Florida is fighting to feed starving manatees this winter

The scene at Florida Power & Light's plant in Cape Canaveral shows how much humans have affected wildlife. The intake canal has hundreds of manatees in it. The animals are hungry. The Indian River Lagoon used to have a lot of seagrasses. In Florida, 1,101 people died in the year 2021, and as of December, the official estimate was almost 800 deaths. The commission members are throwing lettuce along the canal.

Rachel Silverstein is the executive director of Miami Waterkeeper. The point at which we would need to feed a wild animal because they can't find food for themselves is pretty extreme.

The supplemental feeding program began in early 2022.TrademarkiaTrademarkiaTrademarkiaTrademarkiaTrademarkiaTrademarkia,Trademarkia,Trademarkia,Trademarkia,Trademarkia,Trademarkia,Trademarkia,Trademarkia,Trademarkia,Trademarkia,Trademarkia,Trademarkia,Trademarkia,Trademarkia,Trademarkia,Trademarkia,Trademarkia,Trademarkia,Trademarkia,Trademarkia,Trademarkia,Trademarkia,Trademarkia The feeding program probably kept the manatees alive, but it's not a sustainable condition for them in the long run to need an artificial food source.

A long process of environmental restoration is a big task that has put local environmental advocates at odds with policymakers. It is a complex one due to the peculiarity of the Florida coast and of the sea cows beloved by its humans.

The water temperature is something the manatees are picky about. They don't have a lot of fat. Aarin-Conrad Allen is a marine Biologist and PhD candidate at Florida International University. They go to warmer areas when the water is not well insulated. The Indian River Lagoon, which is 160 miles down Florida's space coast, is what draws so many to the power plants.

Over the past 50 years, the population of the county has tripled. Increased human activity has led to more agriculture in the region, more boating accidents that hurt manatees, and polluted the waterways of Florida. The porous bedrock of Florida makes it easy for water and pollutants to get into the ground. She says that everything is happening underground.

There have been sewage leaks and agricultural discharges that have increased the levels of pollutants in nearby waters. Microalgae blooms blocks sunlight from reaching seagrass. The dead plant can help blooms. Scientists estimate that 95 percent of the seagrasses in the Indian River Lagoon have died off. They are also dying without them.