Friends of the San Juans recently announced that they partnered with Frog Marine to install midline floats on private mooring buoys to help protect eelgrass habitat.
A midline float lifts the anchor rode and chain off the seafloor to decrease the damage to eelgrass and kelp. These football-shaped floats are added midway up the anchor line, creating buoyancy, which helps keep the line from dragging. DNR (Department of Natural Resources) installs midline floats on all their public mooring buoys and Washington State Parks, likewise, has midline floats on most all of their mooring buoys.
Friends of the San Juans and Frog Marine worked with 81 private mooring buoy owners to install midline floats for the ongoing effort to restore and protect eelgrass across the San Juan Islands. The project was funded with grant monies from the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation.
Private property owners who wish to install a recreational mooring buoy over State-owned aquatic lands, must make application (Joint Aquatic Resources Permit) with DNR and meet certain requirements, one of which is the installation of a midline float. Friends and Frog Marine worked together to upgrade older mooring buoys that were authorized before current best practices. Watch the video HERE of an underwater installation.
You can learn more about resources and opportunities offered by Friends on their website, Green Boating – Friends of the San Juans, or reach out via friends@sanjuans.org.
Header Photo: by Friends
Video: Courtesy of Friends
Diagrams: by DNR
