February 2001 

Everglades Village News

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http://www.sfwmd.gov/misce/cyber/index.html

  News  

TURN OUT ON FEB 19th & 20th to Save Bill Baggs State Park!

Bill Baggs State Park, otherwise known as "Cape Florida" on the southernmost tip of Key Biscayne, in Miami-Dade County, is under siege from local interests who want to claim part of it to construct ballfields and similar recreational activities. These interests are putting political pressure on DEP in effort to force the Division of Recreation and Parks to back away from its natural resource based management plan for the park. Bill Baggs State Park was heavily impacted by Hurricane Andrew. Following the hurricane, the Division of Recreation and parks has implemented a large scale restoration plan in effort to remove exotics, and restore native vegetation. Part of the value of this very expensive restoration project will be jeopardized if ballfields are allowed to replace habitat.

click for more information

07-Feb-01

Cabinet approves use of eminent domain to acquire next batch of Estates
parcels

TALLAHASSEE  The Florida Cabinet gave state environmental officials the green light Tuesday to go to court if necessary to obtain 45 vacant parcels within Southern Golden Gate Estates as part of a series of legal maneuvers to gain title to nearly 11,000 acres critical to Everglades restoration.  Two weeks after it voted unanimously to acquire 462 parcels, the seven-member panel again gave its consent to approach landowners, who can either agree to sell voluntarily or have their property condemned through eminent domain.   Eminent domain is the right of the government to take or authorize the taking of private property for the public good.  Of the 45 parcels under consideration Tuesday, contracts have already been approved on at least six parcels. Negotiations on the remaining parcels have reached an impasse, state land buyers say.  There was no discussion before the issue was approved by a unanimous voice vote. No speakers addressed the panel before the vote.  A Southwest Florida environmentalist said the Cabinet approval continues the work begun in January to secure critical parcels that will become part of the historic Everglades restoration plan.......

http://www.naplesnews.com/01/02/naples/d582677a.htm

 

The Conservation Fund and 1000 Friends of Florida
Invite you to attend a slide lecture:

"Better Models for Development" (If not sprawl, then what?)
by Edward McMahon,
5:00 PM, Tuesday,
February 20, 2001,
Cuillo Center for the Arts, West Palm Beach.

Click for more information

06-Feb-01


New tool in Everglades restoration: trees
Loxahatchee National Wildlife Refuge, Fla. - There was a time when the entire eastern edge of Florida's Everglades was fringed with thick stands of cypress trees, many of them towering more than 100 feet into the sky. ... In an effort to spark interest in the ancient forests, the Arthur R. Marshall Foundation, based in Palm Beach, Fla., is assembling 300 volunteers willing to brave mud and mosquitoes to plant 10,000 new cypress trees at the edge of this wildlife refuge southeast of Lake Okeechobee.  John Marshall, president of the Marshall Foundation, says scientists will closely monitor the 10,000 newly planted cypress trees to document their full effect in attracting wildlife and cleansing the environment. Mr. Marshall hopes it will encourage others to plant trees, and perhaps prompt Everglades restoration officials to consider Florida's ancient forests as a part of their restoration plan.
(Christian Science Monitor, 2/6/01)
http://www.csmonitor.com/durable/2001/02/06/fp2s2-csm.shtml

05-Feb-01


Beach building line worries Pinellas towns
Treasure Island - A new state boundary line could affect future building on some $2.8 billion of Pinellas Gulf-front properties.
http://www.tampatrib.com/MGA0VPSOTIC.html

Growth-law reform may be scaled down
Orlando - Full cost accounting is the centerpiece of growth-law reform, but not everyone understands it yet.
http://www.tampatrib.com/FloridaMetro/MGAPYNDMTIC.html

Reef watchers debate why coral is dying
http://www.tampatrib.com/floridametronews/MGA9YU3ZSIC.html

New water restrictions issued
http://drought.tbo.com/

Making sense of drought
A drought is underway for the Tampa Bay area and is predicted to continue into the summer. Here's what happens when the water levels drop.
http://tampabayonline.net/reports/special/weather/drought/water/water.htm

Opinion: Our growth rules still warm, but burial plotted
Allow me to pick on Pasco County, the first place I lived in Florida, for the greater purpose of talking about where the entire state is heading today.
http://www.sptimes.com/News/020501/Columns/Our_growth_rules_stil.shtml

Water goals remain elusive
Severe drought and a booming population have combined to raise water usage in the county when conservation is needed. The amount of water used in unincorporated Hillsborough County in 2000 rose 3 percent compared with the previous year, a disappointment to water officials faced with a severe drought. The average residential customer used 118 gallons per day last year, Water Department spokesman John Fischer said, compared with 105 gallons five years ago.
http://www.sptimes.com/News/020501/Hillsborough/Water_goals_remain_el.shtml

Letter to the editor (bottom one): Environment harmed
It is disturbing to read daily reports about our water scarcity. The truth is that it will get worse every year because our county commissioners allow developers to cover Southwest Florida with concrete. The commissioners should require each developer to dedicate 20 percent of the property for wooded areas and lakes, not just grass. ... The number of stores, offices, houses, and apartments seem to have doubles in Bonita Springs over the last 10 years. As new properties are occupied, old properties are posting "For Rent" signs. We should put a stop to all unnecessary development.
(News Press, 2/5/01)
http://www.news-press.com/opinion/010205mailbag.html

Water restrictions being ignored by residents (AP)
.... Residents in all or part of 34 central and South Florida counties face water-use restrictions, including farmers, golf courses and other water-using industries. The limits are the tightest since a 1991 drought. ...Residents from West Palm Beach to Key West have reduced water usage by 12 percent since Phase 2 restrictions went into effect Jan. 17, far short of the 30 percent goal set by the South Florida Water Management District.  Fines range from $50 to $500..The Hillsborough County water department, which includes Tampa, has fined about 1,650 people for violating the water rules since May.
(Star Banner, 2/5/01)
http://www.starbanner.com/articles/breaking_news/836.shtml

Changing the List of Endangered Species
A list of seven Florida plants and animals is being considered for removal from or reclassification on the endangered species list. National agencies say the group--including the Bald Eagle, Key Deer and American Crocodile--has sprung back from endangered status as threats were lessened or eliminated. Hear what's behind the process and the progress and why federal agencies say it doesn't create an "open season."
Florida Environment, 2/5/01
http://www.floridaenvironment.com/programs/fe10205.htm

Florida Plant Rescue
Saving endangered plants from the path of developers. National Public Radio, Living on Earth, 2/5/01
http://www.loe.org/thisweek/feature2.htm

Rules & Regulations Primer
The final months of President Clinton's administration saw many environmental initiatives. They include requirements for cleaner diesel engines, a federal standard for organic foods, and the creation of new national monuments. But on his first day as President, George W. Bush ordered federal agencies to put those new measures on hold, pending review.  Republicans say they may challenge and try to reverse some of Mr. Clinton's environmental actions. Living on Earth's Anna Solomon-Greenbaum explains how the unraveling process might work.
National Public Radio, Living on Earth, 2/5/01
http://www.loe.org/thisweek/thisweek.htm#feature2

Greetings to my fellow employees!
It is a honor and a pleasure to return to the Department of the Interior as its 48th Secretary and to have the opportunity to work with you again. As many of you know, I previously worked in the Department's Solicitor's office some 14 years ago as its Associate Solicitor for Conservation and Wildlife. While much has changed over the years, my overriding memory from that experience has never changed. It is the knowledge, talent, and dedication which Interior employees bring to their jobs in this great Department that is second to none. Gale_Norton@ios.doi.gov
Gale A. Norton, Secretary of the Interior, 2/5/01
http://www.doi.gov/secretary/

Osceola (portrait): 
Although neither a hereditary nor an elected chief, he was the defiant young leader of the Seminole in their resistance to Indian emigration. In 1835 he plunged his knife into the treaty he was asked to sign that would move his people from their swamplands in the Southeast to the unoccupied territory west of the Mississippi. This action precipitated the Second Seminole War--a seven-year game of cat-and-mouse in the Florida swamps against federal troops. Tricked into talking peace, Osceola was captured in 1837 while carrying a white flag of truce and was imprisoned in Fort Moultrie, South Carolina. Soon after this portrait was completed, Osceola died of malaria.
http://www.npg.si.edu/col/native/osceola.htm

Portrait of a Women Ranger: Life Among the Rushes:
... "These issues are global in nature," Candace Tinkker says. "The Everglades have become like the rain forest. Sometimes Japanese or European visitors know more about the situation than Americans do." Tinkler describes some of the many dangers facing the park. "First it's a matter of hydrology. Since the 1940s we've altered the water in many ways — the flow, the quality, the amount, even its location. We might not be able to get it back to natural but we have to make it better. After you fix the water there's the problem of non-native species. Then, after that, there's the population growth."
(Womenshands)
http://womenshands.oxygen.com/artisans/florida/related_margery.htm

Pay-Hay-Okee: The Everglades, The Mysterious Everglades
by Peter Matthiessen
To the fugitive Indian warriors and their families driven out of the dry hardwood and pine woodlands of Georgia and north Florida by the early settlers backed by the U.S. Army, the sub-tropical climates and vast marshes of the southern peninsula, swarming with insects, alligators, and poisonous snakes, must have seemed as hostile as they did to the whites...out of necessity they adapted quickly to the strange waterland environment and the sub-tropical climate and developed a new way of life,
(Womens Hands)
http://womenshands.oxygen.com/artisans/florida/related_pay_hay_okee.htm

Peter Matthiessen on the Seminole
....fugitive bands from the great Creek Confederacy, driven from their lands in the southeast by white encroachment, drifted south into the uninhabited peninsula. One band of Hitchiti-speaking hunter-gathers which settled near a lake called Mikasuki (near present-day Tallahassee) were given that name by the Spanish in a treaty of 1793, and later all Hitchiti came to be called Mikasuki or Miccosukee. They were old enemies of the agricultural Muskogee-speaking Creeks who came south after them, and who called themselves siminoli-or " people of the distant fires" because they were far from home in Georgia. Translated by the whites as simply " wild" or " unruly", the name " Seminole" was generally applied to all Florida Indians.
http://womenshands.oxygen.com/artisans/florida/related_betty.htm

Books about the Everglades and its people (Womens Hands)
http://womenshands.oxygen.com/artisans/florida/related_biblio.htm

Investment Heads South: 
More than 39 million people flock to Florida every year, leaving behind $28 billion in revenue. But it takes more than sunshine to lure billions of dollars from the nation’s biggest lenders.
(Urban Land magazine, 4/00)
http://www.uli.org/Member/urban_land/2000/04/deLollis.cfm

The Latinization of America: 
South Florida is one of the nation’s largest and most important Hispanic markets. Does it offer a glimpse of America’s future?
(Urban Land magazine, 4/00)
http://www.uli.org/Member/urban_land/2000/04/goodkin.cfm

Drive Time: 
As South Florida’s network of roadways becomes more tangled, locals ponder possible solutions.
(Urban Land magazine, 4/00)
http://www.uli.org/Member/urban_land/2000/04/westlund.cfm

Global Climate Change
What does it mean for South Florida and the Florida Keys?  
A report from the Florida Coastal Cities Tour Activities. (EPA Office of Policy, Office of Economy and Environment, 5/24-29/99, pdf, 12 pages)
http://www.epa.gov/globalwarming/publications/impacts/epaconf/florida.pdf

 

04-Feb-01
 

Lost Tree Islands

The message is simple: DEP has proposed an unnecessary, and quite bad settlement to litigation over the ownership of sovereign lands between a group of islands and the mainland in the Indian River Aquatic Preserve at Vero Beach, known as the "Lost Tree Islands". The Cabinet will vote Tuesday February 6th on this proposal.

The Cabinet should simply reject the settlement, and allow Attorney General Bob Butterworth to continue his office's good work on this case, which is scheduled to be heard by the 4th District Court of Appeal in March.

If the settlement is allowed to go forward as proposed, not only will a group of islands in the Indian River Aquatic Preserve be slathered with residential development and a polluting golf course; in addition, the precedent set by some of the terms of the settlement may open over 800 other "unbridged" islands around the state to bridges, and utility corridors to support development as well.

Urge the Governor and Cabinet to "Just Say No".

Cabinet Contacts Listed Below:

*Governor Jeb Bush - Phone (850) 488-5152  Fax 488-9578; Colleen Castile,
Cabinet Aide

*Attorney General Bob Butterworth (850) 487-1963, Fax 487-2564, Kent Perez,
Cabinet Aide

*Sec. of State Katherine Harris (850) 414-5520, Fax 922-5763,  Kim Grippa,
Cabinet Aide

*Comptroller Bob Milligan (850) 410-9780, Fax 410-9027, Dana Wiehle, Cabinet
Aide

*Insurance Comm. Tom Gallagher (850)  413-2628, Fax 488-7265, Kevin
Stanfield, Cabinet Aide

*Ag. Commissioner Terry Rhodes, (850) 410-6747, Fax 414-9772, Michelle
Myers, Cabinet Aide

*Education Comm. Charlie Crist (850) 488-0080, Fax 488-1492, Jena Brooks,
Cabinet Aide

 

02-Feb-01


Skeptical scientists note flaw in Everglades plan: 

  Critics say the possible repercussions of storing freshwater in deep wells have not been adequately examined.
  A 57-page report by the independent National Research Council, unveiled at Everglades National Park on Thursday, was seen by critics as proof that the restoration plan has a gaping hole in it. The report is the first issued by an independent science panel set up by federal officials to satisfy concerns about the plan's scientific underpinnings. Thursday's report warns that holding water in Florida's underground caverns for so long could lead to chemical interactions with the rocks. When brought back to the surface, the water could contain dangerous pollutants such as arsenic and heavy metals.
Copyright  © 2000 St. Petersburg Times   All rights reserved.


Ramsar Convention's World Wetlands Day (February 2)

Occurs on the anniversary of the signing of the Convention on Wetlands on 2 February 1971, in the Iranian city of Ramsar, on the shores of the Caspian Sea. WWD was celebrated for the first time in 1997 and made an encouraging beginning. Subsequent World Wetlands Days have been organized around such suggested themes as the importance of water to life and of wetlands to the supply of water and, in 1999, on "People and Wetlands: the Vital Link". In 1998, and again in 1999 and 2000, the Convention's Web site has posted reports from more than 60 countries of WWD activities. 
Ramsar Convention on Wetlands

 

Well plan gets look: Water plan goes underground

  One of the biggest challenges of the Everglades' restoration is that there simply isn't enough fresh water to go around.. A key part of the solution is a U.S. Army Corps of Engineers proposal to perform an underground plumbing job of unprecedented scale and monumental expense -- nearly a third of the projected $7.8 billion price tag for Everglades restoration. The idea is to drill some 330 wells, pump as much as 1.7 billion gallons of water a day into them during wet periods and then suck it back out during droughts like the current one. In a report issued Thursday during a meeting at Everglades National Park, the National Academy of Sciences raised numerous questions about potential environmental impacts -- most critically, whether the process might taint that precious water.
Copyright  © 2000 Miami Herald  All rights reserved.

Everglades Restoration: Panel calls for in-depth study of water storage

The success of underground water storage is key to restoring Florida's Everglades, but the concept needs much more study before any storage wells can be built, a scientific panel concluded Thursday. The two pilot projects planned to test the wells don't go far enough, according to a report issued by the Committee on Restoration of the Greater Everglades Ecosystem, a panel of elite university scientists appointed to monitor the project. ...officials with the South Florida Water Management District, the Interior Department and the Army Corps agreed to use their expertise as a guide during the 30-year restoration effort. Thursday's report was the first installment of what is expected to be regular input by the scientific committee on a host of issues as they arise.
Copyright  © 2000 Naples News  All rights reserved.

01-Feb-01

 

Committee on Restoration of the Greater Everglades Ecosystem

  Aquifer Storage and Recovery in the Comprehensive Everglades Restoration Plan: A Critique of the Pilot Projects and Related Plans for ASR in the Lake Okeechobee and Western Hillsboro Areas.  A federal law enacted in December calls for a multi-billion dollar effort to restore the Florida Everglades' natural ecosystem. This report offers advice on restoration pilot projects that would involve storing excess surface water underground and pumping it back up for use during droughts.

Aquifer Storage and Recovery in the Comprehensive Everglades Restoration Plan: A Critique of the Pilot Projects and Related Plans for ASR in the Lake Okeechobee and Western Hillsboro Areas

Copyright  © 2000 National Academies  All rights reserved.


Think the drought is bad? Go north:

to experience drought, to feel it as a way of life, the place to go is Polk County, which is the epicenter of the state's prolonged water crisis. Central Florida's groundwater is leaching away. Each morning begins with: a thick haze of smoke covers the landscape. Thousands of acres of swampland have caught fire, and the burning muck has become the breakfast perfume of Polk County. On a good day, most of the haze will burn off by noon. Yet the stench clings to clothes, and the smoke has been thick enough in places to set off detector alarms in houses.
Copyright  © 2000 Palm Beach Post  All rights reserved.

 

31-Jan-01

Whitman and Norton Win Confirmation in the Senate

Laura Pedrick for The New York Times Christie Whitman, finishing up business as governor. She is to be sworn in on Wednesday as head of the Environmental Protection Agency. Related Articles • Profiles: The Bush Administration • Issue in Depth: White House Guide • Politics Home • National Home Forum • Can President Bush win bipartisan support?

The Senate approved Gale A. Norton and Gov. Christie Whitman of New Jersey today to oversee the nation's policies on natural resources and the environment.  Ms. Norton, a former attorney general of Colorado who drew criticism from environmental groups and Senate Democrats for her record on conservation, was confirmed as interior secretary by a 75-to-24 vote. She is the first woman to hold the post.

The Senate voted 99 to 0 to approve Ms. Whitman as administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency. The job does not now carry cabinet rank, but President Bush has said he supports upgrading the post to the cabinet, which would require an act of Congress.  Ms. Whitman said today that she would resign as governor of New Jersey on Wednesday. Donald T. DiFrancesco, the Republican president of the New Jersey Senate, is to become acting governor.

With its action today, the Senate has approved most of President Bush's cabinet members and top agency officials. The Senate has yet to vote on former Senator John Ashcroft to head the Justice Department and on Robert B. Zoellick as United States trade representative.

Ms. Norton, 46, faced stiff opposition over her record on land management. A coalition of environmental groups urged senators to reject her nomination, citing her view that federal agencies ran roughshod over states and private property owners.  But in her testimony in committee Ms. Norton described herself as a "passionate conservationist" and assured senators she would enforce existing environmental laws, including the Endangered Species Act.  "She is entitled to the job," Senator Pete V. Domenici, Republican of New Mexico, said on the Senate floor. "We have probably never had a candidate for that job who is better educated or qualified in the areas of her jurisdiction."  But Democrats who opposed her selection said they were convinced she would not strike a balance between corporate interests and conservation. Ms. Norton is expected to push to open Alaska's Arctic National Wildlife Refuge to oil and natural gas drilling, for example.  "If it's a wildlife refuge, it's a refuge," said Senator Barbara Boxer, Democrat of California. "It's not oil drilling land."
Copyright  © 2000 NY Times online   All rights reserved.


Conservative Land-Use Groups Gain in Vote

Gale A. Norton's confirmation today as secretary of the interior by the Senate, by a comfortable 75-to-24 margin, can also be seen as a victory for several conservative environmental groups with which Ms. Norton has been connected in her career.

The groups, which include the Mountain States Legal Foundation, the Political Economy Research Center, the Defenders of Property Rights and the Coalition of Republican Environmental Advocates, have played an increasingly important role in the battles over Western land use and other environmental issues. Some have been pressing for the rights of property owners against the federal government in response to what they view as overly cumbersome federal environmental regulations and aggressive moves to protect Western land. Others have pressed for a free-market approach to environmentalism, arguing that market forces should determine the proper uses of federal lands.

In recent years, these groups have become a counterweight to the larger and better-financed liberal environmental organizations, like the Sierra Club, that opposed Ms. Norton's nomination. They have also received money from Eastern social conservatives and Western business interests, public records show.  Some involved with these groups emphasize that Ms. Norton, a onetime member of the Libertarian Party and the former Republican attorney general of Colorado, will not automatically favor their positions as interior secretary.  "I know when she takes on a new role, all bets are off," said Nancie Marzulla, president of the Defenders of Property Rights, a group that defends property owners in disputes with the federal government. "If I have a case to take before her, I expect she will probably grill me harder than other people."

Copyright  © 2000 NY Times online   All rights reserved.

29-Jan-01

Wetland loses on decline

  A recent federal report on wetlands in the United States, shows them still losing ground, but at a dramatically reduced rate (80% lower than the decade prior). 
  Based on this there's optimism that losses might end altogether in the future, replaced by gains in U.S. wetland acreage. Hear about Florida's role in this process, what's behind the reduction, and where some of the wetland gains might come from, in Wetland Losses on the Decline, this week on the Florida Environment...  Resources: Tom Dahl, Wetlands Biologist, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, "Status and Trends of Wetlands in the Coterminous United States, 1986-1997".  The programs are broadcast on Florida public radio stations; scripts and streaming RealAudio are on the http://www.floridaenvironment.com website.  The Florida Environment radio program.  A resource for citizens, students and teachers Produced at Florida Gulf Coast University.  Funded by the Southwest Florida Council for Environment Education, Inc.
Copyright  © 2000 Florida Environment Radio  All rights reserved.
"Florida Environment radio" <info@floridaenvironment.com>

 

28-Jan-01

MOSQUITO SPRAY DEADLY TO BIRDS

  After the deaths of 200 birds on Marco Island, the EPA proposes curtailing Florida's use of the pesticide fenthion.
  For 30 years, ornithologist Ted Below regularly waded out to a sandbar off the public beach at Marco Island to document herons, sandpipers or other birds stopping off there. Occasionally, he ran across a few dead ones, but he didn't pay much attention -- until the day in 1997 he found 80 at once.  Among the dead lay an endangered piping plover. A band on its leg showed the tiny bird had flown south from Michigan only to keel over in sunny Florida.  In the years since, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has blamed the deaths of 200 birds on Marco Island on a pesticide called fenthion, which for decades has been sprayed throughout Florida -- including around Tampa Bay -- to control mosquitoes.  Marco Island's bird deaths have fueled a running feud over fenthion. Conservation groups want to ban it, citing concerns not only for birds but also for humans. Local government officials contend it is vital in warding off mosquito-borne viruses such as encephalitis.
  Two weeks ago, supporters and opponents of fenthion squared off for an eight-hour hearing in Orlando over whether the EPA should allow spraying to continue in Florida.  "We will not stand idle while fenthion continues to be sprayed in one of the most biologically rich and ecologically sensitive regions in the world," Linda Farley of the American Bird Conservancy told the EPA.
  Fenthion used to be available nationwide for mosquito spraying. In 1988, faced with tightening government restrictions, Bayer nearly halted production. Bayer officials say Florida's mosquito-control districts begged them to continue making it for use in this state only, so the company agreed.  Since then, fenthion has taken a toll on Florida wildlife. University researchers spent five years studying the effect of mosquito sprays in the Keys and found fenthion nearly wiped out the nation's rarest butterfly, the Schaus swallowtail.   
  "It was extremely toxic to butterflies in the Keys, and to 50 percent of other insect species," University of Florida zoologist Thomas Emmel said.
Copyright  © 2000 St. Petersburg Times   All rights reserved.

 

27-Jan-01

Cold weather cuts number of exotic fish that invades ENP 

  Fish kills are usually bad -- evidence of something amiss in the water like red tide or toxic pollution. But the bobbing carcasses that hit Everglades National Park this month are a good thing, biologically if not aesthetically.
  Most of the countless victims were obscure but troublesome interlopers -- a voracious invader called the Mayan cichlid, a sort of melaleuca with fins that eats up and bullies aside native fish...Scientists, while conceding the Mayan and other exotics are here to stay, are happy for anything that slows the spread of fish that pose an increasing threat during the massive Everglades restoration project in decades ahead...
Copyright  © 2000 Miami Herald  All rights reserved.

 

 

 

 

Initiatives

Led by a $400 million bond referendum in Broward County, which passed by a
73.59% to 26.41% margin, voter approval of environmental land purchase proposals were generally given strong support around the state.

Seminole County Voters approved a $25 million trails, greenways, and land
purchase proposal by 58%.

Volusia County Voters approved twin referenda, both on the same ballot,
raising $80 million each for environmental land purchases and trails plus
other recreation projects. The Land purchase bond issue called "Volusia
Forever" passed by 61.3 percent. The Trails & Recreation proposal, called
"ECHO" passed by 57.5 percent. Considering Volusia's population size, the $
160 million provided by these two proposals may be the largest per-capita
investment of this kind in the state.

Alachua County approved a $29 million land acquisition program by a near 70%
vote of the electorate.

There may be more...if you know of another local land purchase or "Trails &
Greenways" vote, please post the results!

 

Two Bushes in the Everglades
Mother Jones
July / August 2000

George W. Bush has rarely encountered a public problem that the private sector, in his view, cannot solve. Now the Republican presidential hopeful
wants to unleash market forces on the Everglades. During a campaign swing
through Florida in March, Bush made clear he believes the state should
involve private enterprise in the effort to save the imperiled ecosystem.

One of Bush's biggest campaign contributors couldn't agree more. Azurix, a
Houston-based company formed b the energy giant Enron, has offered to pump
millions of dollars of its own money into building reservoirs and storage
wells designed to restore the Everglades. In return, the company wants
permission to sell the water that supplies 6 million residents of South
Florida.

http://www.motherjones.com//mother_jones/JA00/outfrontja00.html#twobushes


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19, 20-Feb-01

TURN OUT ON FEB 19th & 20th to Save Bill Baggs State Park!

Bill Baggs State Park, otherwise known as "Cape Florida" on the southernmost tip of Key Biscayne, in Miami-Dade County, is under siege from local interests who want to claim part of it to construct ballfields and similar recreational activities. These interests are putting political pressure on DEP in effort to force the Division of Recreation and Parks to back away from its natural resource based management plan for the park. Bill Baggs State Park was heavily impacted by Hurricane Andrew. Following the hurricane, the Division of Recreation and parks has implemented a large scale restoration plan in effort to remove exotics, and restore native vegetation. Part of the
value of this very expensive restoration project will be jeopardized if ballfields are allowed to replace habitat.

Part of the debate will be occurring in the arcane area of distinction between the terms "State Park" and "State Recreation Area". In the past, those terms have not had much meaning. DEP has recently proposed reclassification of EVERYTHING to be protected as natural habitat as "State Park", and to classify a limited group of areas where heavy development might be allowed as "State Recreation Areas". Obviously, since Bill Baggs has been historically treated as a "State Park", regardless of its title, we want to keep it that way. Conversely, those who want to open it up to non-natural
uses, want it designated in the new scheme of names as a "Recreation Area".

If Florida environmentalists don't want local interests to invade state parks with incompatible uses that harmfully displace important habitat, they need to speak up LOUDLY on Feb. 19th and Feb. 20th.

Two public meetings will be held, on February 19, and February 20 to allow the public to have input on this important issue. The DEP public notices are reproduced below.

*********************************

PUBLIC NOTICE

The Florida Department of Environmental Protection, Division of Recreation and Parks
announces a public workshop to which all persons are invited.

DATE AND TIME:  Monday, February 19, 2001, 7:00 PM (EST)

PLACE:  Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Sciences Library
              4600 Rickenbacker Causeway
              Miami, Florida 33149

PURPOSE:    (1) To present the proposed land management plan for Bill Baggs Cape Florida State Park to the public; and (2) to discuss the proposed reclassification of this property from a state recreation area to a state park.  A copy of the agenda may be obtained by writing Florida Department of Environmental Protection, Division of Recreation and Parks, Office of Park Planning, 3900 Commonwealth Boulevard, Mail Station #525, Tallahassee, Florida 32399-3000, or by calling the Office of Park Planning at (850) 488-2200.

    Pursuant to the provisions of the Americans with Disabilities Act, any person requiring special accommodations to participate in this meeting is asked to advise the agency at least 48 hours before the meeting by contacting the Office of Park Planning at (850) 488-2200.  If you are hearing or speech impaired, please contact the agency by calling 1-800-342-1335.

*******************

PUBLIC NOTICE

The Florida Department of Environmental Protection, Division of Recreation and Parks announces a DEP Advisory Group Meeting to which all persons are invited.

DATE AND TIME:  Tuesday, February 20, 2001, 9:00 AM (EST)

PLACE:  Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Sciences Auditorium
              4600 Rickenbacker Causeway
              Miami, Florida 33149

PURPOSE:    (1) To discuss the proposed land management plan for Bill Baggs Cape Florida State Park with the DEP Advisory Group; and (2) to discuss the proposed reclassification of this unit from a state recreation area to a state park.  A copy of the agenda may be obtained by writing Florida Department of Environmental Protection, Division of Recreation and Parks, Office of Park Planning, 3900 Commonwealth Boulevard, Mail Station #525, Tallahassee, Florida 32399-3000, or by calling the Office of Park Planning at (850) 488-2200.

    Pursuant to the provisions of the Americans with Disabilities Act, any person requiring special accommodations to participate in this meeting is asked to advise the agency at least 48 hours before the meeting by contacting the Office of Park Planning at (850) 488-2200.  If you are hearing or speech impaired, please contact the agency by calling 1-800-342-1335.

 

20-Feb-01

The Conservation Fund and 1000 Friends of Florida
Invite you to attend a slide lecture:

"Better Models for Development" (If not sprawl, then what?)
by Edward McMahon,
5:00 PM, Tuesday,
February 20, 2001,
Cuillo Center for the Arts, West Palm Beach.

Edward McMahon is an attorney, community planner, lecturer, and author.  He is the Director of Land Use Planning at The Conservation Fund.  He has an M.A. in Urban Studies from the University of Alabama and a J.D.. from Georgetown University Law School where he taught law and public policy from 1976-1985.  He is also the cofounder and former President of Scenic America, a national nonprofit organization devoted to protecting America's scenic landscapes.   He writes a regular column in Planning Commissioners Journal and is the author of over 150 articles and eight books including two new books:  Better Models for Development in Virginia and Balancing Nature and Commerce in Gateway Communities.  He has appeared on numerous
national news programs including "Good Morning America," ABC News Prime Time, NBC and CBS Nightly News, CNN and was a recipient of the Peabody Award for his work on CBS Television's national news program "30 Minutes." Mr. McMahon will show examples of innovative community developments from
around the country.

22-Mar-01

All Eyes on Florida: Revitalizing, Restoring and Revisiting
The seventh annual public interest environmental conference

University Conference Center Doubletree
Gainesville, FL
March 22-24, 2001

This student-run conference brings together diverse interests to take part
in panels discussing a multitude of environmental issues. This form of
interaction allows the parties to develop understanding and even cooperation
on difficult environmental conflicts that may otherwise be impossible.   The University of Florida College of Law's Environmental and Land Use Law
Society in cooperation with the Florida Bar

05-Sep-01

Wetlands and Remediation: The Second International Conference

Background: In November, 1999, Battelle Memorial Institute, a
not-for-profit research organization based in Columbus, Ohio, sponsored
and organized a wetlands and remediation conference in Salt Lake City,
Utah, that brought together more than 300 wetlands and remediation
experts to discuss common issues related to cleaning up contaminated
wetlands and using wetlands (both natural and constructed) for treating
contaminated ground-, surface-, and wastewater. Based on the success of
that meeting, Battelle is pleased to announce that Wetlands and
Remediation: The Second International Conference will be held September
5-6, 2001, at the Sheraton Burlington Hotel and Conference Center in
Burlington, Vermont.

Organization: Karl Nehring of Battelle (614/424-6510, nehringk@battelle.org), Conference Chairman, will be responsible for coordinating the development of the technical program. Carol Young (614/424-7604, youngc@battelle.org) will be the Conference Coordinator, responsible for scheduling, correspondence, and issues involving abstract and manuscript submittal and preparation. The Conference Group (800/783-6338, conferencegroup@compuserve.com) of Columbus, Ohio, is
handling the meeting logistics.

Format: After an opening plenary session, there will be multiple platform sessions (two or three concurrent tracks), and a poster session on Wednesday evening. Speakers at the Plenary Session will include Dr. Jean-Paul Schwitzguebel of the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Lausanne, Dr. Barry Warner of the University of Waterloo (current vice president of the Society of Wetland Scientists) and Dr. John Pardue of Louisiana State University.

Sponsorship: Battelle is the sponsor and organizer, and we are hoping to add co-sponsors for the 2001 conference. Parsons Engineering Science, Morrison Knudsen Corporation, the U.S. DoD Environmental Security Technical Certification Program/Strategic Environmental Research and Development Program, and the U.S. Naval Facilities Engineering Command were co-sponsors of the 1999 Conference. Organizations interested in co-sponsoring the 2001 Conference should contact The Conference Group.

Participating Organizations: Organizations committed to helping with publicity for the conference and encouraging participation should contact The Conference Group at 800/783-6338. Participating organizations for the 1999 meeting included The Center for Wetlands and Riparian Design (University of Utah), Environmental Business Journal, the USDA NRCS Wetlands Science Institute, the University of Florida Center for Wetlands, The Michigan State University Institute of Water
Research, the Olentangy River Wetland Research Park (The Ohio State University), The Department of Oceanography and Coastal Sciences/Coastal
Ecology Institute (Louisiana State University), The U.S. Army Construction Engineering Laboratory, the Utah Water Research Laboratory (Utah State University), the Tennessee Valley Authority, and the New York State Wetlands Forum.

Exhibitors: Companies or organizations interested in having an exhibit booth at the conference should contact The Conference Group at 800/783-6338.

Schedule: The Call for Abstracts will be mailed in November 2000; the deadline for submitting abstracts will be March 5, 2001. Once the program has been finalized and accepted presenters have been sent acceptance letters, a preliminary program will be mailed. 

Proceedings: A proceedings volume will be prepared and then published by Battelle Press and mailed to registrants shortly after the conference. Proceedings papers will be optional but strongly encouraged from all presenters, both platform and poster. Authors wishing to have their papers appear in the proceedings will be requested to provide camera-ready copies of their papers by July 13.

Registration: Because registration fees are by far the major source of funding for the conference and a significant percentage of registrants will make presentations, all presenting authors and session chairs are expected to register and pay the standard fees.  Potential topics for this conference include:

- Natural Attenuation in Wetlands
- Biological and Ecological Considerations
- Risk-Based Wetlands Remediation
- Regulatory Trends 
- Economic Factors in Wetlands Remediation and Restoration 
- Wetlands Hydrology and Morphology 
- Wetlands Microbial Ecology 
- Phytoremediation and Macrophytes in Wetlands 
- Wetlands for the Remediation and Treatment of Wastewater 
- Wetlands Treatment of Contaminated Sediments 
- GIS and Remediation 
- Innovative Technologies for Wetlands Investigations 
- Non-point Source Pollution and Agricultural Runoff 
- Redox Processes in Wetlands 
- Contaminant Fate and Environmentally Acceptable Endpoints 
- Wetlands Design and Construction 
- Creating Wetlands using Dredge Spoils 
- Wetlands Restoration and Mitigation 
- Explosives and Wetlands 
- Hydrocarbon-Contaminated Wetlands 
- Mine Waste Considerations 
- Metals and Inorganics in Wetlands 
- Perchlorate-Contaminated Wetlands 
- Groundwater/Surface Water Interfaces

10-Feb-01

The American Association of Law Libraries  

The American Association of Law Libraries was founded in 1906 to promote and enhance the value of law libraries to the legal and public communities, to foster the profession of law librarianship, and to provide leadership in the field of legal information.

Today, with over 4,800 members, the Association represents law librarians and related professionals who are affiliated with a wide range of institutions: law firms; law schools; corporate legal departments; courts; and local, state and federal government agencies.

http://www.aallnet.org/

SEAALL 

the Southeastern Chapter of the American Association of Law Libraries.  SEAALL is a not-for-profit organization incorporated in Florida with the purposes of promoting law librarianship and developing and increasing the usefulness of law libraries, particularly those in the Southeastern area of the United States.

SEAALL was originally established in 1954 -- an expansion of the Carolinas Chapter (established in 1939 as AALL's first chapter).   Today our membership is over 500 strong, representing law librarians from the private sector, the government, academia, and more. For more on the history of SEAALL, please see From the SEAALL Attic, by Hazel Johnson. A continuing mission for SEAALL has always been to provide educational services for its members.  This is primarily accomplished through the many educational offerings at our annual meeting and through instructive articles, pathfinders, and bibliographies in our newsletter, The Southeastern Law Librarian.

http://www.aallnet.org/chapter/seaall/index.shtml

 

06-Feb-01

•  Ramsar Convention on Wetlands

Ramsar and Wetlands International 1999 Directory of Wetlands of International Importance

Web directory

 

 

•  UNEP/GPA News Forum

United Nations Environment Programme
A News and Information Service of the Global Programme of Action (GPA) for the Protection of the Marine Environment from Land-based Activities

•  Environmental News Network

Education site
Only one in three adult Americans has a passing understanding of our most pressing environmental issues.  National Environmental Education and Training Foundation

•   League of Conservation voters, Presidential profiles

Political analysis of Presidential candidates' environmental platform
New section on Cheney's record (07-24-00)

•  Everglades Restoration Plan

Comprehensive site dedicated to educating the public about the restoration plan

•  Dihydrogen Monoxide Research Division (DMRD)
The controversy surrounding dihydrogen monoxide has never been more widely debated, and the goal of this site is to provide an unbiased data clearinghouse and a forum for public discussion. The success of this site depends on you, the citizen concerned about Dihydrogen Monoxide. We welcome your comments and suggestions.
http://www.dhmo.org/


•  Living on Earth, 10/26/00
http://www.loe.org/thisweek/highlight.htm#1

 

Revised:  05/01/03