NBC News – Flordia Killing It’s Own Baby Turtles?

I recently spent about four hours one night on Fort Lauderdale’s beach, learning about sea turtle nests.

What I learned is that there’s some hypocrisy when it comes to protecting this natural phenomenon in our backyard. I wrote a story for our Sept. 17 print edition about the economics and politics behind sea turtle nesting season.

On one hand, tourism agencies actually promote sea turtle nesting as a tourist attraction.

On the other hand, streetlights and lights on many businesses and homes are still bright enough to disorient endangered baby turtles. And that means locals and tourists are smashing the baby turtles as they wander away from the ocean and into harm’s way.

Justin Gould, VP board of directors for Sea Turtle Oversight Protection (STOP) on Fort Lauderdale Beach checking the map of nest locations.

There’s something wrong with this picture.

To its credit, the Greater Fort Lauderdale Convention and Visitors Bureau is including more education about sea turtle problems in its promotion of nesting season and on its website.

But, many people are saying that the beaches of Broward County, in particular, are woefully behind the times when it comes to lighting on the beaches.

City officials are the ones with the most power to change this situation. So far, they’ve adopted a fairly soft approach. I was surprised to learn that Dania Beach and Hollywood have dragged their feet for years when asked to adopt new restrictions about beach lighting.

“We’re pushing for compliance; we’re not pushing to fine people,” Fort Lauderdale spokesman Matt Little told me. “We’re trying to help property owners comply, and give them innovative ideas.”

One group of local volunteers says the city isn’t doing enough. Members of the nonprofit group Sea Turtle Oversight Protection (STOP) spent the summer monitoring nests along Fort Lauderdale’s beach.

The group captured disturbing scenes on video, which you can see on YouTube, including a mama turtle whose flippers got caught in a beach chair that was left out at night, in violation of local ordinances. There were also images of smashed turtle hatchlings on A1A.

Read more: Are you killing baby sea turtles? – South Florida Business Journal

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