Conservationists have been trying to incentivize environmental preservation for more than a century in Florida. If history has made one thing clear, however, it’s that it’s not an easy feat.
Indeed, not everyone sees – or cares about – nature’s intrinsic value, focusing rather on how it extrinsically serves our needs. Even then, amid high-rises, office spaces and condominiums, it’s difficult to grasp just how much we rely on our natural ecosystem to survive.
(MiamiAndBeaches.com)
Recreational activities on Biscayne Bay, including kayaking, account for more than $15 billion in Miami-Dade County’s economic output.
So, what does one do when calls for environmental protection and restoration fall on deaf ears? You change the perspective. You monetize it. Dollar signs? Now there’s a language that everybody speaks.
Strategically, this is exactly what Miami-Dade County did with its 2023 updated Biscayne Bay economic study, released last month. According to the study, Biscayne Bay-related activities account for nearly $64 billion in economic output, $23.3 billion in residential income, 448,000 jobs and $3.9 billion in tax revenue for the county.
All in all, those numbers represent nearly 19% of the Miami-Dade’s economic output, 13% of income and 24% of employment. The bay also represents 9% of total economic output in the southeast Florida region and 3% of the entire state’s economy.
(Samantha Morell for Biscayne Times)
Cargo activity accounts for more than 85% of the seaport's $48.8 billion economic output.
“All of this underscores a simple and critical truth: that our community’s liquid heart, Biscayne Bay, is a treasure that must be protected and restored,” said Miami-Dade County Mayor Daniella Levine Cava during a press conference Oct. 16 at PortMiami. “It’s not merely a picturesque backdrop. It’s a lifeline for our residents, a powerhouse for our businesses and a crucial element of our environment.”
An Updated Study
Putting a price tag on Biscayne Bay isn’t novel. An initial study on the bay and the Miami River was conducted between 2004 and 2005 by local water engineering consulting agency Hazen and Sawyer when the South Florida Water Management District (SFWMD) requested it.
(The Everglades Foundation)
The U.S. Army Corp of Engineers and the South Florida Water Management District broke ground on the Everglades Agricultural Area Reservoir Feb. 22, 2023.
“Back then, our board was in the process of prioritizing Everglades restoration projects that would go to Congress for authorization,” said Chief Bay Officer Irela Bague, who at the time served on the SFWMD governing board. “Had it not been for the results of the 2005 Biscayne Bay economic study, I don’t think we would be close to completing the Biscayne Bay Coastal Wetlands Project today,” which is a component of the Comprehensive Everglades Restoration Plan (CERP).
(Wikimedia Commons)
The spiny lobster represents 62% of a total $4.2 million dockside value of Biscayne Bay-dependent commercial marine species.
Sure enough, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has marked milestones on key components of the CERP within the past several years, including the Everglades Agricultural Area Reservoir groundbreaking in February of this year.
(Samantha Morell for Biscayne Times)
Miami-Dade County Mayor Daniella Levine Cava
Amid an unprecedented seagrass die-off in 2017 and the subsequent fish kill in 2020, the Biscayne Bay Task Force recommended an update to the study in order to once again seek federal and state funds for the bay’s protection.
“Without numbers, you can’t really put a price to the value of this beautiful ecosystem,” said Bague. “Everyone knows Miami has changed significantly since 2005, and so now with these new numbers we’re heading to Tallahassee and we’re heading to D.C.”
The updated study will be used to apply for grants that will help tackle aging infrastructure, failing septic systems, stormwater runoff and other issues affecting the health of Biscayne Bay. Money gathered as a result of the study will also be available for municipalities to fund environmental projects within their own boundaries.
Biscayne Bay’s Value
(Samantha Morell for Biscayne Times)
A poster on a window of PortMiami indicates the 2023 Biscayne Bay economic report’s conclusion that the body of water contributes nearly $8 billion to residential property values.
More than 1,600 Miami-Dade County residents and visitors were surveyed by Mars Research Services from July 2022 to April 2023 regarding their recreational uses and expenditures on or near Biscayne Bay over the preceding year. Those survey responses, along with sales, income, employment and tax revenue, formed the basis for the report’s conclusions.
According to the study’s estimates, visitor expenditures associated with Biscayne Bay-related recreation created $8.2 billion in output, $4.5 billion in income, 57,000 jobs and $1.1 billion in tax revenue within the county in 2022.
During the same year, resident expenditures associated with recreation created an estimated $6.9 billion in output, $3.8 billion in income, 56,300 jobs and $1.2 billion in county tax revenue.
Recreational activities in the bay include fishing, snorkeling, scuba diving, swimming, sightseeing, boating, water-skiing, parasailing, windsurfing, kite sailing, paddle boarding, canoeing, kayaking, sunset cruises, viewing the bay while participating in on-shore activities, participating in Biscayne Bay cleanups and more.
Unlike the 2005 report, the updated study also includes a price analysis on how Biscayne Bay and the Miami River affect residential property values. The data reveals that Biscayne Bay contributes $7.9 billion in residential property value, while the Miami River contributes $98 million, totaling approximately $8 billion in 2021 dollars. That equates to about $240 million in annual market value associated with living on or near the bay or the river.
Although the report does not provide original results on the economic contributions from PortMiami and the Miami River, it does update existing numbers for inflation. PortMiami supported 334,532 jobs and $12.9 billion in personal income in 2018, according to a study prepared by Martin Associates. That number was then converted to $14.8 billion to represent 2022 dollars. PortMiami's shipping and cruising operations were also estimated to contribute $48.8 billion in economic output and $1.78 billion in tax revenue.
Finally, commercial fishing contributed $19.6 million in economic output, $11.9 million in income, 196 jobs and $2.7 million in tax revenue. The spiny lobster, stone crab and bait shrimp together comprise 92% of the total $4.2 million dockside value of bay-dependent commercial marine species, with the spiny lobster comprising more than half of that value.
“This bay is not just beautiful,” said Levine Cava. “It’s not just iconic. It’s not just a key part of our paradise, the blue heart. It’s our economy.”
Demographics & Trends
Statistics in 2022 are the highest since 1980, rising higher than even pre-pandemic levels. To no surprise, numbers plummeted in 2020 during the height of COVID-19 restrictions. Other drops coincided with the Great Recession from December 2007 to June 2009 and Hurricane Irma’s landfall in 2017.
The updated study concludes that Biscayne Bay attracted an estimated 119.8 million residents and visitors to recreate in 2022, nearly 58% of which are attributed to people viewing the bay from the shore while dining, shopping, picnicking, jogging and more.
The data shows that just more than half of those recreating on the bay, as signified by survey respondents, were male and white, while the median household income is more than $100,000. In 2005, more than 90% of bay users were white.
Data also shows that fewer people recreating on the bay own their own boat, specifically less than 10% of people, whereas that number was between 20-30% in 2005. It may be the reason why the boat and equipment rental industry is the greatest beneficiary of recreation according to this year’s study, followed by eating and drinking, the charter boat industry and hotels.
Those who were surveyed but did not recreate on the bay largely attributed it to being too busy, although other popular answers included not enough parking, a crowded Biscayne Bay or too much pollution.
Whether residents are using the bay or not, however, the study makes crystal clear that they will nevertheless be affected by its success. The responsibility falls on everyone to make sure it thrives.
“The livelihood of our county relies on it,” said Bague. “It doesn’t matter where you live. We’re all connected to this ecosystem because we enjoy it, we recreate on it and we’re living off of it.”