Commissioners Approve Resolution to Support Environmental Initiative

Written by Kristen Schmutz

Belden Communications News

The City of Daytona Beach, City Commissioners approved a resolution that will support the Senate and the House’s jointly titled bill, known as the Blue Carbon for Our Planet Act. 

According to a release, this bipartisan bill seeks to establish an Interagency Working Group to analyze, mapping, study, and preserving existing coastal blue carbon. This refers to the coastal vegetated ecosystems which involve mangroves, tidal marshes, seagrasses, and other tidal or salt-water wetlands. 

The Daytona Beach City Commission recognizes the need to protect and preserve the environment to ensure the health, wellbeing, economic stability, and overall enjoyment of our community’s future. By resolution, our city joins together to urge our esteemed members of Congress to pass this legislation in support of the environment and our future generations.

The International Blue Carbon Initiative is a coordinated, global program focused on mitigating climate change through the preservation and restoration of coastal and marine ecosystems. Blue carbon is the carbon stored in coastal and marine ecosystems. The Blue Carbon Initiative currently focuses on carbon in coastal ecosystems - mangroves, tidal marshes, and seagrasses. These ecosystems sequester and store large quantities of blue carbon in both the plants and the sediment below. For example, over 95% of the carbon in seagrass meadows is collected in the soils. 

These vital ecosystems are considered priceless in the preservation of our environment. Many of these sensitive areas exist in Daytona Beach, Volusia County, and throughout the State of Florida.

Coastal communities with blue carbon ecosystems are better protected. They provide a silent service, capturing carbon from emissions that would otherwise contribute to climate change while acting as nurseries for our fish, improving water quality, and protecting our shorelines. 

The resolution of support urges our congressional representatives to vote in support of the Blue Carbon for Our Planet Act. The determination also authorizes the City Clerk’s Office to forward the resolution in support of Representative Michael Waltz, Senator Marco Rubio, and Senator Rick Scott.

For more information, visit the Blue Carbon Initiative website.