Seagrass program seeks volunteers

PORT CHARLOTTE — Eyes on Seagrass, a volunteer seagrass monitoring program run by UF/IFAS Extension Florida Sea Grant Charlotte County, is in need of participants to survey sites monitored by state biologists at the Charlotte Harbor Aquatic Preserves this summer.

Information collected by volunteers is used to inform environmental health assessments and this duplication will increase the credibility within the scientific community said a news release.

Participants are asked to form teams of at least three and are responsible for transportation to their assigned sites via boat, kayak, canoe, paddleboard, or wading. People may also attend training, but are not guaranteed to be placed on a team for sampling.

New volunteers are required to attend in-person training prior to the first outing. An online training option will be made available to repeat volunteers or those who can’t attend training.

The next in-person training is at 10:30 a.m. July 20 at Centennial Park, 1120 Centennial Blvd., Port Charlotte.

Participants will be required to visit their assigned sites once between July 22 and Aug. 5.

Participants can learn more and register online at bit.ly/3uZxV4z.