Plan to Protect Fishers Island Seagrass

The Fishers Island Seagrass Management (FISM) Coalition is leading a community-based seagrass movement to protect and preserve the natural eelgrass habitat off the Fishers Island coast. The FISM Coalition has representative stakeholders from community groups that use, interact with, or depend upon the Fishers Island seagrass. The coalition created a plan based on community engagement and education through careful evaluation, discussions, and workshops. This plan identifies community members that interact with seagrass directly or indirectly and strategizes how to guide them toward making decisions that will preserve the quality and integrity of the seagrass habitats.

Throughout a series of meetings, the coalition developed an educational plan that addressed the four major threats to the seagrass beds:

• nitrogen run-off from land-based activities

• scarring or scouring from moorings, propellers, and fishing gear

• uprooting from anchors and fishing gear

• shading and damage from docks and coastal construction

Each threat has subsequent steps and actions on which community groups should be addressed and engaged. The coalition has recommended this education-focused plan of awareness and engagement as an alternative to imposing regulated seagrass management areas.

The coalition wants this plan to reflect the values and needs of all the Fishers Island communities and visitors to its island and surrounding waters. Please review the PDF below to know more about the coalition’s plan. We welcome questions, comments, and feedback; please reach out to the FISM project coordinator, Hannah Vagts, at fishersislandseagrass@gmail.com.