August 13, 2006
By Jeremy Cox jgcox@naplesnews.com
or 239-263-4787, Environment Staff Writer
Naples Daily News
Naples, Florida
To submit a Letter to the Editor: letters@naplesnews.com
State and federal officials are scaling back miles of protective
levees and are considering eliminating two of the three pump
stations in the Southern Golden Gate Estates restoration plan.
The cuts could slash millions off the project's $362 million price
tag.
Once envisioned as the "largest subdivision in the
world," Southern Golden Gate Estates is undergoing a return
to nature at the hands of the South Florida Water Management
District and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. The plan calls for
eradicating 227 miles of roads and filling in canals to re-create
natural water flows in the western Everglades.
Newly updated computer models suggest that the levee system
proposed two years ago to protect a massive farming operation, an
isolated subdivision and a tiny rural outpost won't have to be so
extensive.
"The mandate from the (Comprehensive Everglades Restoration
Plan) is that the projects can't increase any flood damage to
private properties," said Chip Eitel, the project manager for
the water management district. "As we're refining the model,
we're finding the impacts aren't there that we anticipated."
CERP is the government's $10.8 billion response to the Everglades'
woes.
An independent engineering review of the Southern Golden Gate
Estates project has kicked off a debate over whether three pump
stations are necessary, Eitel said. The three stations are slated
to be constructed just south of Interstate 75 along the Miller,
Merritt and Faka-Union canals and mark the point where the
canal-filling begins.
Building one huge pump station, instead of three smaller ones,
might reduce the amount of noise, construction-related
disturbances and the number of access roads, Eitel said.
The changes come at a time when the Bush administration is
reviewing the Southern Golden Gate Estates project for cost
effectiveness. The Senate recently approved a bill authorizing
funding for the project, and the measure is heading to a
conference committee to hash out the differences with a similar
House bill.
The project will move forward regardless of Congress' actions
because Southern Golden Gate Estates is one of eight projects the
state selected to fast-track with a $1.5 billion infusion of its
own money. The bill, though, would help fulfill the federal
government's vow to pick up half the tab.
It is unclear how much money would be saved by limiting the levee
system and pump stations.
If water were let loose in the 55,000-acre Southern Golden Gate
Estates, regulators feared what the consequences might be for Six
L's farms on U.S. 41 East, Port of the Islands and a small
community northwest of the project.
The ghost town that is Southern
Golden Gate Estates is nestled between U.S. 41
East and I-75, halfway between Collier Boulevard and State Road
29.
Southern Golden Gate Estates and
South Belle Meade are collectively known as Picayune Strand State
Forest.
The original plan called for a levee on the east and west sides of
the portion of Port of the Islands on the south side of U.S. 41.
That idea has been killed, and that's all right by Rico Gatti,
president of the Port of the Islands community improvement
district. Water management district officials presented the
updated plans to the community improvement district board Friday
morning.
"We would rather not see any berms where the houses
are," said Gatti, who was one of the first to build a home in
the remote community 18 years ago. "I don't see anything
controversial as far as we're concerned so far."
A levee surrounding the north side of Port of the Islands is being
trimmed in favor of extending an existing berm on the east side of
the property. A new 140-home community called Orchid Cove is under
construction, while an upscale recreational vehicle park is
planned farther north in the area.
The sprawling Six L's farming area also is losing a full perimeter
levee. Computer models indicate that improving water flow beneath
U.S. 41 will alleviate flooding concerns with the farm, so a
100-foot-long bridge and culverts are proposed near Tomato Road,
Eitel said.
And a levee surrounding a collection of homes in South Belle Meade
has been nixed and replaced by the extension of a levee on the
north side of where the canal-filling begins.
Some of the biggest changes are to the spreader canal, the
mechanism designed to route canal water across the land. After
reviewing academic studies and interviewing experts, a consultant
for the water management district concluded that a spreader canal
never had been tried before on such a large scale for
restoration's sake.
"I don't want to say it's unprecedented," Eitel said.
"Every job has its own unique engineering challenges."
Another Everglades restoration project in southern Miami-Dade
County is set to employ a spreader canal to restore natural flows
to northeastern Florida Bay. The Southern Golden Gate Estates
plan, though, has changed to a "spreader system."
The initial plan was relatively simple: Dig a canal and make the
northern bank higher than the southern so water has no alternative
but to spill to the south.
But that plan would allow water to choose its own course,
potentially cutting shallow channels in the wrong places, Eitel
said.
Now, water managers are looking at raising the canal off the
ground a couple feet and punching notches in the south levee in
low spots where water once coursed naturally.
"I'm glad they noticed it on this end of (the project) rather
than build it and watch it happen," Brad Cornell of the
Collier County Audubon Society said of the flawed spreader canal
design.
Nancy Payton of the
Florida Wildlife Federation said she
is making a "leap of faith" that the unproven technology
will work.
"The years that have been spent to get this right are a good
sign," she said.
Mac Hatcher, a Collier County environmental specialist, said there
are a handful of small spreader canal systems already in the
county. The most notable is at the point where the upscale Pelican
Bay community meets Class Pass' mangroves.
Hatcher added that he is confident the final Southern Golden Gate
Estates plan will mimic natural flows as closely as possible.
The spreader system and flood-protection devices are scheduled to
be constructed in summer 2007.
The public can have a say on the
current design during a meeting at 5:30
p.m. Thursday, August 17, at the Golden Gate Community Center
on Golden Gate Parkway.
Copyright 2006, Naples Daily News.
Related reading:
Everglades restoration takes big
steps forward - Cooperation between local, state and national
government this year is making restoration goals possible. One
outcome will be to limit releases of Lake Okeechobee into other
bodies of water.
August 9, 2006
Guest Opinion by Carol Ann Wehle
Fort Myers News-Press
Fort Myers, Florida
To submit a Letter to the Editor: mailbag@news-press.com
2006 is proving to be a very good year for Everglades restoration.
From the halls of Congress to the chambers of county commissions, Everglades
projects continue to get the green light.
Last month's Senate passage of the Water Resources Development Act
(WRDA) is, for me, icing on the cake of a very productive
year.
Here in South Florida, we have already started digging, literally.
Four groundbreakings in the past six months launched construction
on critical reservoirs and treatment
wetlands that will improve the Everglades ecosystem, our coastal
estuaries and Lake Okeechobee.
These projects are part of the state's Acceler8
initiative, an action-oriented
plan for stepping up the pace on eight key
restoration projects.
The groundbreaking of the Acceler8 project was on August 2.
We turned dirt on a giant water storage reservoir in the Everglades
Agricultural Area (EAA), south of Lake Okeechobee.
At 25 square miles, it will be the size of the city of Boca Raton
and the largest constructed water body in the state.
Fittingly called Acceler8's flagship, the EAA Reservoir A-1 will
hold 62 billion gallons of water -- the volume of 100,000
Olympic-sized swimming pools -- capturing regulatory releases
from Lake Okeechobee as well as stormwater runoff in the region.
However, the reservoir's full impact will be felt throughout South
Florida, reducing freshwater flows to the coastal estuaries,
lowering water levels in Lake Okeechobee and improving the timing
and flow of water into the Everglades.
That may sound like a tall order, but that's what a 16,000-acre
reservoir can do.
Mutual effort
This kind of progress, on this scale, is never possible by a
single agency working alone.
Local support at the city and county level has been unprecedented
for Everglades Restoration.
Martin County, for example, contributed $27.4 million to help buy
land for an Acceler8 reservoir and treatment wetland now being
built near the east coast.
Hendry County is partnering in work-force development for
construction of an Acceler8 reservoir near the west coast,
ensuring that people and local businesses thrive at the same time
we invest in the environment.
In Tallahassee, Governor Jeb Bush guided the efforts to
accelerate these key Everglades projects with specialized funding,
ensuring that our momentum would not be slowed.
Under his vision and leadership,
Florida has committed $3.2 billion through
the end of the decade to
clean up and restore the famed River of Grass.
State legislators have supported these initiatives, this year
alone budgeting more than $160 million for continued restoration
of the Everglades and Lake Okeechobee.
In the U.S. Congress, the long-awaited
Water Resources Development Act (WRDA) was approved by the
Senate last month, underscoring the commitment of our federal
partners.
WRDA's passage moves construction of the $1.2 billion Indian River
Lagoon South restoration project
and Acceler8's $342
million Picayune Strand restoration
project an important step closer to
implementation.
Of course, there is still much work to do. Appropriation of
federal funds is still needed; land for projects must still be
purchased; engineering designs need public input and approval for
construction.
All of this is a big order, but "thinking big"
is what Everglades
Restoration is all about.
No single effort alone will achieve restoration goals, but people
and agencies and projects working together will.
The year 2006 is demonstrating what a powerful formula that is for
success.
Carol Ann Wehle is the executive director of the South Florida
Water Management District, 3301 Gun Club Road, West Palm Beach,
Florida 33406 http://www.sfwmd.gov/gover/3_cwehle.html cwehle@sfwmd.gov
or 239-338-2929/2936; Fax: 561-682-6200
Copyright 2006, The Fort Myers News-Press.
Stop Destroying Our Water Quality
NOW! An open letter to the South Florida Water Management District
from The Sanibel City Council
(Note: This is a one-page pdf file,
opens quickly and is a Must-Read!)
Enjoy the Everglades? Time's
right to speak up
August 8, 2006
By Steve Waters swaters@sun-sentinel.com
or 954-356-4648
South Florida Sun-Sentinel
Fort Lauderdale, Florida
954-356-4000
To submit a Letter to the Editor: letters@sun-sentinel.com
(200-word limit; "100 words or fewer stands the best chance
of being published.")
Those who fish, hunt, hike, bike, bird-watch, camp or canoe in the Everglades have an opportunity to tell government officials what type of recreational activities and facilities they'd like to have during and after the Comprehensive Everglades Restoration Project.
All they need to do is show up at any of the public meetings on
the Everglades Master Recreation Plan being held by the U.S. Army
Corps of Engineers and the South Florida Water Management
District.
LocalLinks
At a meeting last week in Delray Beach, Newton Cook, president of United Waterfowlers Florida, was one of a handful of people who attended. Cook and his organization were instrumental in getting stormwater treatment areas, which filter agricultural runoff before it enters the Everglades, open to duck hunting.
Cook told officials he'd like to see boat ramps built at the
reservoirs that are planned for storing water in the Everglades,
and have those reservoirs open to fishing and waterfowling.
"It's very important that we have representation at these
meetings," said Rick Persson of South Florida Anglers For
Everglades Restoration, which is fighting to keep the canals in
the Everglades from being filled during the restoration project
and also wants the reservoirs open for fishing. "If we don't
go, we only have ourselves to blame."
A meeting is from 6:30-9 tonight at the Broward County main
library, 100 S. Andrews Ave., Fort Lauderdale.
Other meetings are set:
August 14 from 6:30-8 p.m. at the Caleb Center, 5400 NW 22nd Ave.,
Miami;
August 15 from 3:30-6 p.m. and August 28 from 6:30-9 p.m. at the
Homestead IFAS Center, 18170 SW 288th Street, Homestead;
August 21 from 6:30-9 p.m. at the Marathon Government Center, mile
marker 47.5, Marathon; and
October 2 from 3:30-6 p.m. and October 3 from 6:30-9 p.m. at the
Miccosukee Casino, 500 SW 177th Ave., Miami.
Meetings will also be held in Stuart, Naples, Fort Myers,
Okeechobee, South Bay and Belle Glade.
The meetings feature presentations on project locations and
recreational possibilities. The Corps and the district also want
to hear from attendees about current recreational conditions and
future recreational needs. For information, visit www.evergladesplan.org
Copyright 2006, Sun-Sentinel.com.