FSU taps voices from the seafood industry, conservationists and government on Apalachicola Bay project

Vance Millender has been a fixture in the seafood business in Franklin County for decades.

Millender and Sons Seafood in Carrabelle, a family operation since 1942, is now run by his sons, David and Stephen, who represent the fourth-generation ownership.

“I’ve come full circle,” Millender, 66, said. He’s semi-retired, but still helping where needed at the direction of those sons.

But Millender remains concerned about the oyster drought that has impacted the livelihood of families who have been dependent on the industry to make a living.

Today, he’s one of 23 members recently appointed to an advisory board for researchers from Florida State University, who plan a deep-dive, 10-year project to restore Apalachicola Bay and help revive the oyster industry.

“If we can come up with some ways to help our bay be more productive, I’m all for that,” Millender said. “Oysters have been a value to Franklin County for many, many years and it’s gotten to the point it’s hard to make a living on the bay anymore. It’s just not enough (oysters) go around.”

In February, Florida State’s Apalachicola Bay System Initiative was awarded nearly $8 million in funding from the from Triumph Gulf Coast Inc., a nonprofit corporation organized to administer money recovered by the state for economic damages that resulted from the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill.

Back story:FSU gets $8 million from Triumph BP fund to study how to fix what's ailing Apalachicola Bay

The research project will be housed at the FSU Coastal & Marine Laboratory in St. Teresa. It will be led by Scientific Director Sandra Brooke and Marine Lab Director Felicia Coleman.

The board represents a cross-section of people, including seafood business owners, conservationists, representatives of nonprofits and elected officials.

Its first meeting will be held later this month.

“Appointing a board of community members is an important first step in the work FSU researchers will be doing to develop a scientifically backed plan to revitalize Apalachicola Bay,” said Gary K. Ostrander, vice president for research at FSU. “The bay is a key part of life in the region, and we want to be fully engaged with the community here. They have a big part to play in our work.”

The Franklin County oyster has been imperiled for years as harvesting has been depleted due to several issues with Apalachicola Bay.

It has resulted in dire unemployment for those who depended on the oyster industry, leading to an economic strain on the entire community and forcing restaurants to turn elsewhere for oysters supplies.

FSU researchers say a variety of natural and man-made disturbances have affected oyster populations, including changes in water flow, overfishing, disease and hurricanes.

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Felicia Coleman, director of the FSU Coastal and Marine Laboratory, said including the community is a vital part of the process.

Researchers commissioned a stakeholders’ report from the Florida Conflict Resolution Consortium Consensus Center to examine preliminary concerns from the community about the causes of decline and approaches necessary to guide the future of Apalachicola Bay.

“There are people whose whole lives are wrapped up in the health of the Bay,” Coleman said. “There is a multigenerational history here, and people who have spent decades living and working in this area that will not be ignored. Talking to them can provide us with critical information and help inform both the scientific and management processes.”

More:Boosting oyster industry tops requests for BP oil spill recovery dollars

More:Grant will help FSU aid in restoration of Apalachicola Bay | Opinion

Contact senior writer Byron Dobson at bdobson@tallahassee.com or on Twitter @byrondobson.

Community Advisory Board members:

• Georgia Ackerman, Apalachicola Riverkeeper
• Chip Bailey, Peregrine Charters
• Lee Edmiston, retired, Apalachicola National Estuarine Research Reserve
• Jim Estes, Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, Division of Marine Fisheries Management
• Tom Frazer, University of Florida School of Natural Resources and Environment
• Frank Gidus, Coastal Conservation Association
• Anita Grove, Apalachicola City Commission
• Chad Hanson, Pew Charitable Trusts
• Jenna Harper, Apalachicola National Estuarine Research Reserve
• Shannon Hartsfield, The Seafood Management Assistance Resource and Recovery Team
• Kevin Landry, Apalachicola Oyster Company
• Erik Lovestrand, Florida Sea Grant
• Chuck Marks, Acentria Insurance
• Vance Millender, Millender and Sons Seafood
• Mike O’Connell, Saint George Island Civic Club
• Smokey Parrish, Franklin County Commission
• Becky Prado, Florida Department of Environmental Protection
• Steve Rash, Water Street Seafood
• Portia Sapp, Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Sciences, Division of Aquaculture
• John Solomon, Apalachicola Chamber of Commerce
• Chad Taylor, Riparian County Stakeholder Coalition
• Paul Thurman, Northwest Florida Water Management District
• TJ Ward, 13 Mile Seafood