The
Department of Environment (DoE) has received a number of reports
within the past month regarding various instances where local marine
life has been mishandled by divers or swimmers.

These
incidents include reports of a diver grabbing a sea turtle by its
carapace, Stingray Sandbar visitors lifting rays out of the water and
Starfish Point visitors lifting starfish out of the water for
significant periods of time. All of these activities have the
potential to harm the creatures.
The DoE also wishes to note that any interactions with marine life
happening outside of a designated Wildlife Interaction Zone (WIZ), as
defined under the National Conservation Law (NCL), are not permitted.
 

“Elasmobranchs
(such as stingrays), echinoderms (such as starfish) and sea turtles
are resilient creatures, but they can
still be severely injured by mishandling,”
said DoE Deputy Director Tim Austin. “Wildlife Interaction Zones
(WIZs) were developed under the NCL specifically to
permit individuals to safely
interact
with wildlife in our
wonderful marine environment, not abuse it.”

“Safety
has always been one of the primary concerns for our marine
environment, safety for our residents and visitors, as well as for
our precious marine animals,” Hon. Dwayne Seymour, Minister for
Environment said. “We must treat these animals with care and
respect if we want them to stay around.”

Under
the NCL, local water sports and dive shop operators who take tours to
the two WIZs at the Sandbar or Stingray City, must obtain an annual
permit and
display decals with the relevant year on both sides of their vessel.
Without this permit, tour operators can be denied access to these WIZ
areas.

For
additional information about WIZ locations and permit requirements,
please contact the DoE offices via phone at 949-8469, email
Doe@gov.ky
or email DoE Research Officer Bradley Johnson at
bradley.johnson@gov.ky.
For more information regarding marine life interactions and best
practices, go to our website at www.doe.ky
or contact DoE Public Education and Outreach Officer Brent Fuller via
phone at 244-5984/922-5514 or email brent.fuller@gov.ky.