Save Our Bay Program
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Ben Cegelski
Sustainability Coordinator
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Ashlee Painter
Environmental Management Supervisor
One of the biggest draws to Oldsmar is the bay and our parks. Residents are drawn to the natural beauty and recreational activities that the coast has to offer. We want to ensure that these spaces and the bay remain healthy for future generations.
Every year the Tampa Bay Estuary Program creates a State of the Bay report with water quality data collected throughout the year (read report here). Since the construction of the causeways across Old Tampa Bay, the water quality in this section has been impacted by the reduced flow and increased population in the area.
While the city is working with regional and state partners to address some of the bigger projects affecting bay health, we want to do everything we can locally to keep our bay waters healthy. The Save the Bay Program is a way for all residents to get involved in helping to keep our bay clean. The program started in 2021 with Vertical Oyster Gardens and will continue to add new projects annually. All projects will be ongoing, so click on the project tabs to see how you can help Save Our Bay!
Do you want to help Save Our Bay? In a recent water quality report on Old Tampa Bay, which lines the Oldsmar and SafetyHarbor coasts, water was found to be the least healthy in the entire bay. There are many ways to help clean our waters. Our first project to tackle this important issue, Vertical Oyster Gardens or VOGS, launched on December 11, 2021. Sounds interesting, doesn’t it?
While oysters are good to eat, one oyster can filter up to 50 gallons of water per day. Imagine the filtering power of hundreds or thousands of oysters!
Former Oldsmar Mayor Eric Seidel partnered with Safety Harbor Mayor Joe Ayoub to encourage residents to hang VOGs on their docks. These VOGs will help recruit oysters to our bay and get us one step closer to cleaner, healthier waters. Even if you do not have a dock, you can still volunteer to help make and monitor the gardens.
This will be an ongoing project, so keep an eye out for future events! If you want more information or to install VOGs on your dock, email the Sustainability Coordinator.
Have you already installed VOGS on your dock?
Please fill out a quick questionnaire Here
Special Thank You to our partners
Steps to hang VOGs
- Choose a place for VOG. Choose a spot with the most water flow and is deep enough to cover VOG at high tide.
- Using a length of rope hang VOG from dock. Try to match the height/depth of the best oyster/barnacle growth on your pilings or seawall. This is the optimal zone for your area.
- Be patient. It may take several months for oysters to colonize your VOG. Try moving VOG higher or lower in the water column if you think they are hanging at the wrong depth. Always try to match the growth on adjacent areas.
We have oysters!
We hosted our first VOG monitoring event on August 6, 2022. While VOGs were mostly covered with barnacles, we did find oyster spat (aka baby oysters) on about half of them. This was expected, as barnacles recruit earlier in the year than oysters. Oysters spawn in the summer months, so we were seeing the first spawn of the season.
When oysters are this size, they can be hard to spot amongst all the barnacles. The monitoring team had their work cut out for them! Check out the picture below to see how many oyster spat you can see.
Now look at the picture below to see if you got them all (oyster spat circled in yellow).
If you want to help monitor the VOGs on the R.E. Olds pier, contact the Sustainability Coordinator for more information.
The Oldsmar Tree Inventory is the second project in the City’s Save Our Bay Program! No matter where you are in the city, trees are important to the health and cleanliness of our waterways.
Benefits of Trees
- Reduce stormwater runoff - tree roots absorb excess stormwater and the canopy traps stormwater for use and evaporation
- Filter pollutants - trees allow more water to absorb into the ground and filter out pollutants before they reach our waterways
- Provide shade - trees provide much needed shade and help cool down highly urbanized areas
Are all trees good?
The most beneficial trees in Oldsmar are Florida natives. These trees are adapted to our local environment and require less maintenance and watering. They are often flood/drought tolerant and many are also saltwater tolerant. Invasive trees have been introduced to the area for many reasons, including landscaping, large scale production, and by seed hitchhikers. Invasive species often out compete native species and cause harm to the natural ecosystems affecting other plants and animals. The most common invasive tree species found in Oldsmar are:
- Brazilian Pepper Tree (Schinus terebinthifolia)
- Punk Tree (Melaleuca quinquenervia)
- Carrotwood Tree (Cupaniopsis anacardioides)
- Australian Pine Tree (Casuarina equisetifolia)
- Chinaberry Tree (Melia azedarach)
- Chinese Tallow Tree (Triadica sebifera)
Oldsmar Tree Inventory Survey
There are two ways to complete the survey: via a weblink or download the Survey123 app (available in Google or Apple stores). It is best used with a GPS enabled device (phone, tablet, or even computer), but you can use the map to drop a pin in your location as well. If you choose to use the app, you do not need to create or sign into your ArcGIS account. The easiest way to find the correct survey in the app is by scanning this QR code:
Survey Results
Below is the interactive survey results dashboard. You can zoom in on the map to see areas in more detail or click on the filters to the left to see specific types of trees. A full screen version of the dashboard can be viewed here.