LTC 126-2025 2025 Sea Turtle Nesting Season and Grant AwardDocusign Envelope ID: F79E9532-E3BF-4F33-8BF6-3A3AC8036561
MIAMI BEACH
OFFICE OF THE CITY MANAGER
LTC# LETTER TO COMMISSION
TO:
FROM:
Honorable Mayor Steven Meiner and Members of the City Commission
Eric Carpenter, City Manager fJuc ~
DATE: March 20, 2025
SUBJECT : 2025 Sea Turtle Nesting Season and Grant Award
The City of Miami Beach is dedicated to the conservation and preservation of its natural resources
including the protection of sea turtles that nest annually on our beaches. City Ordinance No. 2024-
4652 restricts artificial lighting during nesting season between April 1st and October 31s t (Ord. No.
2024-4652). Each year, the City refines its current procedures to prepare for the upcoming nesting
season and I am pleased to share an update.
Education and Events
Last year, the Environment and Sustainability
Department kicked off a new "Flip the Switch"
campaign with the assistance of the Marketing and
Communications Department to raise awareness
about reducing the harmful effects of artificial light on
sea turtles. I am pleased to share that the Department
was recently awarded $23,710 in funding through
another competitive grant from the Sea Turtle
Conservancy to expand upon the campaign . The grant
funding will target and support education for hotels and
beach concessionaires more directly.
The Department is also pleased to announce that this
year's Turtle Fest will be held on Saturday, April 12th
at Altos del Mar Park from 3 to 6 pm. This fun family-
friendly event invites the Miami Beach community to
celebrate the beginning of sea turtle nesting season
while raising awareness about local efforts in sea turtle conservation during Earth Month. The
family friendly event will again include activities and informative booths.
City Efforts
A successful sea turtle season relies on the entire community to help prepare our beaches for sea
turtle nesting season. For that reason, the City implements strategies and conducts extensive
education and outreach to the community to increase sea turtle awareness.
The Environment and Sustainability Department works with various external stake holders and
City departments on short-term and long-term strategies for better protecting our native sea turtle
population. This includes external coordination with Florida Fish and Wildlife Commission (FWC)
and Miami-Dade County, internal trainings for Code Compliance Officers, evening lighting surveys,
and lighting retrofits to include amber lights or shading for City beachfront properties including
parking lots and parks. Public property lighting retrofits are generally led by Facilities and Fleet
Department and the Public Works Department.
126-2025
Docusign Envelope ID: F79E9532-E3BF-4F33-8BF6-3A3AC8036561
Evening lighting surveys are being conducted by Miami-Dade County, Code Compliance, and
Environment and Sustainability to document and address lighting concerns. Code Compliance
distributes a letter annually to beachfront properties regarding sea turtle lighting standards and
protections.
Background
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Sea Turtles are protected by the US
Endangered Species Act of 1973 and
the Florida Statute Chapter 370. It is
illegal to harm or harass sea turtles, their
nests, or hatchlings. The City of Miami
Beach is a nesting habitat for three
species of protected sea turtles: The
Loggerhead, Green, and Leatherback
sea turtles . Handling of turtles and nests
is regulated by the state agency, the
Florida Fish & Wildlife Conservation
Commission (FWC). Sea turtle nesting
season in the State of Florida occurs
between May 1st and October 3P1;
however, sea turtle nesting begins on
uo Nor No ARr111e1A L No nMH MBR!S1NG~B OVt.C OM /SfMU RTltS April 1st in Miami Beach to account for
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110
'"~ Pttor oGRA'"' ttMBSll~R[TH[SHOR[ the earlier Leatherback nesting season
Spot O 10st boby turtle ? DON'T TOUCH REPORT THEM Se e someone touc h ing turtles? I
Th e Fl orido Fi,h and W ildlife Co nse r vation Commiss ion at 1.8 88.404 .3 9 22
M iami-Dod e Co unty at 786.719.6836 or 305 .310.3046
M iami Beach Police De partm ent 305 .673.7900
in our county, the Miami-Dade County
Sea Turtle Conservation Program
(MDCSTCP) is responsible for
spearheading sea turtle conservation
efforts. FWC issued a permit to the
County that allows County staff to handle sea turtle nests and hatchlings and conduct daily
inspections on our beaches.
Starting at sunrise every morning during sea turtle nesting season, dedicated County staff identify,
mark off, and where applicable, relocate nests. They also inventory hatched nests and document
hatchling disorientations . No beach activities (beach maintenance operations, sand sifting, litter
collection, concessionaire operations, special events, etc.) can begin before the daily survey is
completed and County staff gives the authorization to begin activities on the beach. This prevents
the loss of sea turtle tracks used to identify nests, as well as potential collisions with nesting sea
turtles or newly laid nests. All nests identified by County staff during the survey are marked and
surrounded by caution tape the same morning they are discovered; signaling the public to maintain
a safe buffer of at least 10 feet. Furthermore, the City will continue to work closely with the County
to help address any lighting or conservation concerns along our beaches as the season continues.
On beaches where artificial lighting is visible, female adult sea turtles may be deterred from nesting
and the hatchlings' journey to the sea can be disrupted as they can become disoriented, causing
them to crawl away from the ocean and toward the artificial light. Hatchlings are attracted to the
brightest source of light, which on an unlit beach would be the reflection of the moon off the surf.
Beachfront lighting has been documented to negatively affect nesting females and often results in
reduced or abnormal nesting activity. Visible light sources and the reflection of "glow" resulting
from the cumulative effects of coastal lights contribute to this problem.
Turtle Nesting Protection Ordinance Amendments
On October 30, 2024, the Miami Beach City Commission updated the 18-year-old Turtle Nesting
Protection Ordinance to strengthen the ordinance and further reduce the damaging impacts of
artificial light on sea turtles. Highlights from the amended ordinance include provisions such as:
• Modifying the lighting standards for new and existing development to apply to lighting within
Doc us ign Envelope ID : F79E 9532-E3BF-4F3 3-8 BF6-3A3AC80 36561
line -of-sight of the beach .
• Integration of interior lighting standards for hotels and commercial properties .
• Restriction of fireworks displays to offshore barges during the nesting season.
• Recommending the use of red or amber filters on vehicle headlights for vehicles authorized
on the beach at night during the nesting season.
If you have any questions, please contact Amy Knowles, Chief Resilience Officer, at
AmyKnowles@miamibeachfl.gov or Lindsey Precht, Assistant Director of the Environment &
Sustainability Department, at LindseyPrecht@miamibeachfl.gov.
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