Gov. DeSantis touts $5M investment in artificial reefs, more than Joe Biden requested nationwide

Darren Soto is spearheading a bipartisan effort to protect American coral reefs.

The state of Florida will invest $5 million in artificial reefs to help support the ecosystem in Key West.

Gov. Ron DeSantis touted the ecological spending at a press conference in the Keys, noting the state has put more resources into coral reefs here than the federal government has nationwide.

“Since I became Governor, we’ve done $114 million for coral reef recovery and coastal protection efforts,” DeSantis said.

“You’ve never seen anything like that. And to put that in perspective: What we’ve done in the current year’s budget, what we did in the budget I signed last week that will take effect in July 1 of this year, our support for coral reefs through our own state budget exceeded the total investment requested by the (Joe) Biden administration for coral reef restoration across the entire United States.”

While Biden has called environmental policy a priority of his administration, many in the scientific community were alarmed that his latest budget request cuts spending for the Integrated Ocean Observing System from more than $42 million to about $10 million, according to CNN. That program is partially responsible for monitoring coral reefs.

Notably, the White House in December called on states to further invest in coral reefs as part of a National Climate Resilience Framework.

DeSantis suggested that Florida was prioritizing greater environmental needs than was the federal government.

“They spend billions of dollars to create, like, three charging stations, you know, for electric vehicles. I mean, it’s crazy,” DeSantis said. “So we’re actually doing things that impact the state of Florida.”

Rep. Jim Mooney, a Key West Republican, advocated for the reef spending in the budget and said the use of artificial reefs was critical at a time when natural coral faces ecological threats.

“Artificial reefs are necessary in today’s world,” Mooney said. “We can’t fix what’s already gone out there, but we can now enhance. And through support from the Governor’s Office, we’re going to make sure that we have an ecosystem that thrives, is good for Florida, is good for our tourism and good for our children and the future of Monroe County.”

DeSantis discussed efforts to improve Florida’s environment overall, including protecting elements enjoyed by Floridians and by tourists. He touted state facilitated hunting and fishing efforts for pythons and lionfish, the latter of which is underway right now.

Roger Young, Executive Director of the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, said efforts like the lionfish hunts and reef restoration work in synergy to protect Florida’s natural environment.

“With the lionfish challenge that’s out there, and also with the coral reef restoration, there’s such important work that’s being done by our members, our staff members and our biologists at the Florida Research Institute, the Fish and Wildlife Research Institute, along with others that are helping with that,” Young said.

He also discussed advocacy to allow more fishing of red snapper in Florida, which is regulated largely by states in the Gulf of Mexico but by the federal government on the Atlantic Coast. He said Florida has pushed for a longer fishing season while the federal government keeps a very short season, which last year ran just 48 hours.