County Hosts Lake Worth Lagoon Initiative Boat Tour

Amy Kight with the Busch Wildlife Sanctuary prepares to release a juvenile night heron.

Amy Kight with the Busch Wildlife Sanctuary prepares to release a juvenile night heron.

Commissioners Paulette Burdick and Karen Marcus, along with Environmental Resources Management (ERM) staff and members of the Lake Worth Lagoon Initiative Steering Committee hosted a boat tour of the Lake Worth Lagoon on Dec. 2.

The two-hour trip highlighted a series of environmental restoration projects aimed at restoring and enhancing habitat and water quality in the lagoon.
Invited guests included members of the Palm Beach County Legislative Delegation, local municipal officials and citizens.

There are 13 cities that border some portion of the Lake Worth Lagoon, which extends from North Palm Beach to Boynton Beach. Since 1998, a total of $76 million in local, state and federal funds has been committed for 44 habitat and stormwater management projects.

ERM staffers took turns describing several keys projects, including the South Cove Natural Area in downtown West Palm Beach, restoration of John’s Island and Ibis Isle in Palm Beach, the Snook Islands Natural Area in Lake Worth, and the C-51 sediment trap project which prevented more than 100,000 cubic yards of muck from seeping into the lagoon.

Prior to heading out on the Majestic Princess, the contingent of about 100 observed the release of a young night heron. The abandoned juvenile had fallen out of its nest and needed about three months at the Busch Wildlife Sanctuary before it could be returned to the wild.

The Lake Worth Lagoon Steering Committee is comprised of Palm Beach County, the South Florida Water Management District, the Palm Beach County League of Cities, the Florida Inland Navigation District, and the Florida Department of Environmental Protection.

For more information about the Lake Worth Lagoon Initiative, please visit http://www.pbcgov.org/erm/lwli/index.asp