By Frank Briganti, President, Fort Pierce Sportfishing Club
Members of the Fort Pierce Sportfishing Club share and deal with the same concerns as everyone else who wishes to enjoy our waters with friends and families. We all share deep concerns about the runoff of contaminated water, algae blooms, sewage leakage and various other contamination sources that drain into our lagoon and inshore fishing areas. Not to be forgotten is the effect all of this runoff has on near-shore fishing opportunities. Offshore deterioration of our natural reefs and the scourge of invasive species that are thriving on productive fishing grounds further limit fishing success.
Dealing with all of these environmental issues is a major concern, and as members of a local club of fishermen we must rely on our government and the accompanying bureaucracy to deal with these issues. There really is not much we can do individually other than continuously monitor and provide input regarding changes going on around us.
On the other hand, there are some things we observe locally that we may be able to significantly impact. An example of this is the fairly recent loss of the #10A buoy, which has marked the Carpon Shoal off the northern end of South Hutchinson Island (not far from the Fort Pierce Inlet) since the 1950s. Probably because of its location and the natural topography of the shoal, this buoy served for more than sixty years as a consistent and reliable source for harvesting attractive bait fish as anglers headed out for offshore fishing. The removal of the 10A buoy in May 2017 by the U.S. Coast Guard was for economic reasons, and given all of the upgrades in navigation instruments, marking Carpon Shoal with a buoy was deemed no longer necessary to navigation. Since the loss of this resource, there have been numerous attempts to get it reinstalled by contacting the U.S. Coast Guard, but those efforts have gone nowhere and at this point the outlook is not promising.
The Fort Pierce Sportfishing Club has discussed pursuing a permit and private funding to purchase and install a buoy to replace this valuable resource. This is certainly a viable possibility. It is no different than installing an artificial reef, only this would be a floating fish haven. We invite your input and support for this effort and invite those interested to attend any regular meeting of the Fort Pierce Sportfishing Club held the third Wednesday of each month at the Ft. Pierce Yacht Club. If you prefer, please share your input via email to FPSC@live.com.
For more information on the Fort Pierce Sportfishing Club, visit www.ftpiercesportfishingclub.com online or email FPSC@live.com.
