the topic of the next scheduled meeting in early December when each will discuss their legal authority and jurisdiction.

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How to save the Weeki Wachee River - Officials begin their plan - Tampa Bay Times
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