STATEWIDE, Fla. - On Saturday, May 16, Sierra Club Florida and environmental partners, allies, and advocates gathered across the state to defend Florida’s wildlife, coastal ecosystems, and communities from federal rollbacks of endangered species protections tied to oil industry interests in the Gulf of Mexico.

Saturday’s “SOS: Save Our Shores / Save Our Species” events, held in eight cities across Florida (Brooksville, Dania Beach, Melrose, New Smyrna Beach, Osprey, Sanibel, St. Petersburg, and West Palm Beach) were organized in response to recent federal efforts to weaken the Endangered Species Act (ESA) for the expansion of offshore oil drilling in the Gulf. For more than 50 years, this landmark conservation law has helped preserve, protect, and recover the nation’s most vulnerable wildlife and habitats, including those critical to Florida’s environment and economy.

Sierra Club Florida and its partners have continuously warned that weakening ESA protections and allowing more offshore drilling would further imperil Florida marine life - including the critically endangered Rice’s whale - while also threatening the state’s clean water, beaches, tourism economy, and way of life.

Signs reading “Don’t Fail Our Qhales,” “Drilling is Killing,” “Save the Endangered Species Act,” and “Don’t Frack with Our Gulf” were waved along busy roadways and intersections, outside farmer's markets, and on beaches on Saturday, where passersby joined in, honked, and signed postcards to be delivered to members of Congress. At Dania Beach, snorkelers even carried banners reading “Defend Wildlife” and “Save Our Shores” underwater to underscore the importance of clean, protected coastal waters to Florida’s future.

Kristine Cunningham, Sierra Club Florida Executive Committee Chair, said, “Florida’s wildlife and coastal ecosystems are part of who we are. From the Gulf to the Atlantic, Floridians from all walks of life are standing together to protect the places and species that make our state so unique. We will continue fighting back against the reckless attacks on the Endangered Species Act and efforts to put corporate polluters ahead of our wildlife and people.”

Susannah Randolph, Sierra Club Florida Chapter Director, said, “The Endangered Species Act has been one of the most pivotal, successful laws in our nation’s history, and Floridians understand what’s at stake if those protections are dismantled. Saturday’s rallies demonstrated the growing movement of people ready to save our shores, our species, and our future from offshore drilling and environmental destruction.”

Cris Costello, Sierra Club Florida State Campaign Director, stated, “Protecting Florida’s coasts from offshore drilling is of the highest priority for all Floridians, no matter their party or affiliation. It is the responsibility of our elected leaders, at both the state and federal level, to put an end to this attack on our state by the Trump Administration. The people of this state will accept no excuse for failure.”

Sierra Club Florida’s Save Our Shores (SOS) campaign is a statewide movement working to protect Florida’s coasts, communities, and wildlife from offshore drilling, pollution, and attacks on critical environmental protections. For more information, click here. For photos and videos of the May 16 SOS events, click here.