The Sarasota Bay Estuary Program reports a 50% reduction in nitrogen pollution and seagrass levels that are 30% above 1950s levels in Sarasota Bay.

In 1995, the estuary program set a goal of reducing nitrogen by 48% in the Sarasota Bay community with the intent of reestablishing seagrass in the bay.

To date, the estuary program reports about 4,040 acres of new seagrass habitat have been created with an additional 5,158 acres converted from patchy seagrasses to continuous covering beds in Sarasota Bay.

Seagrass recovery is listed as a major element of the Sarasota Bay Estuary Program's Comprehensive Conservation and Management Plan for Sarasota Bay.

Scallops also returned to Sarasota Bay in 2008, the estuary program reports. And stormwater projects also have been implemented regionally to reduce pollution. Citizens Action Plans also have been developed and implemented annually by the Citizens Action Committee supporting pollution reduction.

Contact Kurt Schultheis at kschultheis@yourobserver.com.