Florida’s next economic boom: Ocean takes stage for state’s new business strategy
Florida has long boomed economically from three revenue sources — farming, real estate, tourism. Now, local leaders would like to add the ocean to that list.
Florida is launching a new Office of Ocean Economy, which aims to make the state a major contender in a “blue economy” race that is well underway in other states and countries.
Some of that development is already happening here in South Florida, and backers hope the initiative will make the Sunshine State a global leader in water-driven innovation.
State Rep. Kelly Skidmore, D-Boca Raton, who co-sponsored the bill that
created the office with state Rep. Chip LaMarca, R-Lighthouse Point, and
state Sen. Jason Pizzo, D-Sunny Isles Beach, said that the goal is to connect
the dots of the blue economy in Florida so everyone can benefit.
— Connecting the state’s ocean resources to economic development with
a focus on sustainable practices.
— Connecting the state’s universities and transforming innovative
technology into functional businesses.
— Developing a pipeline for innovation to be commercialized and
financed.
— Branding the state globally as a leader in the ocean economy.
— Reporting the economic benefits the office has generated, as well as
emerging ocean economy innovations, each August.
“We need the next Gatorade to come out of the ocean,” said LaMarca at a
recent Florida Ocean Alliance event at the Coral Ridge Yacht Club in Fort
Lauderdale.
LaMarca’s Gatorade reference was a nod to researchers at the University
of Florida, who in 1965 developed the sports drink — and created an
industry — because they were concerned that UF athletes were sweating
out too many electrolytes in the Florida heat.
“There’s plenty of great research being done now,” LaMarca said. “What we
want to do is take what’s in a research project and what is on the shelf and
bring possible products to market.”
Funding for the initiative will come from the state, and the office will be
housed at Florida Atlantic University and led by Colin Polsky, founding Polsky said that some current examples of the ocean economy include
aquaculture, commercial fishing and recreation (SCUBA businesses,
fishing guides). But given that Florida has 8,436-mile coastline, high-level
research institutions seeking solutions to climate change, and access to
the power of tides and the Gulf Stream, there’s much more that can be
done.
Central to the initiative is the fact that Florida is on the front lines of
climate change and sea-level rise. As the region develops solutions, and
those solutions can be turned into businesses that the rest of the world
can use.
Polsky said that startups could emerge around topics such as
hydroelectric power from both tides and the Gulf Stream, innovative ways
to protect shorelines through both designed structures and developing
coral reefs that are better adapted to high heat conditions.
He used other regions as examples of blue economy leadership.
“Denmark is the global leader in offshore wind technology development,”
Polsky said. China has ramped up production, but the know-how came
from a place — Denmark, Polsky said.
“Same thing with the Netherlands with flood control. They’ve been doing
that for 500 years. Humanity has always been trying to manage risk in
coastal zones. Places that do it well, export it.”
Polsky said that efforts in this first fiscal year would start with a statewide
listening tour to ascertain what ocean economy ventures have been
attempted, what needs to continue and not to continue.
His team will also develop reports on local gross domestic
product associated with different parts of the ocean economy, and map
that analysis across the state.
They will then look at employment trends, define the status quo and
model how local economies might perform under different economic
forces.
“Then we can incorporate ideas from all around the state about different
opportunities, avenues, levers, mechanisms for improving the ocean Florida is not alone in the blue economy race. Skidmore said the Sunshine
State is competing with Rhode Island, San Diego, Mississippi and several
institutes around Boston.
Globally she said Portugal, Scotland, Norway and others are making
headway.
“They’re really killing it in this space. So we do have some catch up we
need to do,” she said. “But if Florida can lead the U.S. ... then we can
compete around the world.” In 10 years, LaMarca envisions an intellectual pipeline.
“My hope is that every smart young research student that’s doing work at
our universities has the opportunity to take something ... to bring a
project to market and be able to monetize that,” he said. “They should be able to take what they’re learning, and if they can bring
something to market, benefit off of it, not only for themselves, but for the
universities.”
Though the Office of Ocean Economy is new, water-focused businesses
and research in South Florida is well underway.
Here are some examples:
The a nonprofit
Reef deployment:
Ocean Rescue Alliance International,
that works with cities such as Hollywood, deploys artificial coral reefs that
protect the shoreline, provide habitat for marine life and offer diving
opportunities. ORAI has developed a Coral Lok system to make planting
coral more efficient. Their base structures have slots for screws. Divers can
simply screw in corals growing on threaded plugs.
Reefs as protection:
The University of Miami’s X-REEFS project, funded in
part by the Department of Defense, is developing hybrid reefs that both
protect the human world from waves and reap the ecological benefits of a
coral reef. Key to building the artificial reefs are modular structures called
SEAHIVEs, hexagonal concrete pieces designed with holes that optimally
disrupt wave energy and invite marine life to make a home. UM is also
attempting to breed corals that can withstand marine heat waves and
disease. These corals could be planted on the artificial reef structures and
add mass to the reef over time, even as seas rise.
Aquaculture:
Everglades Oysters
north of Chokoloskee near the 10,000 Islands and Everglades National
Park. They plan to eventually harvest with a new technology called
FlipFarm, which allows farmers to easily flip oyster cages, keeping the
bivalves healthy.
New aquaculture ventures are launching. This month, seeded their first batch of oysters. The farm sits just
Building better seawalls: Miami-based Kind Designs, backed in part by Mark Cuban, uses 3D printing to produce what they call Living Seawalls,
which replace flat seawalls with a rippled wall that emulates the nooks and Finding a southern seaweed:
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration recently gave a $250,000 grant to the University of Florida
to investigate seaweed aquaculture in Florida’s tropical waters. Though
most seaweed aquaculture is done in cold water, UF hopes to identify
warm-water seaweed species and kick-start an industry that both boosts
Florida’s economy and benefits its environment. Potential uses include
seaweed as a replacement for some plastic packaging, nutritional
supplements, animal feed, cosmetics and biofuels
Seagrass and oyster restoration:
restores ecosystems. Much of their business is a reaction to harmful algae
blooms that snuff out seagrass meadows and pummel ecosystems. They
replant and maintain seagrass areas to boost local economies via
ecotourism and fishing opportunities. They also build living shorelines to
help marine life and protect human properties, and restore oyster reefs,
which filter pollutants. Climate change and nutrient runoff make each of
these a growth industry.
Winter Garden-based Sea & Shoreline
Harnessing the Gulf Stream:
recently awarded FAU an $800,000 grant to study how to harness the vast
power of the Gulf Stream, which flows a few miles off shore. DOE studies
have previously calculated that the Florida section of this immense ocean
current could produces as much energy as three nuclear power plants.
The FUA feasibility study will conduct ocean current tests off of Palm
Beach County, where the Gulf Stream cuts close to land.
