This year, more than 1,400 cold-stunned sea turtles washed up on Florida’s shores—nearly 22 times the number rescued the year before. The Apollo Beach Sea Turtle Rehabilitation Center, one of the only remaining facilities able to help, is overwhelmed. Staff are working 100-hour weeks, volunteers are scrambling to build extra tanks, and injured turtles are being doubled up in pools because there’s simply no more room.

Climate change and pollution are hitting Florida’s marine wildlife harder than ever. But while dolphins and manatees receive federal funding, sea turtles are being left behind. Rehabilitating just one turtle can cost up to $15,000. This year alone, the Florida Aquarium expects to spend nearly a million dollars to treat the surge in patients—without any new public funding to meet the crisis.

This isn’t just about animals. Sea turtles are a keystone species. They help maintain coral reefs, manage seagrass beds, and support the very ecosystems Florida’s fishing, tourism, and coastal communities depend on. Every turtle released back into the wild is a step toward preserving Florida’s natural environment.

We call on Governor Ron DeSantis, the Florida Legislature, and the House and Senate Appropriations Committees to immediately allocate emergency funding to support sea turtle hospitals—starting with expanded staffing, rehabilitation pools, and medical supplies at the Apollo Beach center.

If Florida can invest millions in infrastructure and emergency storm response, we can do the same for a frontline climate rescue operation that protects a federally protected species and the fragile marine environment we all share.

These turtles are fighting to survive. Let’s not leave them—and the people working around the clock to save them—without the resources they need.

Add your name to demand immediate action from Florida’s leaders.

Photo: DOUGLAS R. CLIFFORD | Tampa Bay Times