Monroe County Adds Boca Chica Mooring Field to RESTORE Plan

The Monroe County Board of County Commissioners voted to amend the county RESTORE Act Multi Year Implementation Plan to include the Boca Chica Mooring Field project, a move that authorizes about three point five million dollars in RESTORE Act funding to be used with a one point six five million dollar state legislative appropriation. County documents show the amendment is intended to allow construction of shoreside facilities and the establishment of a regulated anchorage area designed to reduce damage to seagrass and coral habitats in Boca Chica waters.

Officials describe the planned mooring field as a combined infrastructure and management effort. The amendment covers funding for shoreside services, including pump out facilities and monitoring systems, and for the mooring layout itself that will concentrate anchoring away from sensitive marine habitat. The project is presented as addressing both environmental protection and public safety by better regulating where vessels anchor and how waste is managed.

The county began a public comment period on October sixteenth, running for 45 days through December second, 2025, giving residents, boaters, business owners and conservation groups an opportunity to review the amendment and provide input. The action was first documented in a Monroe County NewsFlash on October fifteenth, and was later summarized by local outlet KONK Life on November eighth. The amendment must be finalized following the public comment process and required county administrative steps before construction can proceed.

For Monroe County residents and visitors the mooring field proposal has multiple implications. Concentrating anchored vessels in a regulated area can reduce propeller scarring and anchor damage to seagrass beds that support fisheries and help stabilize shorelines. Improved pump out access and monitoring can also diminish the risk of untreated vessel sewage and pollutants entering nearshore waters, which matters for public health, recreation and the tourism economy that relies on clean beaches and healthy fisheries.

Regionally, the project fits within broader Gulf of Mexico restoration efforts funded through the RESTORE Act settlement framework. Local advocates have argued that small scale infrastructure projects that focus on preventing damage often deliver outsized benefits for fragile coastal ecosystems. The county amendment signals a policy choice to invest available restoration dollars in protective measures that manage human activity rather than in later stage habitat repair alone.

Next steps include the close of the public comment period on December second, and any revisions the county makes in response. Residents seeking to influence the final plan should monitor Monroe County communications for details on how comments were submitted and how the county will proceed with engineering and permitting for the shoreside facilities and mooring layout.