This Draft plan is currently being presented to the public for review and comment. 

While the Pinellas County and Boca Ciega Bay Aquatic Preserves are located within one of Florida’s most densely urbanized areas, the presence of vast acreages of seagrass and mangroves support productive fisheries. Pinellas County Aquatic Preserve includes submerged resources in state-owned freshwater areas, and it even includes subterranean caves and offshore hardbottom communities.

A guide to exploring the recreational opportunities of the Apalachicola River and Basin.

ORCP's Aquatic Preserve Program maintains continuous water quality monitoring stations around the state where data are collected in 15-minute intervals for eight parameters (water temperature, specific conductivity, salinity, dissolved oxygen percent, dissolved oxygen mg/L, depth, pH and turbidity). These sites are established as long-term monitoring locations and more than 50% of the stations have over 10 years of data. 

Seagrass and macroalgal percent cover by species began in 2022, Braun-Blanquet method used prior to 2022, presence, density of bay scallops and sea urchins, epiphyte density on seagrass blades, bottom sediment type. Temperature (C), Salinity (ppt), Dissolved Oxygen (mg/L), and pH (SU) included since 2016. Depth (m), secchi (m) and canopy height (cm) are additional parameters recorded in the Nature Coast AP seagrass data.