1 www.florida.sierraclub.org/sarasota Sept. 2015 Manatee-Sarasota Group Boca Not blind opposition to progress, but opposition to blind progress I n a victory for the protection of coastal mangrove wetlands, Sierra Club and other groups successfully challenged the Southwest Florida Water Management District issuance of a permit to fill mangroves as an Ad- ministrative Law Judge issued an order recommending denial of the permit. The petition for and administrative hearing was filed by Joe McClash, The Florida Institute for Saltwater Heritage (F.I.S.H.) and Manasota 88. The Manatee-Sara- sota Sierra Club filed a motion to intervene as did the Suncoast Waterkeeper. “We are all gratified that Florida statutes to protect coastal wetlands and Outstanding Florida Waters such as Anna Maria Sound have been upheld. Our marine environment is a priceless resource for the people and the economy of Manatee County,” said Sandra Ripberg- er, chair of the Manatee County conservation committee for the Sierra Club. Attorney Ralf Brooks represented the Sierra Club “We agree with the findings and conclusions of the Admin- istrative Law Judge. It is important to preserve these mature mangrove wetlands on site because they provide natural storm protection, prevent erosion and provide important habitat for wildlife here in Anna Maria Sound near the historic fishing village of Cortez. It is important to protect our remaining mangrove wetlands as valuable natural resources especially in aquatic preserves and outstanding Florida waters.” Administrative Law Judge Bram D. E. Canter found the “proposed project is not clearly in the public interest because it would cause significant adverse cumulative ef- fects on the conservation of fish and wildlife, fishing and recreational values, and marine productivity of Anna Maria Sound.” Judge Canter noted in his Order that the proposed wetland filling of mangroves “resembles the kind of project that was common in the 1960s and 1970s in Flor- ida, before the enactment of environmental regulatory programs, when high-quality wetlands were destroyed by dredging and filling to create land for residential development. In all the reported DOAH cases involving ERPs and mitigation of wetland impacts, the circum- stances have involved impaired wetlands and/or the restoration or permanent protection of other wetlands on the project site. Successful Challenge to Harbor Sound Permit Successful Challenge continued on page 5 What: Manatee-Sarasota Group Meeting When: Thursday, September 10, 7 p.m. Where: Sarasota Garden Club, 1131 Blvd. of the Arts O ur September 10, meeting will feature a presenta- tion by Cris Costello, Sierra Club Senior Organizing Rep- resentative on Sierra’s ongoing battle to eliminate point and non- point sources of fertilizer, sewage and animal manure pollution in all of Florida’s waters and to restore the Everglades. It is common to think of the fight against the sugar industry when considering Everglade’s restoration. But in truth, no mat- ter where you live in Florida, Big Sugar has a stranglehold on you (whether you realize it or not). After the November 2014 elections, the South Florida Water Management Dis- trict Governing Board’s refusal this spring to address the dire need for restoration land acquisition south of Lake Okeechobee, and the 2015 Florida Legislative sessions (including the Amendment 1 debacle), it has become crystal clear that Florida’s decision makers are putting the demands of Big Sugar ahead of their mandate to provide clean water to Florida’s citizens. Big Sugar rules Florida (for now). During this presentation we will take a look at the indus- try’s impact on Florida and its citizens and consider how we may tackle the problem in a new and more productive way. Be pre- pared to join the conversation! Bring a snack to share during social time. -Gerry Swormstedt No Sugar-Coating Here: What has Big Sugar Done to You Lately?
Transcript
1 www.florida.sierraclub.org/sarasota
Sept. 2015
Manatee-Sarasota Group
BocaNot blind opposition to progress, but opposition to blind progress
In a victory for the protection of coastal mangrove wetlands, Sierra Club and other groups successfully
challenged the Southwest Florida Water Management District issuance of a permit to fill mangroves as an Ad-ministrative Law Judge issued an order recommending denial of the permit.
The petition for and administrative hearing was filed by Joe McClash, The Florida Institute for Saltwater Heritage (F.I.S.H.) and Manasota 88. The Manatee-Sara-sota Sierra Club filed a motion to intervene as did the Suncoast Waterkeeper.
“We are all gratified that Florida statutes to protect coastal wetlands and Outstanding Florida Waters such as Anna Maria Sound have been upheld. Our marine environment is a priceless resource for the people and the economy of Manatee County,” said Sandra Ripberg-er, chair of the Manatee County conservation committee for the Sierra Club.
Attorney Ralf Brooks represented the Sierra Club “We agree with the findings and conclusions of the Admin-istrative Law Judge. It is important to preserve these mature mangrove wetlands on site because they provide natural storm protection, prevent erosion and provide
important habitat for wildlife here in Anna Maria Sound near the historic fishing village of Cortez. It is important to protect our remaining mangrove wetlands as valuable natural resources especially in aquatic preserves and outstanding Florida waters.”
Administrative Law Judge Bram D. E. Canter found the “proposed project is not clearly in the public interest because it would cause significant adverse cumulative ef-fects on the conservation of fish and wildlife, fishing and recreational values, and marine productivity of Anna Maria Sound.”
Judge Canter noted in his Order that the proposed wetland filling of mangroves “resembles the kind of project that was common in the 1960s and 1970s in Flor-ida, before the enactment of environmental regulatory programs, when high-quality wetlands were destroyed by dredging and filling to create land for residential development. In all the reported DOAH cases involving ERPs and mitigation of wetland impacts, the circum-stances have involved impaired wetlands and/or the restoration or permanent protection of other wetlands on the project site.
Successful Challenge to Harbor Sound Permit
Successful Challenge continued on page 5
What: Manatee-Sarasota Group MeetingWhen: Thursday, September 10, 7 p.m. Where: Sarasota Garden Club, 1131 Blvd. of the Arts
Our September 10, meeting will feature a presenta-tion by Cris Costello, Sierra
Club Senior Organizing Rep-resentative on Sierra’s ongoing battle to eliminate point and non-point sources of fertilizer, sewage and animal manure pollution in all of Florida’s waters and to restore the Everglades.
It is common to think of the fight against the sugar industry when considering Everglade’s restoration. But in truth, no mat-ter where you live in Florida, Big Sugar has a stranglehold on you (whether you realize it or not).
After the November 2014
elections, the South Florida Water Management Dis-trict Governing Board’s refusal this spring to address the dire need for restoration land acquisition south of Lake Okeechobee, and the 2015 Florida Legislative sessions (including the Amendment 1 debacle), it has
become crystal clear that Florida’s decision makers are putting the demands of Big Sugar ahead of their mandate to provide clean water to Florida’s citizens.
Big Sugar rules Florida (for now). During this presentation we will take a look at the indus-try’s impact on Florida and its citizens and consider how we may tackle the problem in a new and more productive way. Be pre-pared to join the conversation!
Bring a snack to share during social time.
-Gerry Swormstedt
No Sugar-Coating Here: What has Big Sugar Done to You Lately?
2 www.florida.sierraclub.org/sarasota
Boca Sierra Vol. XLIII Issue 9This newsletter is published monthly by the Manatee-Sarasota Group of the Florida Chapter of the Sierra Club. The intent is to inform members and interested individuals of local activities and national environmental issues. Members of the Sierra Club sub-scribe to Boca Sierra through their annual dues. Non-member subscriptions are avail-able for $6 annually.
Sarasota Conservation CommitteeTuesday, September 1, 3:30–5 p.m. Selby Library’s conference room, 1331 1st Street. Please join us to discuss Sarasota’s environmental issues. Contact Andre Mele at 914-204-0030 or [email protected]
Manatee Conservation CommitteeMonday, September 14, 1:30–3:30 p.m. Join us at Bradenton Central Library, 1301 Barcarrota Blvd. Help us contribute to sound environmental policy in Manatee County. Join us and/or contact Sandra Ripberger at 941-794-3878 or [email protected]
2015 Executive CommitteeGroup Chair: Linda T. Jones, 941-358-3249, [email protected]
Executive Committee meetings are held once a month. For details about date and time, contact Linda T. Jones, Chair.
Not a member? Join Sierra Club TodayAct now and become a member of Sierra Club! By joining you’ll support vital environmental advocacy, receive three publications, and gain access
to local outings, members-only adventures, and other rewards. More at: http://tioga.sierraclub.org/joinorgive/member3.htm
Help Sierra Save Money!Want to help save local Sierra dollars, ease the burden on volunteers,
conserve trees, and receive the newsletter faster and in color? Just follow the steps below to be switched from the paper copy mailing list to the electronic mailing list.
1. Type or copy this address into your browser: http://lists.sierraclub.org/archives/FLORIDA-M-S-GROUP-NEWS.html2. On the next screen type your name and email in appropriate boxes. 3. Click on the Subscribe (Florida M-S Group News) button.
Newsletter Mailout Help NeededWe need volunteers to help prepare the Boca for mailing.
It’s Thursday, September 17th at 6 p.m. For details, contact Lynn Nilssen at [email protected]
Join Sierra Club’s New Meetup Group!Become a member and receive information
on all meetings, outings, and actions etc. Check it out by visiting
Nominations Needed for Executive CommitteeManatee-Sarasota Sierra Club invites people to nominate themselves
or others to serve on the group’s Executive Committee. The committee meets monthly to plan events and discuss responses to regional environ-mental issues. Please send nominations to Peggy Dessaint, Chair of the
Sierra Club Florida Statement on Release of the Clean Power Plan
TAMPA, Fla. – On August 3rd, the EPA and the Obama Administra-tion released the final version of the landmark Clean Power Plan.
In response, Sierra Club Florida Staff Director Frank Jackalone released the following statement:
“Floridians stand to benefit immensely from the Clean Power Plan. Florida’s air will be healthier with less dirty emissions, and our economy stronger thanks to the addition of tens of thousands of jobs installing solar panels and energy savings retrofits to our homes and businesses.
Clean Power Plan continued on page 6
3 www.florida.sierraclub.org/sarasota
Sept. 2015
Annual Pine Lilly HikeSaturday, September 26, morning hike. Come join us for our annual 8 to 10 mile brisk prairie hike looking for Pine Lilies (lilium catesbaei). Limited to 10 participants. Depending on weather conditions the trails might be wet. Reserve with Bill Lewis at 941-355-2156.
Paddle Little Sarasota Bay Sunday, September 27, 9:30 meet up and 10 a.m. launch. This outing will take us along the coastline of Little Sarasota Bay into North Creek. We’ll paddle past historical Spanish Point and along the bay before taking a mangrove tunnel into North Creek. We’ll travel North Creek up to
the bridge at U.S. 41 before returning. The trip should take about 3 hours and is suitable for those with basic kaya-king skills. Bring kayak gear and accessories plus water and snacks. Everyone must be cleared with the trip leader before the launch spot will be given. Contact Mike Lehner at 941-365-1073 or [email protected]
Suggested outings contribution $5
Outings Leaders NeededBe an active club member and have fun at the same time – become an outings leader. Contact Outings
Chair Don Kirkley at 941-493-3085 for details.
Panther Conservation Plan Delayed
The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commis-sion delayed action on a draft position paper that
could change priorities for the protection and conserva-tion of the Florida pan-ther. The FWC officials made that decision at the end of a long meeting June 24th that was held at the Hyatt Regency in Sarasota. Many concerned citizens, representatives of environ-mental organizations filled the ballroom to support Florida’s state animal and its recovery through an expanded range. A small number of ranchers spoke in favor of the state agen-cy’s proposal.
FWC panther biolo-gists estimate there are 100 - 180 panthers in Florida. Road kills were cited as the leading cause of panther deaths; 2014 was the highest year on record with 25 verified deaths from collision with vehicles.
Sierra Club Florida held a press conference prior to the meeting to speak out against the state’s proposal to restrict the range of pan-thers and allow renewed hunting
of black bears, which was approved at the FWC meeting on the following day.
The group Speak Up Wekiva and other conservation groups, including Sierra Club, have filed a lawsuit challenging the constitu-tionality of the bear hunt even though permits are already being issued as of this writing. Better non-lethal solutions in-clude bear-proof trash-cans, prohibiting people from feeding bears and not allowing the illegal harvesting of saw palmet-to berries, which is a staple of the bear’s diet.
An editorial on an award to Governor Scott for environmentalism points out his record is beyond bad, it is abys-mal, citing numerous examples including the bear hunt: http://www.heraldtribune.com/arti-cle/20150809/COLUM-NIST/150809749/2127?Ti-tle=Cerabi-no-Scott-the-environ-mentalist-
Bayshore High Bay Trip ReportGrant report for Manasota Sierra Club
Bayshore High School Marine Science I Honors classes
Thanks to the continued generosity of the Sierra Club and others, Bayshore
High’s Honors marine science students were again able to engage in field trips to Manatee County’s Sunny Shores Park. This park is located on Palma Sola Bay and boasts many different estuarine ecosystems. Throughout this year we were able to run bay trips on fourteen days. Most trips were designed to observe the interactions of organisms found at this location and using seine nets to cap-ture some of them to take back to the class-room for further study in students’ aquaria. Each year we have done these trips, there have been new discoveries. These discover-ies have ranged from finding an abundance of spiny sea stars, to collecting new fish such as the marbled blenny, and this year finding young bay scallops. The trips dovetailed with classroom activities and often focused on specific habitats. These habitats are considered essential for the vitality of Sara-sota Bay, which is the reason why students should learn about the valuable ecological and economic contributions derived from a healthy bay. Three of the habitats empha-sized and studied were mangal communities, emerged and submerged sea grasses, and oyster bars.
With three Marine Science classes, there were up to 75 students involved in these field trips on any given day. Several of these stu-dents had never been in this kind of an envi-ronment before and were not shy about sharing that with me and their peers. It was a pleasure to observe how the perceptions of these stu-dents changed over the year. We are a Title 1 school and the majority of these students have had little opportunity to participate in these types of experiences.
In addition to the bay trips, the students spent a great amount of time in the classroom working on related activities. These activities included learning how to maintain a saltwa-ter aquarium inhabited by creatures collected on our bay trips, or on their own. There were numerous laboratory activities, and several long-term projects, as well as quizzes, videos, aquarium mainte-nance grades, and tests on the units they studied.
The grant money paid for a school bus and driver for three trips on each bay trip day. The daily costs varied from $258.19 to $367.53. The trips lasted for approxi-mately an hour for each class period and included at least 25 minutes of hands-on in the water activities.
These field trips serve as very valuable activities for these students, their families and peers, and their com-munity. As previously stated, many of the students had
never actually experienced such trips prior to their being enrolled in my classes. So, this experience was a sea change for many of them. In addition to being able to experience and observe the cyclical nature of estuarine environments, the major purpose for these bay trips is to foster in students an understanding, a reverence, respect, and even a love for this marine environment. At the end
Bayshore High continued on page 5
Figure 1.Students learning to differentiate between the mangrove species.
Figure 2. Students working with their classroom aquaria..
5 www.florida.sierraclub.org/sarasota
Bayshore High Bay Trip Report (continued from page 4 )
of the school year I intend these bay trips to foster in students an understanding, a reverence, a respect, and even a love for this marine environment. Lastly, I want them to come away with a desire to do whatever they can to improve the state of Sarasota Bay and try to inspire that desire in their friends and families. To help publicize these trips, in December I had invited a Bradenton Herald reporter and photographer to come along on a trip, which they did. An article with photos was published on the front page of the paper.
The Sierra Club was mentioned as a major contributor for the monies to allow these trips to occur.
I have had numerous past students contact me via email
or snail mail, as well as phone calls and sometimes even actual visits to my classroom, to let me know how much of an impact the bay trips had on their lives. Frequently they have told me that they remembered little of their other high school classes, but cherished their memories from the Marine Science classes in which they partici-pated. One of my ex-students is currently employed by Manatee County and works in estuarine restoration. He shared with me that it was highly unlikely that he would have pursued this profession if he had not taken my classes. Another of my ex-students is now a boat captain who runs fishing charters as a guide and shared similar sentiments. A third is now working at a nearby zoo car-
ing for a variety of animal species.Finally, I would like to reiterate that these bay trips
have a significant impact on my students as well as our community. Anytime respect for the natural environ-ment, in this case Sarasota Bay, is encouraged and learned it can’t help but benefit everyone. This consequently results in personal behaviors that promote both environ-mental empathy and commercial pluses deriving from a healthier Sarasota Bay. Thanks again to the Sierra Club for helping me to enable my students to engage in this valuable learning experience.
-Reinhardt Badow, Marine Science Honors, Environmental Science, Bayshore High School
Figure 4. Students searching through the contents of a seine
Figure 5 A student working on identifying the animals in her tank
Successful Challenge to Harbor Sound Permit (continued from page 1)
Figure 3. Learning about oyster bar ecology.
No case could be found where an applicant simply paid for authorization to destroy almost an acre of high-quali-ty wetlands and convert it to uplands.”
The Order is available online at this link: https://www.doah.state.fl.us/ROS/2014/14004735.pdf
In response to the judge’s order and an unfavorable review by the Army Corps of Engineers, The Land Trust representing Pat Neal, who is seeking to build four homes
at the Harbor Sound site, has filed a modified application that still involves destruction to the mangroves there. Manatee Conservation committee members have written letters of objection to the Army Corps and to SWFWMD. The issue will come before the SWFWMD Governing Board on August 25.
Contributions, gifts, and dues to the Sierra Club are not tax deductible; they support our effective citizen-based advocacy and lobbying efforts. Your dues include $7.50 for a subscrip-tion to SIERRA magazine, and $1 for your chapter newsletter. PAYMENT METHOD (Check one) CHECK VISA MC AMEX
EXPIRATION
SIGNATURE
CARD NUMBER
CARDHOLDER NAME
GIFT MEMBERSHIP A gift card will be sent for your use. Enter your name and address below and address of the gift recipient in the top box.
To Join Sierra Club Canada, Visit: wwwsierraclub.ca.
Cover Image: @TimFitzharris.com
Clean Power Plan (continued from page 2)“The Clean Power Plan gives us a fighting chance to
save Florida’s coastal areas from devastation by climate change. If we act now and implement President Obama’s plan, we can prevent the worse case scenario of sea level rise forecasted by scientists. If we do nothing, most of Florida’s coastal cities will be covered in water and be-come uninhabitable by the end of this century.”
Help Protect Myakka Park Help protect our state parks and sign the change.
org petition for Myakka.. It would be great to get more signatures and comments.
We have 2,993 signatures and would love to get to 3,150 (ten people for every cow they are proposing).
Signing this petition is crucial because we have the ability to email back to those who have signed, which will enable us to let them know when DEP schedules the public hearing on the update of the Myakka Unit Management Plan.
