District employee to use unique skillset to help The Nature Conservancy

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HAVANA – As the Florida Chapter of The Nature Conservancy begins an oyster reef restoration project in Pensacola Bay, an employee of the Northwest Florida Water Management District is providing his unique skillset to help the effort.

Darryl Boudreau, the District’s Resource Planning Program Manager who formerly worked with The Nature Conservancy, will collect and share drone footage of the restoration project with the Conservancy. This footage will help TNC document construction efforts and will be useful for communication and outreach activities with the public.

“When we hired Darryl a year ago, we tasked him with working closely with stakeholders throughout northwest Florida to protect our water resources,” said Brett Cyphers, the District’s Executive Director. “We take tremendous pride in allowing our talented staff to share their knowledge and expertise with our partners on projects that protect our precious natural resources.”

The Florida Chapter of The Nature Conservancy received approximately $14,500,000 from the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation’s Gulf Environmental Benefit Fund to design and implement an oyster reef restoration project in East Bay and Blackwater Bay of the Pensacola Bay System.

The project site extends along approximately six miles of shoreline from Grassy Point to south of Escribano Point at the northern boundary of Eglin Air Force Base. Project construction is set to begin in April 2021 and barring any delays is expected to be completed by November 2021.

The approximately 10-acre project will provide multiple functions and benefits, including fish and shellfish habitat restoration, improved water quality, shoreline stability, and enhanced productivity for commercial and recreational fisheries.

The District’s Governing Board approved the in-kind assistance, valued at approximately $6,000, to help with the project that is consistent with the Surface Water Improvement and Management (SWIM) Plan for the Pensacola Bay System. Among SWIM priorities addressed with this project are estuarine habitat restoration and watershed stewardship.