http://sanctuaries.noaa.gov

Marine Zones & Zone Monitoring

Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary

Marine Zones are an Important Management Tool

Marine zones have been used around the world as an important resource 

management tool. They can help protect sensitive natural resources from 

overuse, separate conflicting visitor uses and preserve the variety of marine 

life, or biodiversity, of an area. When the Florida Keys National Marine 

Sanctuary was designated by Congress in 1990, its original legislation 

provided for the creation of several types of marine zones within sanctuary 

waters. In the sanctuary’s zoning scheme, zoning is the setting aside of 

areas for specific activities to balance commercial and recreational interests 

with the need for a sustainable ecosystem. 

Public Helps Guide Creation of Marine Zones

As part of the process for creating and implementing zones, the sanctuary 

held a series of public workshops throughout the Keys in the early 1990s 

to seek input on zone types and locations. Over the course of several years, 

Florida Keys sanctuary staff, advisory council members and interested 

citizens worked together to develop criteria for each zone type and to suggest potential zone locations. In 1996, a sanctuary 

management plan was published to describe the new zones, which became effective in 1997. Large yellow buoys were installed to 

mark the boundaries of zones. 

In 2001, after another extensive public process, the sanctuary added the Tortugas Ecological Reserve. This new reserve, which 

consists of two separate areas called Tortugas North and Tortugas South, expanded the sanctuary’s original boundaries by 96 

square nautical miles and was implemented with the approval of stakeholders and state and federal agencies. Commercial fishermen 

helped identify critical fish spawning grounds for inclusion in the reserve. In 2007, the sanctuary published a revised management 

plan to guide management decisions. The plan contains action plans, strategies and zone information. 

Protected Zones Help Preserve Habitats and Marine Life

Marine zoning helps to preserve ecosystems while allowing people to carry out activities that are compatible with the sanctuary’s 

mission of resource protection. Highly protected “no-take” zones, which restrict consumptive activities like fishing, help reduce 

human impacts to marine life and habitats and can help prevent conflicts between users engaged in non-compatible activities 

such as diving and fishing. Large no-take zones that contain extensive mangrove, seagrass, hardbottom or coral reef habitat may 

contribute to the survival of marine life by protecting critical nursery grounds for young marine animals and spawning grounds for 

breeding adults. Larger zones not only increase connectivity between habitats, but also preserve the biodiversity of marine life and 

allow areas of high ecological significance to function naturally with minimal human influence. 

Scientists Study Highly Protected Zones 

Research and monitoring are critical to achieving the sanctuary’s primary goal of resource protection. Scientists from academic 

institutions, state and federal agencies, and non-governmental organizations regularly conduct scientific research and monitoring 

as part of the sanctuary’s Marine Zone Monitoring Strategy (2007 management plan). Monitoring occurs in the three types of highly 

protected no-take zones: Ecological Reserves, Sanctuary Preservation Areas, and Special-use Areas. Generally, research programs 

are designed to determine whether these zones are an effective tool for conserving and sustaining marine life and habitat. Results 

from these studies and others will help sanctuary resource managers understand how to better conserve marine life for future 

generations. Findings from the Marine Zone Monitoring Program are posted on the sanctuary’s research and monitoring home page 

at http://floridakeys.noaa.gov/research_monitoring.

Large yellow buoys mark the boundaries of zones.

http://floridakeys.noaa.gov/
To learn more about these and other accomplishments, 

visit sanctuaries.noaa.gov

Types of Marine Zones

Ecological Reserves (ERs) are marine zones that preserve biological 

and genetic diversity by setting aside areas with minimal human 

disturbance. Reserves protect the entire range of marine habitats found 

in the sanctuary and allow certain areas to return to evolve naturally. 

There are currently two ERs in the sanctuary, the Western Sambo 

Ecological Reserve and the Tortugas Ecological Reserve. Together, 

they cover 160 square nautical miles. These large, contiguous, 

diverse habitats help protect natural spawning, nursery, and 

permanent-residence areas needed for sustainable populations of fish 

and other marine life. Regulations for ERs are designed to meet the 

zone objectives by limiting consumptive activities while continuing to 

allow activities that do not threaten resource protection. Sanctuaryissued permits are required for some activities in the Tortugas 

Ecological Reserve.

Sanctuary Preservation Areas (SPAs) protect shallow reefs along the reef tract. SPAs encompass discrete, biologically important 

areas that help sustain critical marine species and habitats. Regulations for this zone type are designed to limit consumptive 

activities and to separate users engaged in different kinds of activities. Diving, snorkeling and boating are allowed inside these 

zones. SPAs have mooring buoys for boaters to use in order to prevent anchor damage to corals. There are 18 SPAs, which together 

cover a total of 4.97 square nautical miles. The largest SPA is Carysfort/South Carysfort, and the smallest SPAs are Dry Rocks 

and Cheeca Rocks. Maps showing the location of mooring buoys in the SPAs can be downloaded from the sanctuary’s website at 

http://floridakeys.noaa.gov/research_monitoring/map.html. 

Special-use Areas (SUAs) are set aside for discrete uses. Four Special-use Areas have been designated in the sanctuary for 

research purposes and are known as Research-only Areas. Research-only Areas are located at Conch Reef and Tennessee Reef in 

the Upper and Middle Keys, and Looe Key Patch reef and Eastern Sambo in the Lower Keys. Access to these highly protected zones 

is restricted to permitted entry only. While there are currently no other types of Special-use Areas within the sanctuary, there are 

three other types of Special-use areas possible in the zoning scheme. “Restoration” or “recovery areas” may be implemented for the 

recovery or restoration of injured or degraded resources; while “facilitated-use areas” can be created to prevent user conflicts and 

to enhance access or use of sanctuary resources. Regulations may confine or restrict activities such as personal watercraft 

operation and live-aboard mooring. 

Wildlife Management Areas (WMAs) seek to minimize disturbance to sensitive or 

endangered wildlife and their habitats such as bird nesting, resting or feeding areas, 

and turtle nesting beaches. Regulations governing WMAs are designed to provide 

opportunities for public use while protecting wildlife and often include no-motor 

zones, idle speed only/no wake zones, and buffer and closed zones. Fishing, canoeing, 

kayaking and poling are activities enjoyed in WMAs. There are currently 27 WMAs 

in the sanctuary. Twenty of them are co-managed with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife 

Service as part of their plan for managing backcountry portions of the national wildlife 

refuges in the Florida Keys. The remaining seven WMAs are under sanctuary 

management. 

Existing Management Areas (EMAs) are areas within the sanctuary that were 

established by NOAA or another federal agency prior to 1997 when sanctuary zoning 

regulations went into effect. EMAs have their own protections and restrictions 

above and beyond those that apply sanctuary-wide. Key Largo and Looe Key EMAs 

(formerly Key Largo and Looe Key National Marine Sanctuaries) are managed by 

NOAA, while the Great White Heron and Key West National Wildlife Refuges are EMAs 

managed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. 

State and National Parks in the Keys and South Florida have their own rules and 

regulations. Biscayne, Everglades and Dry Tortugas National Parks are managed by 

the U.S. Department of the Interior. State parks and aquatic preserves are managed 

by the Florida Department of Environmental Protection. 

Written by: Nancy Diersing, Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary

Published: January 2011

Mooring buoys prevent boat anchors from damaging corals.

The Florida Keys National Marine 

Sanctuary encompasses nearly 2900 

square nautical miles of state and 

federal waters surrounding the Florida 

Keys and protects nationally significant 

coral reefs, seagrass meadows and 

mangrove shorelines. A set of generaluse regulations applies to all sanctuary 

waters. Prohibitions include the removal 

of live coral or protected wildlife, 

discharging trash or pollutants, and 

operating a vessel in such a manner as 

to strike or injure coral or seagrass. 

More regulations can be found at 

http://floridakeys.noaa.gov/regs.