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Register Now for the 2025
Management Conference Meeting
Flowing Forward: Investing in Watershed Resilience
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Join us for a first look at our 2025 State of the Bays Report at our 4th annual PPBEP Management Conference Meeting! Help us shape the future of our watersheds by providing valuable feedback on upcoming initiatives. Whether you are an interested community member looking to learn more about projects in our watersheds or a current partner, we look forward to seeing you at our annual gathering!
Wednesday, April 16th from 10:00 AM to 3:30 PM CT
Sanders Beach-Corinne Jones Resource Center
913 S I St, Pensacola, FL 32502
Breakout Session topics include:
Community Grant Program
Adaptation Planning Asset Valuation
Perdido SUNS (Scaling Up Nature-based Solutions)
Local Policy
RSVP by 11:59 PM CT on March 31st to secure your free meal.
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Pearls of Wisdom: Traditional Oyster Harvester Knowledge Guides Oyster Restoration | |
Oyster harvester Pasco Gibson using oyster tongs to harvest oysters. | |
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As we departed from Nichols Marina, the calm waters of Blackwater and East Bays stretched out before us like glass. We set out with Pasco Gibson, a man whose life is as intertwined with the bay as the oysters themselves.
We visited once-vibrant reefs, places where a harvester could spend a fruitful day on the water, that are now a shadow of their former selves. We watched as Pasco's long oyster tongs (the traditional tool for harvesting oysters) probed the barren bottom, finding mostly rock and old reef substrate, remnants of what was.
A short boat ride away, we found a different scene. Here, the reef had persisted. Pasco worked steadily, bringing up clusters of harvestable sized oysters. It was a glimpse of hope, a sign that the bay's heart was still beating.
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A handful of oysters from Pensacola Bay. | |
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As we sampled a few oysters, we were reminded of the intricate web of life that connected everything, from the smallest organism to the people who harvested these delicacies from the bay. It was a taste of the past, a promise of the future, and a powerful reminder of why restoring these reefs is so important.
There is no one size fits all approach to this restoration.
We're studying the bay – evaluating the critical interplay of salinity, the levels of life-supporting dissolved oxygen, and a host of other factors. We collect data and build models, allowing us to predict the best locations for oyster reef restoration. This quantitative data is a crucial piece of the puzzle, but numbers alone don't tell the whole story.
For that, we turn to our oyster harvesters, the inheritors of generations of knowledge. They knew the subtle currents, the hidden pockets where oysters thrived, and they have insight on what materials to use for restoration – not just for the oysters themselves, but for the long-term health of the reef and harvestability. They've seen what works from a lifetime spent on the water, observing the rhythms of the bay.
It will be the marriage of data-driven science and hard-earned experience that holds the key to restoring not just the oysters, but the vibrant industry and ecosystem that once flourished in Pensacola Bay.
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Big News for Bluffline and Pensacola | |
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Bluffline concept sketch by Tim Bednarczyk
Credit: Bluffline
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We’re thrilled to share that the Bluffline has been awarded $1.2 million through a 2024 Reconnecting Communities Planning Grant! This grant will support the Escambia Bay Waterfront Access Study—an exciting initiative to reconnect the Ferry Pass community to Escambia Bay and West Pensacola. | |
Community Grant Program Improvements Are Coming | |
Youth fishing during the Satori Foundation's 2024 Pete Moore Fishing Rodeo. | |
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The PPBEP Community Grant Program funds action projects located within the Perdido and/or Pensacola watershed that serve to restore, preserve, connect, inform, and educate. Through these action projects, the Estuary Program's vision is to create a healthy and sustainable environment, economy, and community.
The Community Grant Program will feature several new changes during
the 2025-2026 award cycle to better assist applicants in applying and completing their projects.
Extended Award Period
We are pleased to announce that the grant implementation period will be extended to a 13-month timeframe beginning October 1, 2025 and ending December 31, 2026. Due to this longer implementation period, funding cycles will occur every two years, meaning that after our 2025-2026 cycle, our next call for applications will not occur until 2027-2028.
Voluntary Pre-Application
A Voluntary Pre-Application will support prospective Community Grant applicants by offering PPBEP staff feedback ahead of the full application period. While submission of a Voluntary Pre-Application does not guarantee funding or selection, it can help applicants strengthen their proposal by incorporating staff feedback in their full application.
Longer Application Period
The PPBEP Community Grant Program Request for Proposals typically opens in July after approval of the Florida state budget. In order to allow applicants more time to submit a pre-application, incorporate feedback, and collaborate with partners, we anticipate that the pre-application period will open in March. However, Community Grant Program funding is still contingent upon funds being allocated during the approval of the State of Florida's budget. Final budget approval typically occurs in June.
Please stay tuned for updates!
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Restoration Ramble Next Week:
Prescribed Fire in Gulf State Park
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Prescribed fire in Gulf State Park.
Credit: Alabama State Parks
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Join us next Saturday for a Restoration Ramble led by Alabama State Park to learn about the fire-dependent ecosystem in Gulf State Park and current restoration management practices. During this hike, you’ll learn about the important benefits of routine prescribed burns and pass by a bald eagle's nest, where you'll have the opportunity to learn more about these incredible birds.
Saturday, February 15th
10AM-11AM CT
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Northwest Florida Delegation Meeting | |
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At the January Northwest Florida Legislative Delegation meeting, our Director had the opportunity to express our gratitude for the Legislature's investment into the Estuary Program.
Since fiscal year 2021, the Legislature has appropriated approximately $2.7 million to fund key actions of our Comprehensive Conservation and Management Plan, including our Community Grant Program, Pensacola Bay Oyster Restoration Initiative, and Comprehensive Monitoring Program.
We have been able to leverage those funds 4:1, generating an additional $12 million for these projects! We look forward to continuing to work closely with the Northwest Florida Legislative Delegation to implement priority projects in our watersheds.
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Community Grant Program Highlight | |
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Heritage Roots: A Native Plant Garden Celebrating Culture and Ecology in Northwest Florida
University of West Florida
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Aerial image showing the garden area location at the University of West Florida. | |
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The UWF project team has been hard at work on the "Heritage Roots" garden. Their project encompasses an ethnobotanical garden that will span across 0.2 acres and feature native flora with accompanying interpretive signage in both English and the Mvskoke language. This garden will serve as a living classroom, promoting awareness of the ecological importance of native plants while celebrating the region's cultural heritage.
By integrating natural and cultural history, the "Heritage Roots" garden will foster community engagement, support environmental education, and serve as a contemplative space for all visitors to UWF.
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March 26, 2025
Board of Directors Meeting
1:30 PM - 3:30 PM CT
City of Orange Beach Council Chambers
4099 Orange Beach Blvd, Orange Beach, AL 36561
The January 22, 2025 meeting was cancelled due to severe weather.
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Stingrays and skates are not the same! | |
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Image highlighting the dorsal fin region on a stingray and skate.
Credit: National Aquarium
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One of the quickest ways you can tell stingrays and skates apart is by taking a look at their tails. Stingrays typically have long, whip-like tails; skates' tails, on the other hand, tend to be short, thick and fleshy.
Stingrays and skates can also be differentiated by looking at their pelvic fin lobes and dorsal fins. Stingrays only have one lobe on each side of their two pelvic fins, whereas skates have two lobes. Skates also have small dorsal fins near the end of their tail, but dorsal fins on stingrays are either absent or not prominent.
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Thank You to Our Estuary Advocate Donors | |
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It’s no secret that the business of the Gulf Coast is — the coast!
Whether it’s protecting our community from hurricanes, drawing tourists to our pristine waterfronts, or creating the quality of life that makes this a great place to live, a healthy coast and watershed is the bedrock of our community.
You can help by supporting our efforts financially, and your gift can be matched by state and federal grant programs that restore and protect our waterways.
We are thankful to our Estuary Advocates for helping to fulfill our mission of restoration, education, and monitoring.
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$10,000 Guardian of the Gulf
Estuary Advocates
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$2,500 River Giver
Estuary Advocates
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$1,000 Creek Keeper
Estuary Advocates
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Newsletter submissions must be sent to info@ppbep.org by the 1st of the month.
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