Cooperative Extension program leaders in Florida identify State Major Programs in collaboration with faculty, appropriate department chairs and extension administration. Statewide programs are identified where several county programs are focusing on the same problem or issue, or when a statewide issue is identified with a need for county-level attention. Once a program has the designated State Major Program status, a design team is established for it. Teams consist of extension faculty and specialists within the primary program area or supporting disciplines.

State Major Programs intensify academic and research support through the expertise of faculty and specialists, and provide a broader base for collaborative efforts than would be possible otherwise. Sea Grant faculty participate on State Major Program Design Teams that correlate directly with the Sea Grant strategic plan and annual plans of work. Overall objectives of the four current Design Teams in the Sea Grant category are provided below, together with a list of members and e-mail contact numbers. For fuller descriptions, including situations statements, target customers, impact and evaluation for these programs, see web site.

FL312 Seafood and Aquaculture Product Quality and Safety in Florida. Assist in the implementation of TQA (Total Quality Assurance) and HACCP (Hazard Analysis and Control Critical Point) Programs for seafood and aquaculture product quality and safety in commerce (production, processing and marketing). To involve commercial and regulatory interest, plus university students. W. Steven Otwell, team leader, Seafood Technology, Food Science and Human Nutrition; Chuck Adams, Marine Economics, Florida Sea Grant; Leroy Creswell, Sea Grant Agent, St. Lucie County Extension, (Multi-County Agent); Doug Gregory, County Extension Director, Monroe County Extension, Sea Grant; Bill Mahan, County Extension Director, Franklin County Extension, Sea Grant; John Stevely, Marine Science Agent, Manatee County Extension;Leslie Sturmer, Aquatic Management Agent, Levy County Extension; Donald Sweat, Sea Grant Agent, Pinellas County Extension (Multi-County Agent); Dorothy Zimmerman, Florida Sea Grant. (Read quarterly update of activities.)

FL315 Coastal and Marine Recreation/Tourism and Waterway Management in Florida. Objectives are to: prepare educational materials and implement education programs that will help the marine recreation industries (i.e., bait & tackle, scuba, surfing, marinas, marine attractions) function in an economically and environmentally sustainable way; provide support to existing education programs that will improve boating safety and promote boat operation ethics on Florida waterways; develop and disseminate boating and bay management guidelines and educational materials which foster stewardship, nature-based tourism, and resource sustainability through user-driven, non-regulatory management of waterways and recreational anchorages; and, provide to state and local decision-makers, planning models and management methods that are based on science-based information and that will provide for the maximum use of Florida’s waterways by the public while sustaining environmental resources. Robert Swett, team leader, Florida Sea Grant; Tom Ankerson, University of Florida Law (Invited); Steve Holland, University of Florida Recreation, Parks, Tourism (Invited); Donald Pybas, County Extension Director, Dade County Extension; John Stevely, Marine Extension Agent, Manatee County Extension; Charles Sidman, Florida Sea Grant. (Read quarterly update of activities.)

FL316 Florida’s Coastal Environment and Water Quality. Overall Objectives are to sustain or enhance Florida coastal and estuarine water quality, habitat quality, sustainable commercial use and sustainable recreational use by increasing knowledge of coastal ecology and by motivating citizens, professionals, and agency personnel to take actions that reduce impacts on these valuable resources. Chuck Jacoby, Team Leader, Coastal and Estuarine Ecology, Sea Grant; Thomas Frazer, University of Florida; William Mahan, Marine Agent, Franklin County Extension; Maia McGuire, Marine Agent, (Multi-County); Marine Science Agent; John Stevely, Marine Agent, Manatee County Extension. (Read quarterly update of activities.)

FL317 Florida’s Sustainable Marine Fisheries. Overall objectives are to: increase commercial and recreational user group awareness, understanding, and utilization of marine fisheries resource conservation and management principles and processes; increase user group participation and involvement in the formulation and development of effective marine fisheries management policies within the state and federal management process; and, increase state and federal regulatory agency awareness of the role of economics in the effective management of marine fishery resources. Chuck Adams, team leader, Marine Economist; Leroy Creswell, Marine Agent, St. Lucie County Extension; Douglas Gregory, County Extension Director, Monroe County Extension; John Stevely, Marine Agent, Manatee County Extension; Don Sweat, Marine Agent, Pasco County Extension. (Read quarterly update of activities.)

manages approximately $4.8 million in federal Sea Grant and matching funds, dedicating at least 50 percent of these core funds to support research.

Your gift can strengthen Sea Grant’s mission, for the benefit of Florida’s citizens, marine industries, and coastal environment. Florida Sea Grant, headquartered at the University of Florida, cooperates with the nonprofit, tax-exempt University of Florida Foundation, Inc., to receive and manage private support. You may choose to restrict the purpose of your gift.