HUTCHINSON ISLAND, Fla. (CBS12) — More than 4,100 sea turtle eggs have been relocated from 45 nests along the Treasure Coast in recent weeks — all to protect them from heavy construction equipment being used to restore eroded beaches on Hutchinson Island in Martin County.
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers began dropping hundreds of thousands of cubic yards of sand along four miles of shoreline in early April as part of a federally funded shore protection project following damage from Hurricane Nicole in 2022.
But the project started right in the middle of sea turtle nesting season — meaning researchers with Ecological Associates had to act fast…