MIAMI (CBSMiami) – 2022 is near turning into one other document 12 months for manatee deaths in Florida.
In the primary two months of the 12 months, there have been 400 manatee deaths, in response to Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility.
READ MORE: South Florida ‘Bans Off Our Bodies’ Rallies In Support Of Abortion Rights
Now a number of conservation organizations have sued the Environmental Protection Agency for failing to guard them.
Emilio Lopez with the Biscayne Bay Marine Health Coalition mentioned air pollution and runoff are a number one explanation for dying for manatees and different wildlife within the bay.
“These organics decompose in the water, they release a lot of nutrients contained in them, things like nitrogen and phosphorus,” he mentioned.
Lopez mentioned these vitamins distort Biscayne Bay and hurt its wildlife
“As you may remember there was a massive fish die-off a couple of years ago in Biscayne Bay and part of it had to do with the low oxygen levels, the water temperatures, and a variety of factors. Nutrients are a component of that,” he mentioned.
READ MORE: Small Plane Hit SUV When It Crashed On Haulover Inlet Bridge, One Person Killed, Five Injured
But the vitamins aren’t simply killing fish. A current lawsuit filed towards the EPA claims the quantity of nitrogen and phosphorus being allowed within the state’s waterways is stopping seagrass from rising, and as result’s liable for a large manatee mortality occasion.
“We lost more than 1,100 manatees in the state of Florida in 2021. That represents 13 percent of the entire population of manatees in the state of Florida. Degrading environmental quality in water quality has robbed the manatees of their primary food source. Those manatees are starving to death,” mentioned Ragan Whitlock with the Center for Biological Diversity.
The lawsuit, which was introduced by Save the Manatee Club, Earthjustice, Center for Biological Diversity, and Defenders of Wildlife, hopes to drive the EPA to deal with the priority
“So the goal of our lawsuit is to compel the EPA to revisit Florida’s nutrient criteria for water. That means the load of nutrients that we allow every year to be dumped in bays, in our waterways. With what happened last year, with the loss of manatees and the way the water quality is degrading across the state, it’s clear that that nutrient criterion is not sufficient,” mentioned Whitlock.
Environmental advocates like Lopez hopes the combat is profitable
“We have to protect the bay, we rely on it for jobs, for tourism, and also of course, for the ecosystem,” he mentioned.
MORE NEWS: Food Truck Explodes At Vero Beach Seafood Festival, One Person Injured
On May twenty fifth, Biscayne Bay Marine Health Coalition will maintain a summit to debate different methods to guard the bay.