Coastal Resources Group Inc

Programs: Project: fruit farm creek-restoration/education crg applied for federal grant funding from the restore act to complete wetland restoration activities at fruit farm creek, rookery bay biological research center, naples, fl. Total cost to implement this project is presently valued at 3 million. Additionally, crg pursued a private donation in lieu of restore act funding for completing this project. A total match of 539,000 in in-kind cash donations and services, including 75,875 in usfws coastal program grants has been provided to date or is committed to match the requested grant. Total non-federal match is 465,000. All permits were issued in the first quarter of 2012 and were renewed january 2017. Construction of the first phase of the project, phase 1a, was completed in september 2012 and is presently being monitored. Results of the monitoring were presented at the 2016 mangrove meeting at rbnerr. The rest of the project is "shovel ready," requiring only preparation of the final construction documents which will take about 90 days after the funds are provided. Approximately 400 man hours have been donated by crg staff for the ongoing efforts to complete this project. Education: crg presented educational information at a charlotte harbor watershed summit, march 28-30, 2017 in punta gorda, florida. This summit included individuals from the private, commercial and governmental sectors. Future educational plans for crg include helping plan and sponsor a mangrove management summit at rookery bay national estuarine research reserve where research for the fruit farm creek project will be presented.

pelican island oyster reef project: crg received a fish and wildlife service coastal program grant for 42,000 for the design, permitting, construction and monitoring of an oyster reef within pelican island national wildlife refuge. Design and permitting were completed in 2016. Construction was completed february 28, 2017 with 35 volunteers to help. Total in-kind contribution for this project is 25,500. Crg is seeking additional grant funding to continue work restoring pelican island and presenting this information to local managers and public. Education: pelican island nwr routinely provides educationl opportunities through sightseeing tours for the public to engage in environmental education. The newly constructed oyster reef will be an addition to this program. In addition, crg will present the work at public meetings as requested by pelican island nwr. Crg will be presenting educational information regarding historic work at pelican island at a public meeting in april 2018.

keys restoration fund in-lieu fee program: sponsored program keys restoration fund (krf) continues to work with the u. S. Army corps of engineers to develop projects funded by monies in trust to offset wetland impacts in the florida keys. Krf worked to secure the design and permitting of three projects in 2017. Krf will be constructing three projects in 2018: 1. Bahia honda wetland enhancement project "b" will restore approximately 10. 1 acres of wetland habitiat. Construction is planned for fall 2018. 2. Crane point hammock hydrologic restoration project will restore aproximately 10. 2 acres of wetland habitiat. Construction is planned for summer 2018. 3. Lignumvitae seagrass restoration project permitting in 2018. Program funding received during 2017 is currently being planned for an additional 2 - 3 projects in the florida keys and located in public access areas. These projects will provide educational opportunities for visiting public. Education: krf attends public meetings and conservation groups to continue educating the local residents about wetland conservation and projects. Krf has also launched a website that is being updated to include important information regarding restoration resources and projects. Additionally, educational outreach is planned for the crane point hammock restoration project in 2018, which provides public access and education programs for local residents and tourists regarding the ecology of the florida keys.

project: castillo pit bird nesting crg secured a contract with audubon of florida for 290,000 to coordinate work with the key deer national wildlife refuge to design, permit and construct bird nesting platforms for endangered and threatened bird species. Permitting was completed in 2017 and construction is planned for 2018. Education: lessons learned from design techniques to attract birds will be presented at educational seminars and meetings to share knowledge to benefit imperiled species nesting. Crg will work with fish and wildlife service to better transmit lessons learned to regional managers.