Description: Aquatic Preserves are state-owned sovereign submerged lands in areas which have exceptional biological, aesthetic, and scientific value, as described in Chapter 258.39, Florida Statutes, which have been set aside for the benefit of future generations. These areas are managed by the Florida Department of Environmental Protection's Office of Coastal and Aquatic Managed Areas.Currently, all Aquatic Preserves are also Outstanding Florida Waters (OFWs). However, it is important to note that there are three Aquatic Preserves whose OFW boundaries differ from the Aquatic Preserve boundary. These are described more specifically in the OFW rule 62-302.700: Indian River - Malabar to Vero Beach - does not include portions of Sebastian and Turkey creeks; Wekiva River - does not include portions of the St. Johns River; and Big Bend Seagrasses - the OFW rule specifies certain "incorporated and unincorporated areas" that are excluded from the Aquatic Preserve.
Copyright Text: FDEP, Division of State Lands, Bureau of Survey & Mapping
Name: National Estuarine Research Reserve (NERR) Boundaries
Display Field: SITE_NAME
Type: Feature Layer
Geometry Type: esriGeometryPolygon
Description: The MPA Inventory is a comprehensive catalog that provides detailed information for existing marine protected areas in the United States. The inventory provides geospatial boundary information (in polygon format) and classification attributes that seek to define the conservation objectives, protection level, governance and related management criteria for all sites in the database. The comprehensive inventory of federal, state and territorial MPA sites provides governments and stakeholders with access to information to make better decisions about the current and future use of place-based conservation. The information also will be used to inform the development of the national system of marine protected areas as required by Executive Order 13158. FWRI has reselected only the areas within the Atlantic Ocean and Gulf of Mexico. Please see www.mpa.gov for the complete inventory.
Copyright Text: NOAA Marine Protected Areas Center in joint effort with the US Department of the Interior provided the data and metadata. FWRI has altered the metadata to include processing done by FWRI staff.