The $1.1 million stormwater upgrade south of Mercy Hospital aims to cut pollution flowing into Biscayne Bay, as scientists warn of an ecosystem in distress.
The Miami City Commission has accepted a $900,000 grant from the Florida Department of Environmental Protection to support a shoreline infrastructure project in Coconut Grove aimed at improving Biscayne Bay’s water quality.
The $1.1 million project, upgrading the stormwater drainage systems on city streets south of Mercy Hospital, east of South Bayshore Drive, will help reduce debris and other pollutants from reaching the bay.
“They’re putting in all of these procedures and equipment to make sure that the water that’s being drained out, that ends up out there, is potentially as clean as possible,” Miami District 2 Commissioner Damian Pardo, the project’s sponsor, told the Spotlight.
The grant comes out of a $20 million pool awarded by the State of Florida to fund eight water improvement projects across Miami-Dade. Other projects include the $5.4 million installation of a pump station in Cutler Bay and a $1.2 million septic-to-sewer conversion project in North Miami.
The Coconut Grove project’s design has been completed and approved by the county’s Department of Environmental Resources Management. A construction date is pending.
Biscayne Bay continues to report concerningly high levels of pollution and low water quality, with some environmental activists pointing a finger at the city’s antiquated stormwater drainage systems. This year’s Biscayne Bay Report Card revealed that even with recent improvements, the Bay is inching closer to what some scientists describe as an ecological tipping point, precipitating mass die-offs of marine fauna and flora.
The announcement of the stormwater drainage project comes as local residents prepare for this Saturday’s International Coastal Cleanup Day. During last year’s event volunteers collected more than 25,000 pounds of trash from more than 70 sites across the county, including Coconut Grove’s waterfront parks and barrier islands. Volunteers for this year’s event are still being accepted.
This is good to hear and definitely something we should be spending money on.