Citizen Scientist Project

Review the Results from the Key Biscayne Citizen Scientist Project Survey

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The Citizen Scientist Survey Results Are In

The Key Biscayne Citizen Scientist Project has distributed a survey completed by Key Biscayne residents to determine their uses of and attitudes, perceptions and beliefs concerning the areas natural resources. The success of the survey was dependent upon a large response from recipients. The survey methodology consisted of a pilot survey session, conducted in advance of the full survey effort; the pilot survey results were analyzed to determine whether (a) respondents understand the questions, (b) respondents complete the entire survey, and (c) the respondents provide other feedback to to improve the survey. The results from the pilot survey helped to better tailor the final survey, as needed.

The full survey effort lasted six weeks, and as part of the Internet survey, respondents were directed to this version of an environmental portal, which will serve to educate the respondents on some of the regions natural resources. The results from the survey have been placed in a database and analyzed as noted above to determine resident ideas on the uses of and attitudes, perceptions and beliefs concerning the natural resources of Key Biscayne.

Citizen Scientist Project Mission & Vision

Using Citizen and Professional Scientists, the Citizen Scientist Project will develop and continuously update this web site to provide the information needed to maintain the most critical natural resources of Key Biscayne. Like the environment around us, this site will adapt and evolve to meet the needs and interests of the Key. Our goal is to secure a future Key Biscayne characterized by the same bounty of natural resources that exist today, thus maintaining the title of “Island Paradise,” while the Key Biscayne Citizen Scientist Lab provides a place to record and organize your findings in and around our island and to learn more about our island.

The Citizen Scientist Project provides a program to help preserve this Paradise in the face of risks both natural (e.g., hurricanes, tornados, floods) and man-made (e.g. breaks in sewer pipes, dredging, pollution). The program is founded on an educated user base, who will contribute to this preservation.

These users are “Citizen Scientists” who will not only have access to the information on the Key’s resources needed to preserve these riches, but will also contribute to the collection, interpretation, and use of the data. To ensure a broad consensus on the most valuable of the Key’s natural resources, a survey of residents and visitors will be conducted.

Beaches

Key Biscayne is fortunate to be bounded on it’s eastern side by beautiful beaches extending the entire length of the Island. The beaches can be divided into 3 areas distinguished by the managing government agency. The northern end of the Key, Crandon Park falls under the jurisdiction of Miami-Dade county. The central portion of the beach… [read more]

Coral Reefs

Coral reefs are either naturally occurring or artificially implanted features of the natural environment located on the ocean side of Key Biscayne. The reefs are congregations of small living creatures typically found in tropical and subtropical waters, such as off Key Biscayne. Naturally occurring reefs form independently of human… [read more]

Green Spaces

For purposes of this discussion, green spaces are areas that are limited to trees, plants, grass, and other natural flora. As with the Key’s beaches, green spaces can be divided into 3 areas, those in Crandon Park, the Village of Key Biscayne, and Bill Baggs Park. Each area has both common and unique green spaces. For instance, Crandon Park… [read more]

Mangroves

Mangrove Hammocks are natural clusters of Mangrove trees that are found along the boundaries of the Key’s waterways. Specifically, Mangrove Hammocks are located primarily on the Biscayne Bay side of Key Biscayne, for instance close to the Crandon Park Marina. A Mangrove Hammock was planted at the Bill Baggs… [read more]

Pathways

Although man-made, the biking and walking paths on the Key open a large window to the natural resources of the Island and provide residents and visitors a view of some of it’s hidden treasures. They provide environmentally protected methods to view the Key and another entry to the shops of the Island. Although not hidden, the most used… [read more]

Waterways

Key Biscayne has many inlets that provide outlets to Biscayne Bay for sea life such as sharks, manatees, and numerous species of other fish. In addition, the inlets serve as entry points to docking areas for personal boats ranging from sailboats to power boats, and small (order of 10 feet) to large (order of 150 feet). The inlets… [read more]