Mark Emery to speak about “Springs Forever”

Noted photographer Mark Emery “at work.” [Photo courtesy Mark Emery]

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Posted October 22, 2024 | By Susan Smiley-Height, [email protected]

Mark Emery, an Emmy award-winning filmmaker, musician and photographer, will be the keynote speaker at the Horse Farms Forever 2024 Conservation Summit on Nov. 14, with the topic “Springs Forever.”

“Mark’s stunning images and films of the springs will help create more awareness about how important Marion County’s springs are to ensuring clean drinking water for residents and visitors,” noted HFF in announcing the event.

Emery, who is well known for his work with, among other entities, “National Geographic,” the Smithsonian Network, the BBC and PBS, grew up in Ocala.

“So, swimming in springs happened soon after walking,” he said of his early childhood. “My family was lucky, we lived only blocks from the famous Newt Perry. Newt and Ross Allen worked on some of the early Johnny Weissmuller films. Newt and his wife Dot taught swimming lessons at their pool near our house, and we could not have had a better or safer start to my life’s work.”

In recalling his youth, Emery, added, “As for the springs, like most of us here, I spent plenty of time jumping out of the Tarzan tree. We had put a rope up in a tall cypress no longer there at the end of the canal where it runs into the Silver River at Ray’s landing, or the boat basin as it was called in those days.”

Emery even piloted one of the world-famous glass-bottom boats at Silver Springs for a year or so.

“I then went to work for Ross Allen’s Reptile Institute as a lecturer, so I have been surrounded by the riches of the springs for years. If you work at a spring every day, you will find that so many folks are amazed by what we have right here in our backyard. There are really no collections of springs like we have here in central Florida, anywhere else in the world, it really is a national treasure,” he offered.

“Later I was lucky enough to work for many years with Jordan Klein Sr., who recently passed away, and his son Jordy Klein. Jordan was an underwater superstar in the world of film. He did his amazing work with special underwater housings he built himself. Later, Klein invented the Mako compressor so that we could get our tanks filled safely for long shoots underwater. Jordan also worked on films as a cinematographer for several James Bond films, “Jaws 3D,” “Splash,” “The Abyss,” “Cocoon” and, back in the day, “Creature from the Black Lagoon” and even the original “Flipper” series,” Emery recalled.

“So, when I was invited to speak for the Horse Farms Forever springs celebration, I was anxious to go through all my footage to see what we could share with everyone. I am 40 hours in now— and I am still editing. We have worked on so many films here for the BBC, Apple TV, National Geographic Television, Nature on PBS and Planet Earth, so the well is deep. It is tough to figure what to leave out. The idea is simple though—it is to celebrate springs,” he said.

Emery often can be found in the company of the Silver Springs Professional Dive Team, whose members routinely go underwater to clean the glass-bottom boats at Silver Springs State Park as well as the movie props that remain on the springs floor from many years ago.

“It’s surprising what goes on in our own backyard,” he said.

Emery said people who are interested in going to the summit should know that, “We are going to celebrate the best springs on earth right here in Marion County. I have decided, and the folks at Horse Farms Forever, have agreed that we need to show the abundance of wildlife, both national and international critters that pass through from south and central America as visitors as well as the regular homebodies that we all know or think we know.”

He said there also will be “a few interviews with the old-school glass-bottom boat drivers who had been on the river for over 50 years. These folks are natural storytellers and see things few have witnessed; they are a wealth of rarely-tapped information. We will also follow a young lad as he explores springs and watch as he daydreams about the Native Americans who came before him.”

For his presentation at the summit, Emery noted that “Tracy Collins and I are providing the soundtrack music for the show and Jason Gulley, a ‘National Geographic’ photographer, and well-known springs artist Margaret Tolbert will also be speaking. I am looking forward to hearing them.”

According to Horse Farms Forever:

• Florida is home to more than 1,000 artesian springs that are dependent on groundwater from the Floridan aquifer system.
• There are three first magnitude springs in Marion County and they together discharge more than 1 billion gallons of water per day: Silver Glen Springs, Rainbow Springs and Silver Springs, which is the largest artesian spring in the world.
• The Springs Protection Zones for Rainbow Springs and Silver Springs are located within the 193,000-acre Farmland Preservation Area, which was designated in 2005 by Marion County to protect the rare agricultural soils and springsheds in the area.
• HFF is raising awareness about the importance of the Springs Protection Zones in the Farmland Preservation Area to help protect the recharge areas for the Floridan aquifer. The aquifer is referred to as “the lifeblood of the springs” and is the source of much of Florida’s drinking water.

“We are excited to be celebrating Marion County’s three first magnitude springs with Emmy award winning cinemaphotographer Mark Emery as our keynote speaker at this year’s summit. Mark will share stunning images and films of the springs to help create more awareness about how important Marion County’s springs are to ensuring clean drinking water,” said Sara Powell Fennessy, executive director, Horse Farms Forever, Inc. “The aquifer recharge areas for two first magnitude springs, Rainbow Springs and Silver Springs, are located in the Farmland Preservation Area. It is vitally important to protect this area to not only preserve prime agricultural soils for the equine industry, but also to protect our water for future generations.”

As part of the summit, poster and essay winners of the K-12 student Springs Forever Art Contest, in partnership with the Marion County Soil and Water Conservation District, will be presented with ribbons and gift certificates.

The Acorn Award will be presented to Guy Marwick.

“Through his decades-long leadership, he has helped protect thousands of acres of environmentally sensitive land in Marion County and across Florida. Guy, who now serves as the executive director of The Felburn Foundation, was the original founder and director of the Silver River Museum & Environmental Education Center. The museum opened over 30 years ago in 1991 as a partnership with Marion County Public Schools and over 15,000 children visit the museum every year,” noted the news release.

In addition, equines from Gentle Carousel Miniature Therapy Horses will be on hand to greet attendees.

“It will be a fine night to enjoy and celebrate our incredible springs,” Emery said.

The 2024 Conservation Summit will be held at the Ocala Breeders’ Sales Arena, 1701 SW 60th Ave., Ocala. The guest speakers and presenters will be signing books, posters and prints, beginning at 4 p.m. The summit will begin at 5 p.m. Light refreshments will be served. Tickets are $45 per person, available at horsefarmsforever.com/event/conservation-summit-2024