Historical and Cultural Resource Management

Terra Ceia is rich in historical and cultural resources. More than 80 archaeological sites have been identified on the upland areas bordering the aquatic preserve. Much less is known about submerged historical and cultural resources of the preserve. The aquatic preserve helped protect these submerged resources by encouraging the application of new technologies and protocols to their identification and by ensuring that any resource inventories required of construction impacts are done in a thorough manner.

Regulatory Assistance

Terra Ceia Aquatic Preserve (TCAP) staff routinely provided technical assistance to a variety of regulatory agencies that operate within TCAP. These agencies include DEP's Southwest Regulatory District, the regulatory section of the Southwest Florida Water Management District, DEP's Bureau of Beaches and Coastal Systems, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission.

Enforcement Actions

Effective enforcement of laws and regulations involves the availability of law enforcement officers and their ability to operate effectively in a given area. The TCAP program sought to improve both of these aspects of enforcement at Terra Ceia. Enforcement actions in the remote area include illegal vegetation clearing, illegal dredge and fill, illegal narcotics farming and illegal gill netting.

Restoration of Degraded Habitats

Restoration at Terra Ceia is implemented for three reasons: to recover the ecological function of degraded habitats; to meet larger bay-wide goals for restoring acreage of habitats largely lost elsewhere; and to mitigate for impacts defined by regulatory entities. Impacts for which restoration may be needed include dredge and fill activities, illegal clearing of native shoreline vegetation, and boat grounding sites and prop scars. TCAP staff evaluated proposed restoration projects, analyzed the costs and benefits of restoring specific areas, and provided guidance in the restoration efforts.

Episodic Impacts

To a great extent, hurricanes, oil spills and other events must be dealt with on a case-by-case basis, but contingency planning can improve the likelihood that adequate resources for response will be available and that sound options will have been considered before crisis conditions develop. TCAP considered contingencies for episodic impacts in the course of their work and sought opportunities to plan for events in collaboration with other programs.