State moving forward with new Everglades restoration permit after talks with federal agencies 

 

Bruce Ritchie,

 

Executive Director Melissa Meeker

South Florida Water Management District

Executive Director Melissa Meeker

on Monday described a tentative agreement reached with state and federal officials for proceeding on a revised plan for Everglades restoration.

In October, Gov. Rick Scott met with federal officials in Washington to propose a revised state plan to reduce Everglades phosphorus pollution. Meeker said the plan, with new construction projects and revised pollution measures, has been developed based on an augmented plan developed in October.

"We are still working through the final points of the actual language," Meeker told her district's governing board on Monday.

The plan provides $880 million in new projects through 2025, Meeker said, in addition to some projects already under way. The district, she said, now has $220 million in the bank toward such projects.

Related Research: View the Everglades restoration strategies presentation to the SFWMD governing board.

U.S. District Judge Alan Gold in July 2008 ordered state and federal agencies to stop issuing permits for stormwater treatment areas. He ordered the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to review state water quality standards for the Everglades.

In 2010, the federal EPA said that clean water standards for phosphorus were not being achieved in all parts of the Everglades and that further reductions of phosphorus pollution are needed south of Lake Okeechobee. High levels of phosphorus can convert sawgrass savannahs into a swamp full of cattails with less wildlife habitat.

Since Scott met with federal officials in October, state and federal agencies have been working on a revised plan, Meeker said. They have developed a technical plan that includes water quality-based pollution limits, new filter marshes and holding ponds to improve water treatment, and an implementation schedule through 2025.

DEP spokeswoman Jennifer Diaz said the state is submitting a revised permit to the Environmental Protection Agency by Wednesday and that it would be posted soon after on the state agency's website.

Meeker said the $880 million in new projects include new "flow equalization basins" that capture and store water and release it later into stormwater treatment areas during dry periods.

She also said the plan assumes a contribution from taxpayers statewide and that the governor's representatives have met with legislative leaders to discuss it.

Meeker agreed with a board member's suggestion that the cost estimate was conservative with about one-third of the money now in the bank.

"In terms of the appropriations I think it is well within the means with what we have gotten in the past," she said. "There are no guarantees. It is the state Legislature."

But based on conversations the governor's office has had with legislative leaders, Meeker said, "they (legislators) felt the amount of money we were asking for was very reasonable and very doable."

Environmental Protection Agency spokesman Larry Lincoln commended the state for its hard work and said the federal agency will quickly review the submittal to determine whether it meets federal Clean Water Act requirements.

"The most important thing is for on-the-ground work to begin as soon as possible so we can begin work on these projects, which are vital to restoring water quality in the Everglades," Lincoln said.

Representatives of Audubon Florida and the Everglades Foundation spoke in support while U.S. Sugar Corp. issued a statement in support. But Friends of the Everglades, which filed the lawsuit pending in Gold's court, said it was suspicious.

"Our fear is that the state once again has declined to impose enforceable remedies, adequate financing and best farming practices to sharply curtail phosphorous pollution of the Everglades as required by law," Friends of the Everglades President Alan Farago said.

Audubon Florida Executive Director Eric Draper said his group was glad to hear that the state and federal agencies are working together.

"The plan is clearly a major step forward with helping us get fresh water into the Everglades, which is what we need to do," Draper said.

 

Reporter Bruce Ritchie can be reached at britchie@thefloridacurrent.com.

 

 

WE NEED YOUR HELP TO PROTECT CLEAN WATER!

PLEASE CONTACT YOUR REPRESENTATIVE TODAY AND ASK THEM TO VOTE AGAINST THE MICA/RAHALL BILL (HR 4965) THAT IS SCHEDULED FOR FULL HOUSE TRANSPORTATION COMMITTEE MARKUP THURSDAY, JUNE 7TH.

Please join hunters, boaters, anglers, and conservationists nationwide, and call your Congressional Representative today! Ask them to vote against the Mica-Rahall bill (HR 4965).This bill prohibits the Army Corps of Engineers and Environmental Protection Agency from implementing any Clean Water Act guidance and rule that would protect vulnerable streams, rivers, and wetlands.

Background: The Army Corps of Engineers has proposed agency guidance-a document that will begin the process of restoring protections for streams, wetlands and other waters critical to our hunting, angling, and water recreation traditions and the outdoor recreation economy. This guidance will clarify which waters are covered under the Clean Water Act as "waters of the United States."Currently, millions of acres of wetlands and miles of streams that recharge aquifers, help retain floodwaters, provide important fish and wildlife habitat, and provide clean water for iconic systems like the Chesapeake Bay and Great Lakes are at risk. As these waters are polluted and diminished, their tremendous ecological and public health benefits are lost as well.

HR 4965 undermines our clean water future by blocking the Army Corps of Engineers and EPA Clean Water Guidance and their anticipated rulemaking-now and indefinitely. It also makes even more confusing an already confusing regulatory status quo. The Mica-Rahall bill prohibits the Army Corps of Engineers and Environmental Protection Agency from finalizing and implementing the much-needed Clean Water Act guidance and rulemaking that would get us off the regulatory merry-go-round.

Please call, email, tweet, or facebook your representative and urge him or her to VOTE NO ON THE MICA-RAHALL BILL (HR 4965) and safeguard America's clean water legacy. Telephone numbers for Members of Congress can be obtained by calling (202) 224-3121. Please let Rachel Dawson at NWF (dawsonr@nwf.org, 202-797-6625) know if you have contacted your Representative and if there is any related feedback.

Thank you!

Robyn Fischer

Restoration and Water Resources Associate

National Wildlife Federation

901 E Street NW, Suite 400

Washington, DC 20004

202-797-6619 │ fischerr@nwf.org

 History uncovered along Fort Myers riverfront

A $5.3 million construction project on Fort Myers' historic riverfront should have come to a halt weeks ago, some say. Confederate and Union troops fought one of the southernmost battles of the Civil War a cannonball shot from where backhoes rumble today, resculpting the shoreline that's long been key to the city's economy and identity.Interactive: Downtown Fort Myers riverfront over the years

 Lee County to study Conservation 20/20 overhaul

Commissioners OK blue-ribbon panel. 

Get the ball rolling on a blue-ribbon committee to study Lee County's 20/20 conservation land program, county commissioners told staff at a workshop Monday.

Commissioners also discussed the need for a referendum on the future of 20/20, which charges 50 cents on every $1,000 of property tax and uses the money to buy and conserve land. The program has been used to acquire 24,000 acres bought with more than $300 million.

North Carolina tries to outlaw sea-level rise

By Jess Zimmerman

North Carolina is no stranger to the "if you dislike it then you should have made a law against it" model of legislation, but this is extreme: The state General Assembly's Replacement House Bill 819 would rule that scientists are not allowed to accurately predict sea-level rise. By all legal calculations, the sea level will now rise eight inches by the end of the century. Sure, so far models have predicted an increase of more than three feet, but if they keep that shit up, they're going to JAIL.
 

 http://thewaterinstitute.org/

 The Water Institute of the Gulf was formed in 2011 as a not-for-profit,
independent research institute dedicated to advancing the
understanding of coastal and deltaic systems and applying this
knowledge for the benefit of society. In collaboration with public,
private and academic partners, The Water Institute of the Gulf studies
coastal and deltaic systems to preserve and protect the U.S.'s Gulf
Coast environment, a major source of natural and industrial resources,
while developing and sharing cutting-edge technology with the goal of
advancing water management efforts worldwide.

http://thewaterinstitute.org/about-us/

 Save the Date! 2012 RedSnook Catch & Release Charity Tournament

November 2 - 4, 2012
Angler and guide participation encouraged to help save our waters.

NAPLES, Fla. ( ) - Clean Water! More Fish! Save the date for the Conservancy of Southwest Florida 2012 RedSnook Catch and Release Charity Tournament scheduled for November 2-4. The presenting sponsor for the 2012 event is The Johnson Meland Group at Morgan Stanley Private Wealth Management. Allen Systems Group is the "Stars and Stripes" sponsor which will allow two teams of selected veterans to participate in the Tournament. Additional sponsorship opportunities are available. To become a sponsor, call 239-403-4219 or emailnikkied@conservancy.org.

The Tournament is open to all amateur anglers. Awards will be presented to the top teams in each division, largest fish, grand slam, corporate team and top female angler.

Dr. Aaron Adams, Director of Operations for the non-profit Bonefish and Tarpon Trust and Senior Scientist at Mote Marine Laboratory and Aquarium, is the Honorary Chair for the three-day event. His pursuit of effective fisheries and habitat conservation are rooted in his years growing up near Chesapeake Bay, when he witnessed the collapse of the Bay's habitats and fisheries. Adams spends considerable effort translating science and conservation into fishermen's terms, has given countless presentations to fishing clubs, and he is an avid fly angler.
 

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