Jimmy Buffett impressed me in 1981, died a year ago on September 1, and impressed me again just last week despite no longer being alive.
I discovered Buffett in the early ‘80s, and his album at the time was "Somewhere Over China." I was taken with the best song on the cassette, also called “Somewhere Over China.” I rewound it, replayed it, and rewound it again until the tape wore out.
(They did that. It’s why someone invented the CD, which now has fallen out of favor for the album, which is what fell out of favor for the cassette in the first place.)
Buffett was always pictured in tropical luxury. Several of his album covers showed him in a hammock, strumming away. He sang about being an aging pirate, about being "The Son of a Son of a Sailor," about "Floridays," and "Trying To Reason With Hurricane Season."
Who knew? Not me.
What I didn’t know while wearing out "Somewhere Over China" was that Buffett had moved on from making that album to founding the Save The Manatee Club with former Florida Gov. Bob Graham.
The club was created because water quality issues were threatening the sea cows’ existence. Its mission was to protect manatees and their aquatic habitat through education, advocacy, and research.
The Save the Manatee Club has become the world's leading manatee conservation organization. Buffett rather quietly served as co-chair of the organization until his death, using his clout, money, and time all along the way.
The Chief Parrothead did so much more for Florida’s environment.
Buffett testified before Congress in support of reauthorizing the Endangered Species Act, using the West Indian manatee as an example of a species that benefited from protection.
Naturally, playing with the Coral Reefer Band, Buffett supported nonprofits dedicated to protecting coral reef ecosystems. (What do you mean there is an alternate meaning to the name of his band?)
Buffett helped raise funds for disaster relief following the BP oil disaster in the Gulf of Mexico. He supported the creation of Florida's Save the Manatee license plate. Buffett starred in public service announcements and used his concerts to raise money for waterway signs to protect manatees from speeding boats.
For two decades, Buffett sat on the board of the Everglades Foundation, an environmental nonprofit for members of other environmental nonprofits whose focus is seeing the Everglades restoration through to the end which, as the rate things are slogging along, may not happen until the waning days of the Anthropocene.
While singing about taking it easy, Buffett was working hard to guarantee the future of several of Florida’s iconic species. He consistently used his influence to support environmental causes related to marine conservation, water quality, and protecting Florida's ecosystems.
Then, on September 1, 2023, James William Buffett Jr. died.
Will. Isn’t that a surprise?
Buffett’s will was filed in Palm Beach County Court a few months ago, and the man impressed me again.
What it was, was what he included in his will about halfway through. It is not under subsections about his career’s copyrights or royalties but was in an exceptional section rarely seen. It requires something related to his avocation that took the fruits of his vocation to make it financially feasible.
Buffett made clear he wanted his businesses and properties to be environmentally sound — for all time.
For this accounting of the environmental clauses in Buffett’s will, I relied on “The Backstory blog” by Christine Stapleton, a retired reporter for the Palm Beach Post who apparently cannot stop writing – I say that with unwavering admiration – and now jots her thoughts profusely on a brilliant mix of opinion and facts on an array of topics, often in the enviro-political arena.
After recounting the above section of Buffett's will in a recent missive, Stapleton asks:
“Who does this?” she wrote in The Backstory blog. “Who even thinks of the environmental conditions of their businesses and real estate when they are drafting their will? Or the future environmental conditions of their businesses and real estate? And who would authorize future spending to prevent environmental damage to their businesses and property - even if there is no threat of a lawsuit or government action?”
Jimmy Buffett, I believe.
“Despite his soft-rock, pop-style tunes celebrating loafing, drinking, and smoking weed in the Florida Keys, Buffett was a brilliant entrepreneur,” Stapleton wrote. “Buffett was deeply, deeply devoted to the environment, especially in Florida.”
Inspiring others?
There is a common misconception that environmental journalists are environmentalists, as in activists, like members of Greenpeace or, well, like Jimmy Buffett.
You can’t do that. There is a journalism law, and a proper one, that says you must keep objectivity in your heart and mind, which is hard enough to do without having an improper amount of passion for what you cover.
Environmental journalists are professionals who, through luck, fate, or desire, work our way into a beat where we research, analyze, and produce mass communications about earth sciences or the physical surroundings in which we live, including air, water, soil, and climate.
Is the city hall reporter a closet politician? Is the police reporter an undercover officer? Is the school board reporter a night-school teacher? Of course not.
Journalists are allowed to be human beings and, when doing so, appreciate the passion certain people bring to their vocation or avocation.
That’s what I’ve done here.
I believe Jimmy Buffett was convinced that, by using the environmental clause in his will to ensure the stewardship of his natural resources, he would inspire others to do the same.
Now, we join WGCU’s Water Quality Report, because Jimmy Buffett would have wanted us to do.
RED TIDE
Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission sampled for the red tide organism, Karenia brevis, and there were no positive tests throughout the state.
No reports of fish kills suspected to be related to red tide were received over the past week, and no respiratory irritation related to the harmful algae bloom was reported in Florida over the past week.
The Clinic for the Rehabilitation of Wildlife on Sanibel admitted one laughing gull for exposure to red tide toxins and the animal is still receiving care. While that is one too many, it’s way down compared to previous weeks.
BLUE-GREEN ALGAE
The Florida Department of Health has not reported blue-green algae in the region since Tropical Storm Debby slid by.
The agency reminds residents that winds and tides tend to push the components of blue-green algae around, so people in that region should be watchful for the potentially toxic bloom.
Lake Okeechobee shows low to moderate bloom potential on approximately 20% of the lake, which is widely scattered.
The FDEP's messaging always reminds us that blue-green algae's potential is subject to change due to rapidly changing environmental conditions or satellite inconsistencies.
What is red tide?
Red tide is a harmful algal bloom caused by high concentrations of the toxic dinoflagellate K. brevis, a microscopic algae found in the Gulf of Mexico.
Red tide typically forms naturally offshore, commonly in late summer or early fall, and is carried into coastal waters by winds and currents. Once inshore, these opportunistic organisms can use nearshore nutrient sources to fuel their growth.
Blooms typically last into winter or spring but, in some cases, can endure for more than one year.
Is red tide harmful?
K. brevis produces potent neurotoxins that can harm the health of both wildlife and people. Wind and wave action can break open K. brevis cells and release toxins into the air. This is why you should monitor conditions and stay away from beaches where red tide is in bloom.
People in coastal areas can experience varying degrees of eye, nose, and throat irritation during a red tide bloom. Some individuals with chronic respiratory conditions like asthma or chronic lung disease might experience more severe symptoms.
Red tide toxins can also affect the central nervous systems of fish and other marine life, leading to fish kills.
What causes red tide?
A red tide bloom develops naturally, but recent studies have discovered that mankind's infusion of other nutrients into the mix can make the red tide last longer or get stronger. Biology (the organisms), chemistry (natural or man-made nutrients for growth), and physics (concentrating and transport mechanisms) interact to produce the algal bloom. No one factor causes the development of a red tide bloom.
What is blue-green algae?
Blue-green algae, also known as cyanobacteria, are a group of organisms that can live in freshwater, saltwater or brackish water.
Large concentrations, called blooms, can change the water color to blue, green, brown, orange or red. Some cyanobacterial blooms can look like foam, scum, or mats on the surface of freshwater lakes and ponds. As algae in a cyanobacterial bloom die, the water may smell like something with a naturally unpleasant odor has now started to rot, too.
Is blue-green algae harmful?
Different types of blue-green algal bloom species can look different and have different impacts. However, regardless of species, many types of blue-green algae can produce toxins that can make you or your pets sick if swallowed or possibly cause skin and eye irritation.
The FDEP advises staying out of the water where algae are visibly present as specks or mats or where water is discolored. Pets or livestock should not come into contact with algal bloom-impacted water or with algal bloom material or fish on the shoreline. If they do, wash the animals right away.
What causes blue-green algae?
Blue-green algae blooms occur when the algae that are typically present grow in numbers more than normal. Within a few days, a bloom can cause clear water to become cloudy.
Winds tend to push the floating blooms to the shore, where they become more noticeable. Cyanobacterial blooms can form in warm, slow-moving waters that are rich in nutrients. Blooms can occur at any time, but most often occur in late summer or early fall.
If any major type of water quality alert is issued, you can find the details here in WGCU’s Water Quality Report.
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