Support a Mooring Buoy for a Special Man in Your Life This Father’s Day

Father’s Day is near and if your dad is like a lot of Florida men that we know, he loves to get in as much quality time on the water as possible.

And chances are, the 164,000 marine acres of Biscayne National Park are one of his go-to boating spots – it’s definitely one of ours!

This Father’s Day, support a mooring buoy in Biscayne National Park in honor of your favorite seafaring man.

The Alliance has helped to install more than 25 mooring buoys within the park and now we need to make sure they stay in tip-top shape for all to use.

With forceful currents, awe-inspiring storms, and that searing Florida sun, life at sea can be challenging for plant life, wildlife, and even mooring buoys, and that’s we are committed to the upkeep of these helpful hook-ups.

We’ve compiled our top five reasons on why donating to support the preservation of a mooring buoy is the perfect Father’s Day “gift”:

• Save the seagrass beds for the species that need them. Even anchors set in the sand have an anchor chain that may drag along the sea bottom, damaging seagrass beds. Sea turtles, manatees, parrotfish, surgeonfish, sea urchins, and pinfish feed on Florida seagrasses and plenty of invertebrates call this seagrass home.

• No more cutting anchors that get stuck in the reef. Rangers at Biscayne National Park removed almost 200 underwater anchors that boaters had left behind in just three short months. If that rate continues, that will be a total of 800 anchors removed in one year!

• Safeguard Florida against storms. Seagrass beds and coral reefs provide natural defenses that help protect our shorelines and coastal cities when a hurricane or other major storm event rolls through.

• Make the ocean accessible for more people. We know it’s nice to have a place all to yourself, but our national parks are public lands that are for everyone, so we want everyone to have a way to recreate in them responsibly.

• Avoid a fine. Through Florida’s Coral Reef Protection Act, those who are found to have caused damage to a coral reef can be fined from $150 – $1,000 per square meter of damaged reef, making the use of a mooring buoy the most cost-effective way to enjoy Biscayne National Park.

A donation of $500 will allow for one mooring buoy to be maintained for one full year within Biscayne National Park.

Click the donate button on the top right corner of this page to make a donation and select Biscayne National Park from the “I want to support” dropdown menu. If you’d like to shout out your dad or make any other dedication for your donation, please do so in the “comment” box!