Links to visit
Click here to read the WWF newsletter
Click here to read the NWF newsletter
Click here to read Audubon's Restore
Click here to read the Eco-Voice Digest
Click here
to read about wildlife around the world
Click here to read about ABC's Bird of the week
Click here to see the world's 8 largest mammals
Click here to sign a petition to save our migratory birds
Click here to read the USFWS news blog
Click here to see Birdwatching Magazines close-up bird photos
Click here to read the National Bird Feeding Society's newsletter
Thank God men cannot fly, and lay waste the sky as well as the earth. Henry David Thoreau
Announcements
Save the Date:
The Community Gardening Committee of South Florida and
The American Community Gardening Association
Present:
Community Gardens Growing a Sustainable Future
September 16-17, 2011
Hosted by: Feeding South Florida at:
2501 SW 32 Terrace, Pembroke Park, FL 33023
Friday will feature a tour of The Fruitful Field
Saturday will offer a multitude of workshops including such topics as:
Decentralized Farming, Composting, Zen Gardening, Asset Based
Community Programming and MORE!
These things I take with me This will be my last "As I See It" column, and I wanted to take a moment and reflect on how far the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission team has come in the past 10 years. I have been honored to work with Commissioners and staff who are not only dedicated to the mission of the Commission but also passionate in managing fish and wildlife resources for their long-term well-being and the benefit of people.
I am proud to note that Floridians have more hunting and fishing opportunities now than before. Thirty new areas with public hunting have been added in the past five years, totaling an additional 135,000 acres.
We all understand the need to reach out to our youth, and a hunting initiative that I am particularly proud of is the new youth turkey hunting weekend, allowing hunting on 78 FWC-managed areas. The youth turkey hunts on these wildlife management areas will be two-day, Saturday-Sunday hunts on the weekend prior to the opening of spring turkey season on each particular WMA, beginning with the 2012 season.
It is so important to expose young people to outdoor recreational opportunities. The more our youth experience wildlife and nature, the more likely they are to grow up to appreciate these resources and to pass along outdoor traditions to future generations.
In addition to expanded hunting opportunities, we constantly strive to make sure Florida has plentiful fishing resources. Florida is the "Fishing Capital of the World." What angler doesn't look forward to the thrill of hearing a reel sing as line peels out. We are the world's destination for visitors who want to catch tarpon, bonefish and permit, and I am especially proud of our catch-and-release program for these "rock stars" of saltwater fishing. The Commission has worked hard to ensure Floridians and our visitors have the opportunity to catch a big one.
Another opportunity is the expansion of this year's bay scallop season. It kicked off on June 25 and runs through Sept. 25, starting a week early and running two weeks longer than usual. This is great family fun and gives our visitors and residents the chance to take advantage of this fun outdoor activity.
Recognizing that anglers and hunters are just a part of Florida's conservation community, I am proud of the vast resources available to wildlife viewers in our state made possible through our various partnerships. The Great Florida Birding and Wildlife Trail represents only one aspect of wildlife viewing enjoyed by residents and visitors alike. The FWC worked with the Wildlife Foundation of Florida and the Florida Department of Transportation to create this network of 500 birding sites and 2,000 miles of self-guided highway trails throughout Florida.
There are many things that I will take with me as I leave the Commission, including many memories, friendships and accomplishments that I share with my fellow Commissioners and FWC staff.
I'd like to thank my fellow Commissioners and FWC staff for their hard work and dedication in helping to make all these public opportunities possible, in addition to their years of support and friendship. I have been honored to work with a group of people who are passionate about wildlife issues and consider the work they do to be a calling, as have I.
Finally, I want to thank former governors Bush and Crist. I will always be honored and humbled by the confidence they showed me when they appointed me to the Commission as well as their continued support that made this journey possible.
Rodney Barreto
The date has been set for the 27th Annual Everglades Coalition Conference to be held in Hutchinson Island, Florida, January 5 -8, 2012.
For more info, visit http://evergladescoalition.org/Conference.htm
EASTPOINT – The Florida Department of Environmental Protection's Apalachicola National Estuarine Research Reserve will host a ribbon-cutting ceremony for the new education and research facility and a media tour with Secretary Herschel T. Vinyard Jr. on Wednesday, August 17, 2011 at 10:30 a.m. The ceremony and tour of the Nature Center, research areas and labs will be open to the media and public.
The event will take place: Wednesday, August 17, 2011 10:30 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. EDT
Apalachicola National Estuarine Research Reserve Nature Center
108 Island Drive Eastpoint, Florida 32328
Due to ill health, I'm interested in selling my 93 acre unspoiled Wildlife Refuge outside Tallahassee, FL.
I am specifically looking for an environmentally responsible and ecologically minded individual who will maintain and protect the wildlife preserve in the pristine condition that it is currently in.
I would like to keep the wildlife, especially the endangered species, safe with clean water and an undisturbed habitat.
Sincerely,
Linda Humphries lmh8780@tds.net
Port of Palm Beach, Florida Crystals have plan for inland port in Glades The on-again, off-again effort to bring a major distribution center linked to the Port of Palm Beach to Palm Beach County's economically depressed Glades region is back on the drawing board.
The Port of Palm Beach and Florida Crystals Corp., West Palm Beach, said today they have agreed to collaborate on the development, construction and operation of a proposed South Florida Intermodal Logistics Center in Palm Beach County.
Its goal is to capitalize on the trade that will result from completion of the Panama Canal expansion in 2014, officials said.
Florida Crystals spokesman and vice president Gaston Cantens said the project will be on 850 acres the sugar company owns off U.S. 27 just north of South Bay in unincorporated Palm Beach County.
Of interest to all
From the National Audubon Newsletter The Gulf of Mexico has gotten a lot of attention in the last year, most notably for the BP Deep Horizon oil disaster that continues to pose problems for the marshes, wetlands and coastal habitats of the Gulf. A bit of good news however—recently the Senate has introduced legislation to dedicate billions of dollars' worth of Clean Water Act penalties that BP will have to pay for Gulf coast restoration of the damaged environment and communities. Now is a critical time in the life of this legislation and with the level of national attention that the Gulf disaster has received, the time is ripe for concerned citizens to once again turn their attention to the Gulf and raise their voices to support this positive movement in the Senate for restoration.
This is common-sense legislation with strong support from leaders on both sides of the aisle. During these deeply partisan times, this is an opportunity for Congress to show that it can still deliver important wins for the American people. Because this is such an unprecedented investment in conservation of an important area for birds and people, Audubon's policy office is prioritizing this legislation and will be inviting all elements of the Audubon network to participate. Chapters across the country have played a critical role in getting to this point, and now we really need your help to get this thing across the finish line.
This Senate bill paves the way for Congress to do what voters expect: hold the parties responsible for the Gulf oil disaster accountable for restoring the Gulf because our nation's economy depends on a healthy Gulf. Unless Congress acts, fines paid by BP and others responsible for the oil disaster will be spent on unrelated federal spending, instead of going to repair the area that was devastated by the spill.
Nearly 500 miles – almost half – of the coastline in Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama and Florida that was contaminated by the BP oil disaster remains oiled one year later (according to the National Atmospheric and Oceanic Administration), including many coastal IBAs as well as other critical and sensitive bird habitats.
Restoring the communities and environment of the Gulf region is critical not only to the local economy, but also to the strength of our national economy. The Gulf currently supports a $34 billion per year tourism industry, and its fisheries support an estimated $22.6 billion dollars in seafood and commercial and recreational fishing-related activity. Bipartisan polling shows that 83 percent of voters nationwide support efforts to dedicate the BP oil spill penalties to restoration of the Mississippi River Delta and Gulf Coast.
Using Gulf oil spill penalties paid by those responsible for this disaster to restore the Gulf region's communities, environment and economy is the fair and right thing to do. Congress must act quickly to make sure that happens.
So now we need you to raise your voices once again. Call on your Senators to do the right thing, support the Restore the Gulf Coast Act of 2011 and make a real investment in restoring our Gulf. If you live in the Gulf coast states, your Senators are already on board, except for John Cornyn (R-TX), and have taken on leadership roles to move this process along. They deserve your thanks and we encourage you to thank and support them as they lead this agreement to the next step— full Senate adoption. If you live outside of the Gulf, then your Senators need to hear from you.
Please consider calling or writing your Senators today and encourage them to support the Restore Act. House legislation is being introduced and we will need to do the work of educating our Representatives on this bill in the House and getting it through Congress. August recess is coming and a great opportunity to meet with your member of Congress in district close to home, so keep that in mind also.
For a short summary of the Senate legislation called the RESTORE Gulf Coast States Act click on the hyperlink to open the document. You can reach your Senators at 202-224-3121 or email them at www.senate.gov or to contact your House Representative and encourage them to support the companion bill once it has been introduced call 202-225-3121 or www.house.gov Thank you!
For more information on what Audubon is doing and how you can take action to help restore the Gulf go to http://gulfoilspill.audubon.org/
For questions or further information, please contact Sean Saville, National Field Director in the DC policy office at ssaville@audubon.org
For meaningful correspondence with your legislators, check out the following links:
- Restore Act of 2011 Fact Sheet
- Sample Restore Act Letter to the Editor
- Coalition Press Release about the Restore Act of 2011
- Talking Points about the Restore Act of 2011
First came word that Gov. Rick Scott's budget cuts might force the closing of 53 parks — but amid complaints, Scott decided against that. That was followed by a bill in the Legislature, backed by Scott, to build golf courses in some parks. A public outcry prompted the bill's sponsors to drop it.
Then came this month's furor over a plan to let private contractors build new campsites — including spots for recreational vehicles — in 56 parks that don't currently allow camping, including Honeymoon Island State Park. After hundreds showed up at a public hearing to complain, Scott scuttled the Honeymoon Island plan and told his staff to reconsider the others.
But quietly, and with hardly anyone objecting, a big chunk of the services provided to visitors at Florida's state parks is being privatized anyway. As of this month the state has handed over the job of running a lodge, a number of restaurants and gift shops, and one canoe and kayak rental operation over to private contractors.
Blame the tight budget, say officials from the agency that oversees the state parks, the state Department of Environmental Protection.
Scott told all of his state agencies to come up with ways to cut their budgets by 15 percent, explained DEP spokeswoman Kristin Lock. One of the ideas the DEP suggested: Turn over some operations at five state parks to private contractors.
This trend has been going on for some time as the state has looked for ways to squeeze more money out of the public's strong affection for the natural beauty found in its 160 parks.
Nine years ago, for instance, individual state parks stopped taking phone reservations for campsites. Instead, the DEP signed a contract with a subsidiary of Ticketmaster called ReserveAmerica to handle all campsite reservations by phone and online. The move made the state money, but added extra fees onto the cost of camping.
As of this summer, "we currently have 100 agreements with private concessionaires operating in state parks," Lock said, noting they include everything from vending machines to boat rentals.
All told, she said, the cut has eliminated about 24 full-time state jobs and reduced the budget by $3.5 million.
Not everyone is happy, however. Lock reports that her agency fields about 15 calls a month from consumers complaining about park concessions.
Read more
Don't let your Member of Congress be fooled by a bad fisheries bill in disguise! Not everything is what it seems in the ocean or on land. Nassau grouper like the one pictured are camouflaged by a color pattern that mimics light on the ocean floor. Disguise is a good survival technique in nature, but it can also be used to promote bad legislation. The recently introduced "Fisheries Science Improvement Act" (H.R. 2304) is an example.
This bill would undermine fisheries science, abandon fishery conservation goals and jeopardize successful efforts underway to prevent overfishing and rebuild our depleted ocean fish populations.
Now, America's ocean fishing law requires managers to set annual catch limits to ensure sustainable fishing for all U.S. ocean fish populations by the end of 2011. H.R. 2304 undermines this conservation goal by creating exemptions from the annual catch limit requirement including:
- Exempting managers from setting catch limits for at least 63 of America's ocean fish populations, including some of the most valuable and vulnerable species like Nassau grouper and
- Creating a disincentive for scientific research on these fish populations by eliminating the catch limit requirement that drives scientific improvement
Thank you,
Lee Crockett
Director, Federal Fisheries Policy
Pew Environment Group
Take Action
Florida friendly plant database Identify the Florida-friendly plants, including Florida native plants that will work in your yard or landscape design. The database contains nearly 380 trees, palms, shrubs, flowers, groundcovers, grasses and vines that are recommended by University of Florida/IFAS horticulture experts. The plants included in the database are available at nurseries throughout Florida.
Check it out
Birds
Just-published study strengthens link between horseshoe crabs and Red Knots
- Conservationists have long argued that the welfare of the shorebird known as the Red Knot -- a small, at-risk, super-long-distance migrant -- is tied to horseshoe-crab populations in Delaware Bay. Now, as Editor Chuck Hagner reports, important research just published in a journal of the Ecological Society of America adds scientific support to that assumption and bolsters the hypothesis that managing horseshoe-crab populations and their harvest may help conserve Red Knots.
Read why declining populations of Red Knots demand emergency listing under the ESA.
Read about islandica Red Knots that breed on Ellesmere Island.
At a wildlife management area in South Florida, efforts to save the endangered red-cockaded woodpecker are under way. Entering the woodlands of the J.W. Corbett Wildlife Management Area, on the outskirts of West Palm Beach, you are apt to hear the rasping song of the red-cockaded woodpecker. The birds chip away at white-barked pine trees, generally older than 65 years, creating cavities the size of golf balls, where they roost and nest.
"The birds are unique among North American woodpeckers as the only species that excavates and uses cavities in old, live pine trees," said Michael Baranski, a biologist with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission. "The vast majority of their habitat has been subjected to pine harvest, due to logging and agriculture, with loss and degradation of its habitat as the primary threat."
Southern Florida is a region that has seen inspiring rebounds in populations of endangered species, reptiles and birds alike. The endangered red-cockaded woodpecker represents the next battleground. The good news: efforts to preserve the birds have yielded results, with populations increasing throughout the species' geographical range across Florida, Alabama, Texas, Georgia, Arkansas, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina and Arkansas.
Read more
Florida Panthers
Panther found dead in Picayune Strand makes 21 in 2011 Wildlife officials found a dead Florida panther in the Belle Meade portion of the Picayune Strand State Forest today, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission reported.
Reports listed the cause of death of the 6-year-old male panther as unknown, but panther biologist Dave Onorato said there were no signs of foul play. Onorato said the panther did not have the typical signs of being in a fight with another panther.
The carcass, found about a half-mile south of Interstate 75 and some six miles east of Collier Boulevard, will undergo a necropsy to try to determine a cause of death.
Scientists estimate as many as 160 panthers, an endangered species, remain in the wild, mostly in Southwest Florida. The panther population has been growing but is running out of room.
So far this year, 21 panthers have been found dead, including one whose skeletal remains indicate it died in 2010. Of the others, seven were killed in collisions with vehicles and four died in fights with other panthers.
Four panther kittens were killed in Big Cypress National Preserve wildfires this summer. The cause of one other death is listed as unknown, and three deaths remain under investigation.
Endangered Species
Environmental battle brews over Port Everglades dredging plan An environmental fight is brewing over plans by Port Everglades to blast and dredge a deeper entrance channel to accommodate the super freighters that are beginning to dominate the world's trade routes.
The $321 million project would deepen the channel to 50 feet from 42 feet, and make other improvements to safely accommodate bigger ships. It would have a dramatic impact on one of the region's busiest economic engines, a port for cruise ships, cargo ships and petroleum tankers that accounts for 10,000 jobs in direct employment and helps diversify a tourism-dependent economy.
But several state and federal environmental agencies say it could also have a dramatic impact on coral reefs, sea grass and endangered species.
The Army Corps of Engineers recently completed its latest draft environmental impact statement, which it declined to make public, saying the completed draft would be released early next year.
Several state and federal agencies that reviewed the draft were sharply critical of it, filing letters this summer that said the Corps understated the likely damage to natural resources. The National Marine Fisheries Service said the destruction of 15 acres of coral reef along the entrance channel would constitute impact on an "unprecedented scale" and threatened to take the issue to the White House Council on Environmental Quality if its concerns were not adequately addressed.
Meanwhile, Port Everglades faces competition from ports along the east coast of the United States, which are racing to dredge deeper accommodations in anticipation of the widening of the Panama Canal.
Read more
Turtle nesting climbs along area coastline; one nest contains eggs of rare species Sea turtle nesting season is on a record-breaking pace. That's the word from Gulf Islands National Seashore officials who had been concerned there might be a decrease in nests in the wake the BP oil spill last year.
The 68 nests counted this year on Santa Rosa Island and Perdido Key top the previous record of 58 nests in 2000, said Andrew Diller, marine biologist with Sea Grant of Escambia County. The recording of sea turtle nests on weekly basis goes back to 1991.
Diller goes on turtle patrol before dawn, counting nests from Johnson Beach to the end of the seashore on Perdido Key. The undeveloped areas of the seashore see the most nests, Diller said.
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USFWS extends emergency protection to rare Fla. butterfly The Obama administration is taking emergency action to provide immediate protection to the Miami blue butterfly, an imperiled coastal butterfly in south Florida. The Fish and Wildlife Service announced the emergency endangered species listing today. The new protections for the butterfly will go into effect tomorrow, when the rule is published in the Federal Register.
The Miami blue butterfly is a small, coastal, non-migratory butterfly endemic to south Florida. It is currently only found on a few small, remote islands within the Florida Keys. It was once found from the Dry Tortugas all the way to St. Petersburg and Daytona.
The federal ruling says an emergency listing is necessary because the butterfly could go extinct waiting for protection under the normal listing time frame. The Center for Biological Diversity first petitioned for federal protection for the butterfly in 2005. The service agreed to move forward with a determination on the butterfly as part of a settlement reached last month with environmentalists over 757 species.
Habitat destruction, accidental harm from humans, loss of genetic diversity and catastrophic events like Hurricane Andrew in 1992 have all led to the decline of the Miami blue, according to the Fish and Wildlife Service. The insect was also harmed when exotic green iguanas found their way to a state park that was once a home to the butterflies and ate the plants on which the butterflies lay their eggs. The delicate insect is also harmed when humans collect it, especially given its small population size and restricted range, according to the service. Many of the new protections in the emergency listing hone in on threats from collection.
The agency decided not to protect critical habitat for the butterfly, arguing that the publication of maps and descriptions of the habitat would do more harm than good by announcing the locations of the insect to potential poachers, collectors and vandals. The agency will also extend "threatened" species protection to three other butterflies that look similar to the Miami blue: the cassis blue, ceraunis blue and nickerbean blue butterflies. The service is issuing a special rule for the butterflies in an effort to prohibit collection and commercial trade of them. The agency said it will not make an effort to limit mowing, pesticide use or vehicle use that could effect the three blue butterflies that are similar in appearance to the Miami blue.
The emergency listing protects the butterfly for 240 days. During that time, the agency will work on a proposed rule to give long-lasting protection to the butterfly, including going through the normal public notice and comment periods.
Agency says it can't afford to put Florida's gopher tortoises on endangered species list Florida's gopher tortoises deserve to be added to the nation's list of endangered and threatened species — but the federal agency in charge said Tuesday that it doesn't have the money to do the job.
"We believe it warrants the protection of the Endangered Species Act," said Cindy Dohner, regional administrator of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service's Atlanta office.
But instead of adding gophers to the endangered list, the federal agency will put it on a waiting list with about 250 other species that are also in a holding pattern. That means there will be no new regulations to protect them or their habitat for at least several years.
The cost of completing the job could run as high as $350,000, federal officials said in a conference call with reporters Tuesday. Instead, they hope to work with private landowners on finding ways to preserve what's left of the tortoise population.
"Bad decision," said Roy "Robin" Lewis, a board member of WildLaw, a nonprofit environmental law firm that had pushed for the listing. "We are considering an appeal."
Homely as a prune, older than the dinosaurs, gopher tortoises were once common throughout the Southeast, thriving in the scrub sandhills, oak hammocks and wiregrass flatwoods. First described by naturalist William Bartram in 1791, gophers were plentiful enough in the days of the Great Depression that hungry Floridians nicknamed them "Hoover chickens."
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Court Rules That Sea Turtles Need Stronger Protections after BP Oil Spill Conservation groups scored a victory in court Tuesday to gain new protections for imperiled sea turtles from death and injury in the Gulf of Mexico bottom longline fishery for grouper, tilefish, and sharks. The U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Florida ruled that the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) violated the law when it failed to adequately protect loggerhead sea turtles from capture and death in the fishery and refused to take a fresh look at the fishery's impact on sea turtles after last year's massive Gulf oil spill. Download the opinion here.
"Sea turtles and oil don't mix, "said Todd Steiner, biologist and executive director of Turtle Island Restoration Network, based in Marin County, California. "If we want sea turtles to survive and recover from the BP spill, we need to stop allowing hundreds to die a cruel inhumane death at the end of baited longline fishing gear."
Thousands of loggerhead hatchlings were displaced and likely perished during the BP Oil spill, while hundreds of adult turtles continued to drown on fishing hooks – a double whammy for the population that nests along the East Coast and in the Gulf of Mexico. The species has declined by 30-40 percent over the past decade and is now pending for listing as endangered under the Endangered Species Act.
"The loggerhead was already in trouble when the BP oil spill hit," said Teri Shore, Program Director at Turtle Island Restoration Network. "A whole generation of hatchlings may have been lost due to the spill while so many nesters have died in fisheries that they are sliding toward extinction. Now the loggerheads might have a chance to recover from this double hit."
In the case decided yesterday, Turtle Island Restoration Network along with Gulf and national conservation groups had challenged the agency's decision to reopen the Gulf bottom longline fishery in 2010 despite finding that it would kill hundreds of loggerheads per year in a turtle population that has experienced a severe nesting decline over the past decade. The fishery was closed down in 2009 for six months after it captured more than 8 times the number of sea turtles authorized by NMFS, but later re-opened without adequate protections for the declining loggerheads.
The court's ruling yesterday highlighted that the NMFS admitted that the oil spill was an "unprecedented" event that has "resulted in adverse effects on [ESA] listed sea turtles," and that "oil spills of the magnitude of the Deepwater Horizon MC252 spill were not considered" in the 2009 biological opinion. Therefore, the court determined, the agency's "failure to reinitiate consultation violated Defendants' continuing duty to assess jeopardy under the implementing regulations of the ESA." (P. 22.) The court also found that NMFS had failed to take a "hard look" at the option of continuing its prior ESA rule, which protected loggerhead sea turtles in a significant part of their Gulf residence area, before deciding what new action to take to regulate the fishery. (P. 25).
Read more
Read the story in the SF Chronicle here
Endangered Leatherbacks Closer to Greater Protection in West Coast Waters Leatherback sea turtles that forage on jellyfish off the U.S. West Coast are closer to getting much-needed protections to help their startlingly dwindling population. On July 5, the Obama administration agreed to a settlement that requires the National Marine Fisheries Service to finalize their critical habitat ruling for endangered Pacific leatherback sea turtles by November 15, 2011. This ruling should provide increased protections to more than 70,000 square miles of Pacific ocean habitat.
Everglades and Water Quality Issues
South Florida Farmers Achieve Record Year in Water Quality Success Farmers in the Everglades Agricultural Area (EAA), south of Lake Okeechobee, achieved a record-setting 79 percent phosphorus reduction in the water leaving the farming region -- more than three times less phosphorus than the state requirement.
The South Florida Water Management District, the agency tasked with Everglades restoration, announced today that the EAA's on-farm Best Management Practices (BMPs), developed by university scientists in collaboration with farmers, are a resounding success. The District praised EAA farmers for being proactive and often implementing more BMPs than what is required.
"We're proud of farmers' accomplishments cleaning water, with an average phosphorus reduction of 55 percent over the last 16 years," said Barbara Miedema, vice president of the Sugar Cane Growers Cooperative. "When the BMP program was first envisioned in 1991, no one imagined it would be this effective over the long term. It's an example of the kind of success that can be achieved in partnership with scientists and farmers, who roll up their sleeves to get the job done."
In addition to improving water quality using high-tech sustainable practices, more than $200 million has been paid by farmers for the construction of Stormwater Treatment Areas (STAs) to further clean water. Built on 60,000 acres of former farmland, the STAs have reduced phosphorus to the Everglades Protection Area by an additional 1,470 metric tons. That's in addition to the 2,400 metric tons of phosphorus removed by farmers.
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Audubon blasts water district for allegedly favoring sugar growers over Everglades The Executive Director of Audubon of Florida has accused the South Florida Water Management District of favoring sugar cane growers over the public water supply and the endangered snail kite when it rationed water from Lake Okeechobee during the current drought.
Because of "excess water withdrawals" for irrigation during the drought, water levels in Lake Okeechobee are in violation of the state water rule meant to protect the the environment and public water supply, Eric Draper, Audubon's executive director wrote in a blunt, 4-page letter Monday.
Draper blamed the violation on the district's decision in May to pump water from the lake to farms in the region.
"The district must equitably distribute available supplies to prevent serious harm to the water resources and avoid putting human health and the public water supply at risk," he wrote. "The restrictions placed on sugarcane irrigation were too late, too little and ultimately ineffective."
The district released a statement saying it "appreciated Audubon's input." The statement added: "These are complex issues that require thoughtful discussions with federal water managers and all stakeholders with an interest in the management of Lake Okeechobee."
A violation of the Minimum Flows and Levels Rule occurs when the lake's level falls below 11 feet for at least 80 days more than once during a six-year period. Monday, with the lake at 10.13 feet above sea level, marked the 80th day.
Barbara Miedema, vice president of the Sugar Cane Growers Cooperative, said tough water restrictions were also imposed on growers, who were ordered to cut their allotted amount of water by 45 percent. In many cases, there was so little water coming from the lake that growers were unable to draw the restricted amount.
Besides irrigation, much of the water that was pumped from the lake was also used to rehydrate stormwater treatment areas, man-made wetlands that clean nutrients from the nutrient-rich water, Miedema said. The district stopped pumping water from the lake last week, after recent rains raised the lake to 10 feet above sea level.
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South Florida's lack of water storage leaves billions of gallons draining out to sea during drought Dumping billions of gallons of water out to sea in the midst of a lingering drought is South Florida's water-supply irony.
Drought concerns quickly can become flooding scares in the course of a summer afternoon downpour because there's not enough water storage in crowded South Florida
About 10 billion gallons of stormwater was drained into the ocean from local flood-control canals during the first two weeks of July, according to the South Florida Water Management District.
That's more than 600 million gallons a day washing away, right on the heels of the driest October-to-June on record.
With emergency landscape watering restrictions still in place, enough stormwater was drained into the ocean during the first half of July to fill more than 15,000 Olympic-sized swimming pools.
South Florida's 2,000 miles of drainage canals and levees were created to protect neighborhoods and farms sitting on what used to be the Everglades from flooding. They are not so good at saving water long-term.
Adding to the problem, proposed reservoirs remain delayed, unfinished or plagued by problems, hampering South Florida's ability to hold onto more water. And there's not enough money — or in some cases, political commitment — to finish them.
"We are trying to retain as much [water] as we can," said Susan Sylvester, district director of operations controls. "In South Florida, we go from one extreme to the other. … Water has been discharged to tide. There's no place to store it."
The farther north and west rain falls, the more water storage options are available for the South Florida Water Management District.
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Corps awards contract for construction of Indian River Lagoon – South C-44 The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Jacksonville District just awarded a contract to build the C-44 Reservoir and Stormwater Treatment Area (RSTA) component of the Indian River Lagoon-South (IRL-S) Everglades restoration project. The Corps awarded the $32,420,192 contract to Phillips & Jordan, Inc., of Knoxville, Tenn.
A chief proponent of the project, U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson (D-FL), secured the funding. "In the past year we've seen two groundbreakings on major restoration projects - and this will be the third," Nelson said. "After decades of delays, we're finally seeing the dream of restoring the 'Glades come true.
"Restoring the Everglades means clean drinking water for all of South Florida," he said. "It also will mean construction jobs."
According to the contractor, 40-50 new jobs will be created and they will make every effort to hire as many local workers as possible. These jobs have a direct economic impact. Economists estimate that indirect, direct and induced economic impact will be 490 jobs the first year of the contract and 310 jobs during the second.
Orlando Ramos-Gines, the Corps' senior project manager, said, "This award is critically important to the people of Florida, the nation and Everglades restoration. One agency can't do it alone though. It took the coordinated effort of many to make this project a reality."
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EAA mining: Palm Beach County leader questions state, federal 'courage' Frustrated with stalled Everglades restoration, Palm Beach County Commission Chairwoman Karen Marcus contends that federal and state officials lack the "courage" to get it done.
One year ago, Palm Beach County imposed a moratorium on new rock mines that were spreading across farmland that environmental groups said may be needed for Everglades restoration.
The county's moratorium is set to expire in August, but efforts to reshape Everglades restoration plans remain on hold and state and federal officials have yet to commit to what additional land in the vast Everglades Agricultural Area may be needed.
Amid the indecision on the future of Everglades restoration, Palm Beach County commissioners on Tuesday opted not to support the tougher regulatory hurdles for new rock mines sought by environmental groups.
Rock mining companies as well as the sugar cane growers that own much of the land in the Everglades Agricultural Area opposed tougher standards for new mines.
Federal and state officials, including the South Florida Water Management District, lack the "courage" to more clearly define what land is needed for restoration and what land could be used for mining, according to Marcus.
"I think they are afraid," Marcus said. "I think they are afraid of the landowners."
The Everglades Agriculture Area includes hundreds of thousands of acres south of Lake Okeechobee, including much of western Palm Beach County.
Water once naturally overflowed the banks of Lake Okeechobee's southern rim, slowly flowing all the way south to Florida Bay – fueling the Everglades' River of Grass.
Decades of draining land to make way for sugar cane and other crops, in what would become the Everglades Agricultural Area, cut off that natural water flow.
Long-term Everglades restoration plans call for building more stormwater storage and treatment facilities in the agricultural area to recreate water flows to hydrate what remains of the Everglades.
But Everglades restoration remains behind schedule after a decade of funding delays and changes in state and federal leadership. That leaves questions about which land in the Everglades Agricultural Area could be needed for water storage and treatment.
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Appeals court faults Palm Beach County for approving mine expansion in agricultural area A rock mine south of Lake Okeechobee can't expand unless operators show that the aggregate they produce will be used for public projects, a requirement the company says it can't meet, the Fourth District Court of Appeals said Wednesday.
In a decision that environmentalists say could affect the future of rock mining in the county's rural western area, the court ruled the 470-acre expansion planned by Bergeron Sand and Rock Mine Aggregates did not meet criteria spelled out in the county's comprehensive plan -- a long-term blueprint for growth and development.
The county's plan requires that the land can only be used for mining if the mined rock is for public road projects, agriculture or water management. The appeals court ruled that the project did not meet those criteria.
In the 6-page ruling, the court said that a Bergeron official conceded that the company had no control over whether rock excavated from the mine would be used for the construction of public highways.
Bergeron and the county have 15 days to ask for a rehearing in the case.
Attorney Tara Duhy, who represents Bergeron, said Wednesday the company was considering its options. "We are looking it over," she said.
Assistant County Attorney Bob Banks said the county was also "looking at the options."
Environmental watchdogs said Wednesday's ruling marked a "huge victory" that could have far reaching effects on other mining projects planned in the county's rural Everglades Agricultural Area.
Environmentalists have argued that mining in the rural area could harm Everglades restoration and pollute the county's water supply.
"Mining in the EAA has been a major Everglades issue for several years now," said Richard Grosso, a pro bono attorney for the Everglades Law Center. "We are obviously happy to win the case, but frustrated that, at every turn in the last several years, the county commission goes and decides against Everglades restoration and for industry. At some point, we are hoping that the county will change its approach in order to start giving the benefit of the doubt to the Everglades."
In all, the environmental groups 1000 Friends of Florida and the Sierra Club have filed legal challenges against three county mining approvals, including the Bergeron expansion. Two cases are still pending.
But lawyers for the groups say this decision could extend far beyond those projects. Owners of other recently approved mines could be forced to show that rock from their projects will be used for public roads, agriculture, and water management, regardless of whether the approvals were challenged in court, they said.
"The county must enforce the language as written," said Attorney Robert Hartsell, with the Everglades Law Center.
Assistant County Attorney Banks said the decision might not be that sweeping. "Every case has slightly different facts," Banks said.
"Mining approvals that weren't challenged can't be overturned", Banks said.
"There were time periods to follow and no one appealed," he said.
Dike Repair Critical All Floridians have been experiencing one of the most severe droughts in recent memory.
Statewide, the extremely dry conditions have contributed to wildfires, environmental stress, crop loss and the tragic loss of life and property. Climatic conditions for South Florida have been especially dire since last fall when rainfall accumulations between October and January were the lowest since records have been kept.
Although recent precipitation has provided some relief, the events of the past few months should remind all of us of just how vulnerable we are to the frequent swings between adequate water supply and water shortage situations. All Floridians need to realize that as our population continues to grow and our demand for water concurrently increases, that fragile balance will continue to be tested.
The water depth in Lake Okeechobee, the liquid heart of all of South Florida's water supply needs, is currently at approximately 10.2 feet. Last year at this same point in time, the depth of the lake was above 14 feet. Based on current projections by the South Florida Water Management District, there is a 65 percent chance that the lake will remain in the "Water Shortage Management Band" throughout this year's rainy season.
While the rainfall deficit has certainly played a large role in the current water shortage situation, I believe that an even larger contributing factor is the fact that the Army Corps of Engineers has been forced to lower the operational stage of the lake because of the uncertainty of the stability of the Herbert Hoover Dike. If not for the instability of the dike, water levels in the lake today would be almost 2 feet higher than they are. Still low in comparison to other years, but a dramatically better scenario than the one we face now.
I believe that repairing the dike is of critical importance to the future water supply needs of all of South Florida. If we are unable to rehabilitate the dike and return the Lake Okeechobee stage operations schedule to one that more closely reflects the schedule prior to discovering that the dike was vulnerable, then we will be in an almost constant state of water shortage for all legal water users.
It is important for all of us to recognize that our access to fresh water is not unlimited. All over Florida, from the Panhandle through the Suwannee River Basin, to the greater Orlando and Tampa Bay regions, we see evidence that our demand and use of fresh water is outpacing the natural system's ability to provide supply.
We owe it to ourselves and future generations to conserve and protect the water supply we do have, and work together cooperatively to identify and fund the development of alternative water supplies to meet our needs into the future.
Adam Putnam
Friends of the Everglades calls on Scott to make polluters pay Earlier this week, a U.S. appeals court rejected an attempt by the state of Florida, sugarcane growers and the South Florida Water Management District to block a federal EPA plan to protect the Everglades from cane farming pollution.
The EPA plan was initially mandated in 2010 by federal District Judge Alan Gold as a result of a lawsuit brought by the environmental group Friends of the Everglades and the Miccosukee Tribe. Now Friends is calling on Gov. Rick Scott to make polluters pay for the damage they do to the Everglades.
Fifteen years ago, a constitutional amendment dubbed the "Polluter Pays" aimed to require that "those in the Everglades Agricultural Area who cause water pollution within the Everglades Protection Area or the Everglades Agricultural Area shall be primarily responsible for paying the costs of the abatement of that pollution." In 1996, it passed with 68.1 percent of the vote.
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Nestlé drops idea of water pumping near Wacissa River Nestlé Waters North America on Wednesday told state officials the company no longer is considering a water-pumping operation along the Wacissa River in Jefferson County.
Nestlé, a global water company which includes bottling operations near Blue Spring in Madison County and near Crystal Springs in Pasco County, said testing of Allen Spring along the Wacissa showed a lack of sufficient flow during droughts. The company had not yet filed for a permit but faced local and regional opposition to the idea of pumping.
"We have shared this data with the Suwannee River Water Management District to support their ongoing assessment of the watershed and informed them that this concludes our exploration of spring sources on the Wacissa River," said Kent Koptiuch, Florida natural resource manager for Nestlé Waters North America.
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Methylmercury an environmental and health issue, Rivers Coalition told Members of the Rivers Coalition, who for years have been fighting pollution of the St. Lucie Estuary and Indian River Lagoon by nutrients such as phosphorus and nitrogen, were told Thursday the South Florida ecosystem may have a more serious public enemy No. 1: methylmercury.
"It's not just an environmental issue," said Melodie Naja, a water quality scientist at the Everglades Foundation, a nonprofit that aims to restore and protect the South Florida ecosystem. "It's a health issue."
Methylmercury is formed when vaporized mercury in the air, primarily from exhaust of coal-fired power plants in Europe and Asia, Naja said, falls into waterways with each rain and combines with sulfur in the sediment below the water.
According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, methylmercury can cause impaired neurological development, specifically in fetuses. It usually doesn't kill directly, but it can cause numbness, weak muscles and impaired speech and hearing.
Naja said methylmercury accumulates in the bodies of organisms that ingest it, so that the higher an animal is on the food chain, the more of the chemical it contains.
Game fish are high on the chain; and heightened levels of methylmercury led the Florida Health Department to issue guidelines on eating fish from the state's lakes, estuaries and coastal waters. The department recommends, for example, that women of child-bearing age and young children eat snook from coastal waters no more than once a month; others should eat snook no more than once a week.
While Naja recognizes "we can't really control the mercury (from overseas)," she said, "we can control the sulfur."
Sulfur is in the fungicides and fertilizers used in the Everglades Agricultural Area, Naja said, and is a main reason water in the Everglades contains 30 to 50 milligrams of sulfur per liter. The target level under the Comprehensive Everglades Restoration Plan is 1 milligram per liter.
Naja didn't have specific sulfur amounts for the St. Lucie Estuary and Indian River Lagoon, but a graphic supplied by the Everglades Foundation indicated levels between 100 and 500 milligrams per liter in some "hot spots" in the estuary.
"It's coming from Lake Okeechobee and from throughout your local watershed, both the urban and agricultural areas," she said.
Appeals court upholds pollution rules A federal appeals court has turned down a bid by utilities, farmers and the South Florida Water Management District to block the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency from imposing new water pollution rules across the state.
The new rules, which have stirred tremendous controversy among businesses and in Congress, are designed to limit the amount of nitrogen and phosphorus now flowing into the state's lakes, rivers, streams, bays and estuaries, causing toxic algae blooms and fish kills.
A coalition of environmental groups sued the EPA for not pushing the state harder to regulate those pollutants, and in 2009 the EPA settled the case by agreeing to come up with new limits. The opponents told the appeals court that the EPA rules are "unreasonable."
The three judges of the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that the opponents didn't have any standing to overturn something the parties to the lawsuit had agreed upon.
David Guest of Earthjustice, which represented the environmental groups, called the decision a win for Florida because "our economy depends on tourism, and nobody wants to come to Florida to look at dead fish and slime-covered water."
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Florida revises water pollution rules The Florida Department of Environmental Protection has released new rules on water pollution standards.They were forced to do so, after the federal government threatened to step in.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency says Florida's regulations are so weak, they've let state waters become choked with algae or algal blooms.
An algal bloom forms from an excess amount of nitrogen and phosphorus. Last week, an algal bloom was spotted at Lake Windermere in Leon County.
"Florida's waters have serious nutrient problems and these problems aren't just for the waters, not just for the fish and aquatic life that live in them, but it affects us," said Linda Young, Director of the Clean Water Network of Florida. "These nutrients cause toxic algal blooms that get into our drinking water."
The EPA is demanding Florida's DEP come up with its own rules, or be prepared for a federal takeover of that responsibility.
So the DEP did just that. They came up with rules to control the amounts of nitrogen and phosphorus allowed in Florida's waters.
"There's a lot of uncertainty with the EPA's rules and how folks will be affected with those rules," said Drew Bartlett with the DEP, "and so what we're trying to do is provide that certainty so a municipality who's collecting people's waste knows exactly what's going to happen."
The DEP on Wednesday held a workshop in Tallahassee to get input from the public.
Business interests had been worried about the EPA's rules, saying it would cost billions to implement.
But business groups appear to be more receptive to the state's proposed rules, saying it's a more realistic approach than the federal guidelines.
Still environmentalists are concerned. "Florida has taken EPA's already very flawed rule and inadequate rule and adding several more layers of loopholes," said Young.
If the EPA finds the new state rules unacceptable, they can still implement their own standards.
With the input gained at Wednesday's workshop and future workshops, the DEP will look at revising its draft rules.
Wildlife and Habitat
Sanibel bear goes honey hunting David Curtis still remembers those old yogi bear cartoons. But turns out, Yogi isn't the only bear who loves honey. Just go to Sanibel.
David's bee hives are ripped apart, with all the honey taken out. Even his water barrels are knocked over to perfect slurping position.
"I couldn't believe it. How does a bear get over on Sanibel? Does he hitch-hike across the causeway?"
"This is his grocery store. He don't [sic] have to look for anything else."
"You can even see scratch marks on some of the hives. Here's where he thinks the bear ripped this one apart."
David says all this damage is going to cost him $20,000 dollars in lost honey, equipment, and bees. He can't set up bear traps, because the animals are protected under state and federal laws.
This is like having a business in Fort Myers and somebody breaks in, and you catch them breaking into to it and you can't do anything about it.
All he can do is hope this bear starts getting his snacks somewhere else.
Global Warming and Climate Change
Counsel says Florida vulnerable to diseases linked to climate change Florida may be especially vulnerable diseases linked to climate change. As Sascha Cordner reports, experts from the Natural Resources Defense Council have just unveiled a new web tool that will show how climate change can affect people's health across the nation, particularly in the Southern region of the U.S.
Kim Knowlton, a senior scientist at the NRDC's Health and Environmental Program, says the web tool called "Climate Change Threatens Health" has five U-S maps. That lets people explore how climate change might make today's health threats even worse.
"Across the South climate change can lead to increased threats of for example, dengue fever and other mosquito-borne diseases, worse in droughts, floods, and air pollution health threats. For example, the web pages show that 47-percent of states mainly in the South and Southeast are vulnerable to the spread of dengue fever."
Of the 24 states most vulnerable to dengue fever, only 12-percent have climate change adaptation plans that specifically address infectious diseases. That includes Florida. Knowlton says all states should be working on having a Climate Change Adaptation Plan.
Rising estimates of rising sea level The new Florida Climate Institute is becoming fully operational and more and more useful. For example, they just released a very readable report from USF Professor Gary T. Mitchum on "Sea Level Changes in the Southeastern United States: Past, Present, and Future." Based on new studies in recent years, Mitchum concludes:
I will suggest that the best projection of the future is about 80 centimeters of global sea level increase by 2100, an increase we need to plan for in our region. This is somewhat larger than the most recent global assessment from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, but I will argue that it is likely our present best guess. Unfortunately, the uncertainties in these analyses lead me to conclude that the probability of a larger increase is more likely than the chance that it will be substantially smaller.
How much does that amount of sea level rise matter? Well, about 8,000 square kilometers of Florida (about 4,900 square miles) is less than one meter above sea level. A sea level rise of 80 centimeters, or a bit more, would submerge about 8% of Florida. Keep in mind, too, that the coastal area still above water would become much more vulnerable to tropical storm flooding.
Climate-altering pollution makes South Florida one of top most vulnerable areas in country to flooding South Florida can't afford to ignore growing dangers from pollution-fueled climate change, according to new findings from the Natural Resources Defense Council.
Rising seas, more flooding from storm surge and saltwater seeping in and fouling drinking water supplies are among the looming threats from climate-altering pollution, according to the environmental group's nationwide review released Tuesday.
South Florida, and Miami in particular, is one of the most vulnerable parts of the country, and local governments need to play a larger role in dealing with the damaging effects of climate change, according to the NRDC.
"Ideological deniers of climate change debate facts, [but] cities don't have that luxury," said Dan Lashoff, director of the NRDC's climate center. "Plan, prepare and act. The sooner the better."
What causes climate change?
Manmade air pollution adds to the carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases in the Earth's atmosphere that trap heat from the sun.
Increased levels of greenhouse gases are leading to higher temperatures, melting ice sheets and swelling oceans, resulting in rising sea levels.
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Earth's Climate History: Implications for Tomorrow by Jim Hansen The past is the key to the future. Contrary to popular belief, climate models are not the principal basis for assessing human-made climate effects. Our most precise knowledge comes from Earth's Paleoclimate, its ancient climate, and how it responded to past changes of climate forcings, including atmospheric composition. Our second essential source of information is provided by global observations today, especially satellite observations, which reveal how the climate system is responding to rapid human-made changes of atmospheric composition, especially atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO
Paleoclimate data yield our best assessment of climate sensitivity, which is the eventual global temperature change in response to a specified climate forcing. A climate forcing is an imposed change of Earth's energy balance, as may be caused, for example, by a change of the sun's brightness or a human-made change of atmospheric CO
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Watch a slide show on the effects of climate change and sea level rise in Florida
Energy
Audubon calls for three-year wind farm delay Audubon of Florida on Monday raised new concerns about a proposed wind farm that environmentalists contend poses a risk to migrating birds.
Missouri-based Wind Capital Group proposes building 80 towering wind turbines across 16,000 acres of sugar cane land near Belle Glade that was once part of the Everglades.
While offering an environmentally-friendly alternative energy source the tall towers and fast spinning blades also pose hazards for birds flying between Lake Okeechobee and the Everglades.
Audubon on Monday called for at least three years of study to determine the potential environmental effects of the towers, before building any turbines.
According to Audubon, that should include radar studies to better understand the nighttime flight patterns of birds as well as the potential effects on bats.
Audubon also wants to ensure that building the towers spread across a wide swath of farmland doesn't tie up land that could be targeted for building the stormwater storage and treatment areas envisioned for Everglades restoration.
"Audubon strongly supports wind as an alternative to carbon-based fuels. However, we also must ensure that facilities are appropriately sited and do not cause unacceptable collateral impacts to birds and other wildlife," according to a letter Audubon of Florida sent Monday to the wind farm project backers.
The current environmental monitoring protocols do not "provide sufficient rigor to adequately predict future impacts of this proposal," according to Audubon.
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PSC chairman: Nuclear remains big part of state's energy future Despite Progress Energy's broken nuclear plant and questions of whether the utility ever will build a second reactor, the chairman of the state Public Service Commission touts nuclear power as a critical source for Florida's future.
Speaking to the St. Petersburg Times editorial board Tuesday, Art Graham said he believes nuclear power remains the least expensive way to generate electricity. He said the problems that have arisen with nuclear plants should not stop future development of reactors.
"I think the biggest mistake we made when Three Mile Island happened was that we turned and ran from it," said Graham, referring to the 1979 meltdown at the nuclear plant near Harrisburg, Pa.
Graham was in the Tampa Bay area with state Public Counsel J.R. Kelly on Tuesday visiting a TECO power station in Polk County. It was an educational site visit of a coal plant that is one of just three in the nation to take coal and turn it into gas to produce electricity — referred to as a type of "clean coal."
Graham, a PSC commissioner since July 2010 and chairman since October, asked the Public Counsel's Office to attend the TECO visit. On Friday, the Sun-Sentinel newspaper in South Florida reported that Graham and another state regulator met with utility representatives without the public counsel.
State law prohibits regulators from meeting with utility representatives and discussing pending issues before the PSC without the presence of the public counsel or appropriate official. The PSC says the meeting was a "meet and greet" and they did not discuss pending matters.
While praising the coal technology, Graham said the state's nuclear power sources have proved to be clean and more efficient.
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Two years ago, the Sunshine State seemed poised to assume its natural role as a national leader in renewable energy. Then-Gov. Charlie Crist touted a plan for 20 percent of the energy generated in the state to come from renewable sources such as solar by 2020.
After wide praise, the effort died in the 2009 Legislative session — and every year since.
Now, instead of emerging as a leader, Florida lags behind 29 other states — including such places as New Jersey — in developing a renewable energy policy.
"Florida should lead the way," Crist said in a recent interview. "It's going to take leadership. It always takes leadership."
Actually, the problem is bigger than that.
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Progress Energy, Florida Power & Light no longer required to expand energy conservation programs State regulators set the clock back on energy conservation in Florida on Tuesday by reversing a rule that would have required Progress Energy Florida and Florida Power & Light to encourage customers to use less electricity.
Their argument: Saving money for some was going to require higher bills for everyone.
The Public Service Commission agreed, so they voted to ignore a 2008 law that required utilities to expand their existing conservation programs.
Under the 2009 rules, all customers would pay more for the additional energy conservation programs. Progress Energy customers would pay an estimated $6.24 more per month this year and up to $16.52 more in 2014. FPL customers would have paid an additional $3.70 a month this year and up to $4.11 in 2014, according to PSC staff estimates based on average residential usage.
The commission adopted the standards in 2009, but Progress Energy and other companies had challenged them in the past year.
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FPL to demolish and replace landmark power plant The red-striped smokestacks that tower over Port Everglades will crash to the ground in 2013 under a plan by Florida Power & Light to modernize an old, heavily polluting power plant.The company said Monday it would invest $1 billion to demolish the plant and replace it with a more efficient one that will generate more electricity while reducing air pollution emissions by more than 90 percent. The construction work will generate 650 jobs, assuming the project wins regulatory approval and goes forward.
The potential impact on electricity bills is unclear. The Florida Public Service Commission, which regulates FPL, has in the past allowed the company to pass on to customers the cost of power-generation projects.
FPL spokesman Neil Nissan said any change in rates would not take place until the plant goes into operation in 2016. He said it is too soon to know the short-term impact on rates. But he said the new plant's increased efficiency would yield a net savings of $400 million for customers over its projected 30-year life.
"Modernizing our Port Everglades facility makes the best sense for continuing to meet our generation needs, while offering many benefits to FPL customers," he said.
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PSC may approve Progress Energy plan that fails to meet conservation goals Florida Public Service Commission staff is recommending approval of a conservation plan submitted by Progress Energy even though it fails to meet energy conservation goals established by the PSC in 2009.
The state's seven largest investor-owned and municipal utilities have submitted "demand side management" plans as required by the Legislature in 2008 under the Florida Energy Efficiency and Conservation Act (FEECA).
Aides to Gov. Rick Scott raised concerns about energy costs and conservation during a June 23 meeting with about 40 energy issue stakeholders, according to some who attended the meeting. The governor's office, with former PSC Executive Director Mary Bane serving as an energy advisor, is coming up with a packet of legislation by September.
The PSC on July 26 will consider revised plans submitted by Florida Power & Light Co. and Progress Energy after the commission rejected their plans earlier because they failed to meet the conservation goals.
PSC staff is recommending approval of an alternative plan submitted by Progress Energy because of concerns about the cost to the utility's 1.6 million customers.
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FPL seeks rate increase for nuclear expansion that opponents say may never come Against a backdrop of Japan's Fukushima nuclear plant disaster and fears about the stability of the U.S. economy, Florida utility regulators are considering an expansion of nuclear power in the state and how much of the bill will be shouldered by rate payers.
The Florida Public Service Commission on Wednesday began considering proposals from Florida Power & Light and Progress Energy that would allow them to pass about $355 million in nuclear energy-related costs to customers.
Juno Beach-based FPL is asking for about $196 million next year to help upgrade nuclear plants in St. Lucie and Miami-Dade counties and to move forward on a plan to build two new reactors at the Miami-Dade site known as "Turkey Point."
That would amount to about $2.09 a month for 1,000 kilowatt hours of residential electricity use, beginning Jan. 1. That's up from the 33 cents a month that the PSC last year authorized FPL to collect this year.
The company must seek state approval each year to charge ratepayers for anticipated costs for the projects in the following year.
FPL estimates the total cost of the improvements and new reactors will be between $13 billion and $19 billion.
In their analysis, regulators must consider whether the possibility of a second U.S. recession and the fall-out from the Fukushima disaster on the federal nuclear regulatory scheme might make the price tag even more expensive for projects that may never be built, something lawyers for consumers argued on Wednesday.
But FPL consultant Nils Diaz, a former chairman of the NRC, assured the panel that federal regulatory modifications sparked by the Japanese disaster will likely have little impact on FPL's projects in the long run.
"I expect the NRC will debate safety enhancements without radically changing" the regulatory framework, he said. "I do not expect there to be any impediments to FPL receiving a combined license arising out of the Fukushima safety reviews."
Originally slated to begin operating in 2018, FPL's new nuclear reactors are at least three years behind schedule and more than $700 million more expensive than originally estimated.
And FPL has yet to apply for licenses for the new reactors from the federal Nuclear Regulatory Commission, argued Vicki Gordon Kaufman, an attorney representing the Florida Industrial Power Users Group.
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Land Conservation
Obama administration to announce $100 million for Everglades restoration The Obama administration will announce today that it's spending $100 million buying development rights from Central Florida ranchers and farmers to aid wetland restoration on nearly 24,000 acres in the Northern Everglades.
By purchasing the rights, the government prevents the ranchers from paving over the land — and also clears the way for restoring the wetlands that once carpeted the landscape.
Restoring the wetlands would slow the flow of nutrient pollution now pouring into Lake Okeechobee — pollution that turned a popular fishing spot into what one government official described as "a chocolate mess."
The lake is 730 square miles in size but only 9 feet deep, and some of the bottom has 3 feet of nutrient-packed ooze.
This is the largest single conservation outlay the U.S. Department of Agriculture has ever made to a single state, according to USDA officials.
In an interview Wednesday, Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack said that by reviving historic wetlands, the money would help create new habitat for wildlife, aiding in the promotion of Florida tourism.
The announcement is part of an increasing shift by the Obama administration to focus on the headwaters of the River of Grass — the area stretching from the suburbs of Orlando to the shores of Lake Okeechobee — rather than just on the Everglades.
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State mitigation project comes as a surprise An environmental mitigation project that came as a surprise to many Upper Keys residents spawned several phone calls and emails to County Commissioner Sylvia Murphy's office last week.
Many wanted to know about the construction activity at the rectangular quarry next to Tavernier's Dove Lake.
It turns out that contractors for the Florida Department of Environmental Protection are removing exotic vegetation on the state-owned land in order to restore 1.4 acres of mangrove habitat at the south end of the 25-foot deep pit. The pit also will be filled.
The $183,835 project was required of the Florida Department of Transportation to make up for habitat loss caused by a major road construction project 93 miles away.
"In order to mitigate the full reconstruction of North Roosevelt Blvd. in Key West, the quarry will be filled to 6 feet," Brian Rick, a spokesman for FDOT, wrote in an email to the Free Press.
Rick said he expected the project to be complete by Aug. 21.
The project contractor is Earth Tech Enterprises Inc. of Naples. The work is being overseen by C3TS Inc. of Coral Gables.
To minimize the project's impact on surrounding areas, a staked silt fence has been erected on land and a turbidity barrier installed in adjacent waters, Rick said. Erosion and water quality protection measures are spelled out in the permits and are being closely monitored, he added.
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Burden of proof on environmentalists opposed to Farmton at upcoming hearing Attorneys for Volusia County and the Miami Corp. head back to court next week for another hearing in DeLand on whether the company's plans for its land in Southern Volusia violate the county's comprehensive land use plan.
But this time, instead of defending the plan, attorneys say the burden has shifted to the challengers -- the Sierra Club and Edgewater resident Barbara Herrin -- to prove the company's Farmton Local Plan violates the intent of the county's land use plan.
A key, surprise witness is expected to testify in behalf of Sierra and Herrin, Thomas Pelham, former secretary of the Florida Department of Community Affairs.
Pelham has asked the state Ethics Commission for an advisory opinion on whether he can testify. The question is on the agenda for the commission's meeting Friday morning in Tallahassee. Pelham's letter to the commission did not specify which administrative hearing he wanted to testify in, but he has been listed as a potential witness in the Farmton case.
State law prohibits Pelham from testifying as an expert in any administrative hearings where his former department is a party to the hearing. The department is not a party to this case but could be asked to adopt the judge's findings afterward if the judge finds the county in compliance. In his letter to the commission, Pelham states that "in an abundance of caution," he's seeking an advisory opinion.
Pelham, who could not be reached for comment, resigned as secretary when Gov. Rick Scott took office in January. Scott appointed Billy Buzzett to replace Pelham.
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Changes in Lee-Collier rock mining plans sidetrack federal environmental review Foes of a cluster of rock mines planned near the Collier-Lee county line took heart last year when federal permitters announced plans for an in-depth environmental review.
So far, though, the four proposed mines targeted by that review have escaped the so-called regional Environmental Impact Statement, or EIS.
A second EIS planned for two mines on the edge of Golden Gate Estates in rural Collier County has yet to get off the ground amid questions about whether those mines will require federal Clean Water Act permits.
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers determined last year that all six mines taken together would have significant enough effects on wetlands and endangered species, such as the Florida panther and wood stork, to warrant the closer look in an EIS.
'Since then, only one of the mines along the county line still is proceeding through the corps permitting process, corps project manager Lauren Diaz said last week.
With just one mine actively seeking permits, it removes the need for the broader EIS review,
The corps determined that the Lost Grove mine, west of Immokalee on the Collier side of the county line, wouldn't need a Clean Water Act permit because it won't affect wetlands protected by the law.
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Miscellaneous
Big Kill on Collier Beaches Dead and living fish and other sea life that should be offshore showed up along Collier County beaches from Seagate to Wiggins Pass.
At the same time, water along the beaches was very dark, county biologist Maura Kraus said.
"There were all kinds of reef fish, little sharks, spiny lobsters, all different species of crab, skates, rays, eels, frogfish, batfish, a plethora of fish," Kraus said. "Everything in the water was alive. A lot of the stuff on land was alive. We don't know what it is."
Among dead fish were small bonnethead sharks, which were sent to scientists at Florida Gulf Coast University for toxicological analysis.
Environmental specialist Rhonda Watkins took water samples and determined that there was no dissolved oxygen in the dark water...
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Abandoned barge becomes Intracoastal reef north of Southern Boulevard A rusty work barge that sat partly submerged on the bottom of the Lake Worth Lagoon off Lake Worth for more than a year became an artificial reef Monday in the inshore waters near Palm Beach's Everglades Island.
Two bright yellow boats from Sea Tow Services of the Palm Beaches towed the 87-foot barge north from Lake Worth's Bryant Park Monday to the artificial reef site east of the Intracoastal Waterway channel and north of Southern Boulevard. The Sea Tow boats held the barge in place while workers pumped in water to make it sink into a 20-foot-deep hole.
As the barge filled with water, men began to scramble to get off the deck at 10:43 a.m. The rusty steel vessel began listing to its port side, then slipped below the surface at 10:44 a.m., shooting up spouts of water and sending bubbles to the surface on the way down.
"It was an eyesore, and we needed to get rid of it," said Joseph Kroll, Lake Worth's public services director, who has been working to move the barge out of the waters near Byrant Park since a sea wall contractor left it behind and went out of business about 18 months ago.
Kroll said the city is working to recover the $16,000 cost of cleaning and towing the barge from the contractor and the bond company that guaranteed the sea wall work.
On the bottom of the Lake Worth Lagoon, the barge --- located east of Dyer Road in West Palm Beach and southwest of Everglades Island --- will become a habitat for fish and other marine life.
The barge is part of the Everglades Island Inshore Artificial Reef created by Palm Beach County's Department of Environmental Resources Management. County environmental officials placed 1,100 tons of concrete, remnants of the old U.S. 1 bridge over the Loxahatchee River in Jupiter, at the artificial reef site in
April.
Before the barge was dropped into the hole, nothing was on the bottom there except mud and sand, said Brock Stanaland, a senior environmental analyst with Palm Beach County. Fish will use the barge for shelter, and the hard surface it provides will become encrusted with marine organisms.
"The mangrove snappers ought to be delighted," Stanaland said.
IN MEMORIAM
Sally Lyons Brown, Joseph LaPore, Max Norton, Bill Harris
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