Enviros say kill dedesignation bill
BY ANN HENSON
Citizen Staff
Environmentalists have
engaged a full-court press to block the passage of the bill that would
take the Florida Keys out of its 30-year designation as an Area of
Critical State Concern.
State Rep. Ken Sorensen,
R-Key Largo, who authored the House bill, is pressing equally as hard
for the bill's passage, in part by discrediting the environmentalists.
"If this bill passes, we
will kill a cottage industry and Ms. [Debra] Harrison will have to find
another place to work," Sorensen said to members of the Senate Community
Affairs Committee, which heard and passed the bill with a 7-0 vote March
16.
Harrison, on behalf of
the World Wildlife Fund, and 14 other environmental agencies also sent a
letter to legislators urging the bill be killed.
The other agencies make
up a Who's Who of the environmentalist world, including Audubon, The
Ocean Conservancy and the Sierra Club.
"In the 30 years since
the designation, little significant progress has been made on these
issues" of water quality, loss of habitat and lack of affordable
housing, the letter says. The Keys, the letter says, is visited by
millions of people around the world and requires special state oversight
along with the benefits that go with the designation.
Some legislators and
state officials apparently are concerned.
House Bill 1299 and
Senate Bill 2098 remove the designation, but allows it to maintain the
perks the designation affords for several years.
Under the designation,
the governor and Cabinet approve all Keys growth management measures and
annually review the county's progress in meeting state-set goals to
improve water quality, provide affordable housing, protect the
environment and ensure adequate hurricane evacuation.
The state took control in
1974 because Keys politicians had succumbed to pressure from developers.
The County Commission supports the dedesignation bill.
During the Senate
committee meeting, state Sen. Steven Geller, D-Hallandale Beach, asked
environmentalists who opposed the bill if it could be fixed.
"I could vote no in
committee or vote yes and hope it gets fixed," Geller said.
He eventually voted to
approve the bill. He did not return phone calls or an e-mail for
comment.
State Sen. Charlie Clary,
R-Destin, said he wished a representative from the governor's staff
would have testified on behalf of the bill.
"It is critical that we
understand where they are on the bill and the issue," he told the
committee. "It would be helpful to hear from them directly."
The bill's Senate
sponsor, Mike Bennett, R-Bradenton, said he has spoken to them.
"Everyone on this
committee will get another look or two," Bennett said. "But we will make
sure we have testimony from the governor's office."
Sorensen told the group
he came out of retirement seven years ago to run for state
representative specifically to get the county out of the critical
concern designation.
He said he had to
convince the cities and county to accomplish the state-set goals to
clean up the nearshore water, provide affordable housing, protect
habitat for environmentally endangered species and maintain hurricane
evacuation clearance time at or less than 24 hours. In return, he
promised he would work to bring in money rather than asking residents to
fund what Sorensen estimated to be an $80 billion price tag.
"This bill is a result of
working with the governor, staff" and Department of Community Affairs (DCA),
he said. Term limits make this Sorensen's last year in the Legislature.
Sorensen told the Senate
committee that all state departments were on board with the amendment.
But on March 21, one day
before the committee meeting and after Harrison met with the Department
of Environmental Protection's secretary, "DEP showed up and said 'I have
concerns,' " he said.
On Monday, Anthony
DeLuise, press secretary for the DEP, said that Secretary Colleen
Castille is now comfortable that the bill "is being drafted in the
direction of previous agreements for habitat protection and water
quality improvements."
One of the amendments may
have appeased Castille.
The DEP will continue to
review comprehensive plans and any amendments to make sure they meet
state standards, said Tracy Suber, DEP planning administrator. The
department will take into consideration local conditions, such as
environmental concerns.
"If the bill passes,
there will be two additional conditions specific to the Florida Keys
area," Suber added.
She said one factor
relates to capital facilities planning for wastewater system
improvements and the other is maintaining the hurricane evacuation time
at or below 24 hours.
"The way the legislation
is crafted, it would only apply to the Keys," she said.
The bill has several
stops to make before passage.
The Senate bill passed
the Community Affairs Committee and was handed off to the Environmental
Preservation Committee on March 22. The bill must go through the
Judiciary, Government Efficiency Appropriations and Transportation and
Economic Development Appropriations committees.
On the House side, the
bill passed the Local Government Council by an 8-0 vote and is now in
the Fiscal Council. Sorensen's staff did not return phone calls to
advise what other committees, if any, the bill must pass.
ahenson@keysnews.com
Environmental
groups opposing de-designation as of March 29:
|
1000 Friends of Florida |
Florida Keys Citizens Coalition |
|
Audubon of Florida |
Florida Wildlife Federation |
|
Clean Water Action |
Last Stand |
|
Collier County Audubon Society |
The Ocean Conservancy |
|
Conservancy of Southwest Florida |
Sierra Club |
|
Environmental and Land Use Law Center |
Tropical Audubon of Florida |
|
Everglades Foundation |
World Wildlife Fund |
|
Everglades Trust |
Friends of the Everglades |
|
Reef Relief |
Big Pine Key Civic Association |
|
Upper Keys Citizens Association |
Izaak Walton League, Florida Keys Chapter |
|
Tavernier Community Association |
Florida Public Interest Research Group |
|
Marathon Fishing Guides Association |
Kids for Keys |
| Key Deer
Protection Alliance |
|
|
