TREASURE COAST BOATING
INDIAN RIVER LAGOON
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bathrooms or trash collection systems. Volunteers keep them
clean; otherwise, they would be buried under the rubble left
behind by picnickers and campers. The Spoil Island Project
website (www.spoilislandproject.org) explains the project and
shows cleanup schedules.
Billy Gibson of Motorized Kayak Adventures in Fort Pierce
is working on creating a citizen support organization, Friends
of the Spoil Islands. His company adopted spoil island SL13
a year ago, doing general cleanup and replacing invasive
plants with natives. “From this was born the idea of expanding
public participation and awareness about the man-made
islands,” Gibson said. A Spoil Island Day event was held, and
the Ambassador Program was introduced. The ambassadors
are hands-on volunteers organized to raise funds for picnic
tables and grills and to encourage visitors to leave nothing
behind but footprints. Why do people adopt an island? Gibson
explains: “The short answer is because we love what we
do and we love sharing our love for the lagoon with others.
These wonderful islands are a national treasure ... .”
Unfortunately, not everyone chooses to treat them that way.
Toby Jarman, chairman of the Vero Beach Power Squadron’s
Save the Lagoon Committee and organizer of the squadron’s
>>
“These wonderful islands are a national treasure ...”
— Billy Gibson
Marc Virgilio
Sunsets and sunrises offer picture postcard views from the spoil islands.
/www.institutehealthwellness.com
/(www.spoilislandproject.org)