Our goal is 100 new CBA members in 2021! We have 115 days left of our member challenge campaign and still have room for you! Our education program is run year-round, from our traditional school programs, such as Grasses in Classes, to summer camps and Shelves to Shores library lessons. We supply students with the materials for each hands-on experience with CBA. We aim to keep our future stewards exploring. To do this, we need you as a CBA member!

You can join at any amount and pay annually or monthly - Even a membership at the $25 "Oyster" level will fund a lesson for one of our 93 Grasses in Classes classrooms.
A Thanks to Our Supporters
All Hands on Deck
Our All hands on Deck campaign began in late 2020 as a mission to restore wetland, saltmarsh, seagrass, and dune habitats in our area. "All Hands on Deck" is a partnership between the Coastal Partnership Initiative, Walton County, and St. Joe Community Foundation. We aim to create a community of stewardship for local habitats through education, outreach, and volunteer opportunities. CBA invites citizens of all age levels to learn about local habitats and provide hands-on labor for restoration. "All hands" are needed to care for our future projects at Charles E. Cessna Park, Walton County-owned Inlet Beach Access, Alaqua Bayou, Live Oak Point, Big Redfish Lake, and Alligator Lake. Stay tuned for future 'All Hands on Deck' events on the CBA calendar!
Bring Your Team: Help Kids Save the Environment -- Have Fun!
Although we are still unable to frequent classrooms, CBA aims to provide our students with a fulfilling experience in our Grasses In Classes program. We are recruiting local businesses and teams to volunteer for shoreline plantings in place of student field trips. Our Okaloosa elementary schools are unable to participate in field trips. Therefore, we need your assistance to take our GIC year over the finish line.

If you are looking for an impactful team-building opportunity, look no further! We have plenty of available events this April. Contact Amanda Briant about how your team can sow the seed of stewardship with our students. The Shunk Gulley team is already signed up -- make sure to reserve your spot now!
Thank You to our Adopt-A-Waterway Sponsors!

We extend our thanks to Destin Water Users, Inc. and Regional Utilities of Walton County as two of our Adopt-A-Waterway sponsors. Their continuous support for CBA fuels our mission in sustaining healthy local waterways. An Adopt-A-Waterway sponsorship supports one of our water quality sites; their combined contributions support eight monitoring stations. We are fortunate to have exemplary waterway stewards in our community. Thank you again, Destin Water Users, Inc. and Regional Utilities of Walton County, for your commitment as waterway stewards of Choctawhatchee Bay.
Welcome to the Family, AJ's!
Our family is growing - our oyster recycling family, that is. We welcome AJ's on the Bayou in Fort Walton Beach and AJ's Oyster Shanty on Okaloosa Island to the recycling team. They will now contribute to the 120 tons of shell CBA collects annually for our living shoreline construction. Thanks to Impact 100 of Northwest Florida's funding, expanding our recycling program to the Western shores of Choctawhatchee Bay has become a long-awaited reality. With a new staging site, provided by the City of Fort Walton Beach, we plan to expand our efforts in building living shorelines for coastal resiliency and healthy local waterways. If your restaurant wishes to join a program promoting swimmable, fishable waterways, contact Chad Perko to receive your oyster bins today!
CBA on the Bay
Volunteer Opportunities
We are looking for four local artists to paint new monofilament recycling bins placed in Walton County, Norriego Point, and Choctawhatchee River. The theme of our monofilament canisters is marine life, healthy local waters, and native wildlife. Please submit your portfolios to CBA for a chance to feature your artistry to promote swimmable, fishable waterways.

We place monofilament bins at boat ramps and harbor access points to encourage anglers to recycle their equipment and protect our waterways. CBA's monofilament recycling program aims to mitigate fishing lines from ending up in our waters.
We have ample opportunities for you to join our living shoreline shenanigans. We will be bagging shells, building oyster reefs, and removing invasive species every week! Oyster reefs are a resilient method for mitigating shoreline erosion and providing habitat for critical species in our estuary. Join our team of CBA staff and AmeriCorps members to enhance our shorelines.
Have you been itching to get outdoors? We have the answer for you. We are looking for citizen scientists to monitor water quality around the bay! Applicants must have reliable access to a boat/kayak.

Walton County:
Draper Lake

Okaloosa County:
Fort Walton Beach 8-10 (Destin Harbor)
Santa Rosa Sound 1-3
Join our new monofilament recycling team and be a solution to Choctawhatchee Bay's plastic pollution! Volunteers in the Destin/Ft. Walton Beach area will assist with monofilament fishing line recycling on Okaloosa Island and lead cleanup events across the area.
 
Open Positions:
Okaloosa Island
We are excited to announce another season of oyster gardening starting in April 2021! Visit our oyster gardening page to view our online workshop and find out more about how oysters improve the water in our bay. New and returning volunteers must complete this application form.

Requirements:
  • Must be free of any Fish and Game violations within the past three years
  • Must be able to lift 30 pounds
  • Should spend roughly 60 minutes per week caring for their gardens
We are partnering with USGS and IFAS to conduct a habitat survey for this elusive critter. Terrapins have only been spotted near the sound in Okaloosa County. With your help, we may learn more about this utterly adorable reptile - Apply Today!

Requirements:
  • Able-bodied outdoor enthusiasts able to walk at least 2.5 miles under direct sun
  • Access to kayak and ability to paddle across Santa Rosa Sound
  • 3 surveys weekly April - September
Don't forget to report manatee sightings to Dauphin Island Sea Lab's Manatee Sighting Network
News You Can Use
GOMA Webinars and Workshops
Species Spotlight: American Eel (Anguilla rostrata)
The American eel, Anguilla rostrata, is a native species of eel residing in Eastern North American rivers and estuaries. They are opportunistic hunters that prey upon worms, small fish, mollusks, and crustaceans. You may not see any eels in your outdoor adventures as they are nocturnal, choosing to hide under rocks or bury themselves beneath sediment beds during the day. Although they are known as freshwater species, these little critters are catadromous, meaning they travel to the ocean for spawning. Mature eels travel from rivers along the East Coast of the United States and the Gulf of Mexico to the Sargasso Sea for a large spawning event in January. 

The life cycle of an eel is complex. American eels undergo four distinct lifecycles migrating to freshwater habitats from the spawning grounds in the Sargasso Sea. In their final life cycle, eels metamorphose both physiologically and morphologically in preparation for their long migration to the ocean. With the development of silver coloring, their digestive tract degenerates, pectoral fins enlarge, eyes change to adapt to saline waters, and their gonad and ovarian cells increase for the upcoming spawning event. Scientists believe that once spawning occurs, adults often die in the Sargasso Sea since no adults return to their freshwater habitats with their glass eel progeny.


For More Information:
Art by Duane Raven