Charlotte Harbor Estuary Program, North Fort Myers (Gulf of Mexico)

Florida’s Charlotte Harbor Estuary was established as national estuary under the 1987 National Estuary Program for its significance to wildlife and local economy. AA 20-year Comprehensive Conservation and Management Plan (CCMP) was developed to restore and protect the estuarine system. Restoration activities started in June of 2001, and the main objective within the management plan was to challenge local communities to address water quality, wildlife habitat loss, land use changes, and human-induced changes to river flows to protect uses of the estuary – emphasizing the bottom line that is, when the quality of natural resources diminishes, so does the economy.