By Sergio Piedra, Discover The Palm Beaches
Tourism is saving our beaches.
Surprised? It’s true! The same visitors who sometimes are looked at harshly for traffic, long brunch lines and discovering “secret” beach locales are also the reason we can protect and preserve our coastal treasures.
Tourism funds beach restoration projects, maintains public access and keeps our shorelines beautiful for generations to come.
Here’s how it works: There’s a 6% tax on overnight stays in hotels and vacation rentals, and more than $10 million of those dollars go directly to protect our beaches. So, it’s visitors, not residents, who are funding beach renourishment, restoration and maintenance, ensuring our shorelines stay healthy and accessible to everyone.
And “everyone” doesn’t just mean residents. It also includes some of the Palm Beaches’ most loyal guests: loggerhead, green and leatherback sea turtles. These repeat visitors never book a hotel but always check into our beaches. In fact, our 47 miles of beaches are host to 25% of all sea turtle nests in Florida, which is a big deal for conservation.
That’s why the Palm Beaches have become a true sea turtle conservation hotspot. Put it all together, and you can see why we’re known as the “Sea Turtle Capital”:
- Loggerhead Marinelife Center in Juno Beach and Gumbo Limbo Nature Center in Boca Raton rehabilitate injured turtles and deliver world-class education programs.
- The Nature Center at MacArthur Beach State Park helps visitors understand the fragile habitat these animals depend on.
- Lake Worth Lagoon restoration is creating better habitat for juvenile green turtles – critical for the species’ long-term health.
- Twenty new artificial reefs in the last five years support hawksbills while easing pressure on natural reef systems.
- More than 90% compliance with sea turtle-friendly lighting ordinances helps prevent disorientation during nesting season – a major win for conservation.
- And thanks to the Gulf Stream’s proximity to the Palm Beaches, our coastline plays a unique role in sea turtle nesting and migration.
About the Palm Beaches’ Sea to Preserve initiative
Discover The Palm Beaches proudly shares this story through our “Sea to Preserve” initiative. As the county’s tourism marketing organization, we’re not just inviting visitors to explore the outdoors, we’re reminding them (and our leaders) that these places need protection.
Tourism in the Palm Beaches brings twice the benefits – positively impacting both residents and visitors. Beautiful places and memorable experiences require care and investment. Without tourism dollars, the quality of our beaches, museums and public spaces would decline. Visitor spending helps fund improvements and keeps these treasures thriving.
More tourism doesn’t solve every environmental challenge, but it does something powerful: It shines a spotlight. When people travel to kayak mangroves, snorkel reefs, wander natural areas or watch a mother turtle nest under the moonlight, they create a chorus of support that decision-makers can’t ignore.
If our natural places aren’t cherished, they’ll be forgotten. Sea to Preserve is simply a reminder to both our visitors and our residents: care for the sea, the land and everything in-between.
Sergio Piedra is senior director of intergovernmental affairs for Discover The Palm Beaches. To learn more about Sea to Preserve — and how tourism helps protect beaches — check out their latest video below.
Sign up for The Invading Sea newsletter by visiting here. To support The Invading Sea, click here to make a donation. If you are interested in submitting an opinion piece to The Invading Sea, email Editor Nathan Crabbe. Banner photo: Red Reef Park in Boca Raton (Photo courtesy of Discover The Palm Beaches).
