GET INVOLVED - www.SURFRIDER.org/sebastianinlet

Next meeting would be 4/20 at Paradise Beach - Surf session at 6:30 p.m. with meeting start time at 7:30 p.m.

Indialantic boardwalk beach cleanup is 4/30- 12-4.

International Surfing Day- 6/20. Eric and Shannon to organize Surfrider setup at Paradise Beach similar to last year. They will begin organizing early to get sponsors such as the free surfing lessons like last year. This is on the summer solstice, most hours of daylight in the year to surf. Goal is to spread the stoke of surfing. 6/20 is a Monday so will do either the Sat. or Sun. before.

Going to the Indialantic Council Meeting and he will ask about the beach cleanups and propose our cigarette butt disposal collectors for the beaches. We discussed getting local sponsors (such as Longdoggers) and making really good ones so they will last a decade or so.

The Midreach Dredge and Fill Project campaign is still kicking. Per recent conversations with the ACOE the final report EIS review is in DC and should be out for public comment come March or April with a 30 day review period. In addition, due to the controversial nature and overwhelming proposed cost of this project the ACOE has also been required, per Council of Environmental Quality's interagency initiative to revise the Principles and Guidelines (P&G) in response to the Water Resources Development Act (WRDA) of 2007, to perform an external peer review with independent scientists. To read more about this meaningful "Reform" to go http://www.corpsreform.org/sit...2oResourceBill07.html. It is expected this report will be out sometime early summer. While this document cannot be commented on by the public its availability to the public is crucial as this is one of the first projects undergoing this type of scrutiny. It would be our expectation that a permit decision would be decided upon sometime in late summer. Stay tuned as we will inform you when you will be able to submit commentgh12 soon to be 13 chapters in Florida.

What we can do now as concerned Surfrider members: go on their websites and look at what they are claiming they are trying to do. Mike explained that our best angle could be the point that they will only proceed with their plan if it can be funded and there could be many other, better ways for them to spend our federal money. They are claiming it will provide income to county and get people to the beaches and leaning on a study done years ago about a "restoration" down south. But we are not really a high tourist area and the condo owners really want it the most because they don't want "rocks" on their beach. They are claiming there will be $10 billion less storm damage over 50 years if they proceed with this project. They are also claiming they will mitigate environmental issues by building another reef further out in the ocean but this won't work with the fish. www.saj.usace.army.mil Check out website

Priorities for 2011 National Surfrider Foundation:
Oil Drilling Ban - Petition signing to get an amendment on the ballot for 2012 to ban near shore drilling, need 700,000 signatures by March 2012 - http://www.sosbs.org
School Clubs - Want to charter school clubs from elementary school thru college, discounted memberships, club projects
Rise Against Plastics

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http://www.crsurf.com ~ CR Surf Travel Company

http://www.dadecosurf.com ~ South Florida Surf Site

http://www.surfrider.org ~ Find your Surfrider chapter