Support Florida Forever

This post is part of a new weekly series of guest blogs. Each blog presents a new perspective and personal experiences with the Florida Forever program.

My mom and I wandered into a Crystal River dive shop during a summer vacation to Florida when I was 12 years old. She grew up watching Sea Hunt and had always wanted to scuba dive. I was fascinated with the underwater world and dreamed of becoming a marine biologist. It was an easy decision.

On the first day of our scuba lessons, we began our training outside an area called Three Sisters, named for the three springs at this site. I struggled against the current in the spring run but soon reached the first spring. The crystal-clear waters opened up to a giant sandy bowl, more than 20 feet deep. The sun beamed down from above, illuminating a tiny flounder camouflaged perfectly in the sand. The second and third springs were wilder and even more mysterious, with low-hanging branches and submerged tree limbs hiding a variety of fish.

When I put my head above water, the view was equally breathtaking. We were enveloped by trees and by quiet. I couldn’t believe how close we were to civilization, because we seemed a world away.

Fifteen years later, Three Sisters remains one of my favorite places. Now working with Save the Manatee Club, I am part of an enormous and incredibly worthwhile effort to purchase the springs and the surrounding land to ensure their protection. Three Sisters is part of the larger Kings Bay springs complex, which consists of more than 30 known springs that flow into Crystal River. Three Sisters is located within the city of Crystal River and, while its urban location makes it unique, it also makes preservation even more challenging. Like many of Florida’s springs, water quality and flow have been threatened by increasing groundwater demands for human consumption. Manatees are perhaps the most well-known visitors to Three Sisters; this site provides one of the state’s most important natural warm-water refuges for this endangered species.

Helen Spivey is one woman whose name is synonymous with the fight to save Three Sisters; she first snorkeled at Three Sisters in the late 1970s and described it as “absolutely gorgeous.” Since that time, Spivey has been at the forefront of numerous attempts to get the 60-acre parcel that includes the springs into public hands and prevent development. Previous fundraising attempts have fallen short; this has kept the property under private ownership. The most recent sale occurred in 2005, when the property was purchased for $10.5 million and slated for high-density development and drinking water withdrawals.

With the help of multiple partners, Spivey, now 81, is as close as she’s ever been to seeing her dream for Three Sisters realized. In September 2008, the project received a $6.3 million grant from the Florida Communities Trust, part of the Florida Forever program.  Three Sisters ranked 10th out of 90 projects vying for funding. There’s still work to be done. The grant requires a $2.7 million match, to which the city, county, federal government, private foundations and nonprofit organizations, including Save the Manatee Club, have contributed.

If the city of Crystal River and its partners are successful, the Three Sisters Springs ecosystem and uplands will be better preserved for endangered manatees and a diverse collection of other wildlife. Improved water quality gained through better filtration will benefit the natural resources and human visitors, including snorkelers and divers. Visitors, residents, and city and county governments will see benefits from enhanced ecotourism, recreation, and environmental education opportunities.

Three Sisters has always been a magical place to me, but during a recent visit, I imagined the land covered with houses and condos, and forever changed. The stakes are high for this property, but with enough support from other visitors who have been captivated by Three Sisters, I’m confident we can keep the magic alive here for generations to come.
-Katie Tripp, Ph.D. , Director of Science and Conservation, Save the Manatee Club

The Florida Forever Coalition invites you to take a hike!   Don’t worry, we mean that as nicely as possible! The Coalition and supporters are organizing public hikes across the state to celebrate 20 years of public land acquisition on February 20, 2010.

Help us make “Take A Hike, Florida!” a success by organizing or simply joining a hike on February 20, 2010.  To volunteer to organize a hike or to locate a hike in your area, please complete the form below.  Simply fill in the information requested, save the form and e-mail it to info@supportfloridaforever.org.  Organizing a hike is easy and rewarding, we’ll supply you with everything you need to get started!

We hope you’ll take this opportunity to tell your friends, family and local legislators to “Take A Hike!”

Take A Hike, Florida!

This post is the first in a new weekly series of guest blogs. Each blog will present a new perspective and personal experiences with the Florida Forever program.

How can you put a price on wild spaces, places and the creatures that call these emerald jewels of Florida home?

I have always had a passion for the natural world. Growing up in Southwest Florida in the Ft. Myers/Naples area and having been involved in the scouting program, I was able to develop an appreciation for nature by the ripe age of eight. Whether it was exploring the woods on horseback, canoeing the Peace River and Fisheating Creek or camping on Cayo Costa Island, I knew way back then that these places were special. It wasn’t by chance that I majored in Parks and Recreation at Florida State University; I wanted to make a difference in how people interacted in nature and developed an appreciation for wild animals, plants and the ecosystems that support them.

I was involved in the advocacy of conservation efforts and legislation through the Florida Recreation and Park Association since the late 1970’s; FRPA is an organization which represents Parks and Recreation professionals around the State. We have always been pro-active on the environmental front being actively engaged with support of the LWCF, Save our Rivers, State Park preservation efforts, Greenways and Trails and of course the initiation of the P2000 program back in the 1980’s. This was when growth management efforts and public outcry necessitated the creation of one of the most successful environmental land conservation programs in the country.

As a Parks and Recreation professional, I have been involved in the creation of a county-wide bond referendum for environmental land preservation which has achieved monumental success. Osceola County was experiencing unprecedented growth demands in 2002. Citizens, fearful of losing what made their community special, engineered a campaign of education and public awareness resulting in SAVE OSCEOLA. In 2004, we began acquiring and preserving pristine habitat(Lake Lizzie Preserve), green space connectivity (East Lake Toho, Chisholm Ridge) and saving riverine systems (Shingle Creek) threatened by development. These acquisitions continue today. This would not have been possible without the continuation of the Forever Florida program which helped provide matching funds for very costly real estate.

Is it possible to put a price on our most valuable natural treasures? Well, without the Forever Florida funding, it would have been impossible, and these lands would have been lost……forever.

-Julia Thompson, Seminole County Parks and Recreation Manager

Today, Governor Crist took a big step toward doing what citizens, local governments, four former governors and newspaper editors statewide have been urging, keep Florida Forever alive.  Florida Forever, the state’s premier land conservation program, has been included in Governor Crist’s environmental budget.  See details in the Governor’s press release below:      

ROOKERY BAY NATIONAL ESTUARINE RESEARCH RESERVE – Governor Charlie Crist
today announced his $2.1-billion 2010-11 budget recommendations to safeguard Florida’s natural
resources. Highlighting projects that will secure Florida’s economic future, the Governor proposed
investments in the Florida Forever land conservation program, renewable energy, water supply,
Everglades restoration, and state park improvements.

“Florida’s present and future economy depends on the stewardship of our natural resources
and our continued efforts to set aside land for water resource protection, recreation and the
enjoyment of Floridians and visitors to the Sunshine State,” Governor Crist said. “As we continue
restoring America’s Everglades and investing in renewable energy, Floridians will gain a cleaner and
safer environment that will endure for generations to come.”

Governor Crist unveiled his environmental budget priorities while visiting the Rookery Bay
National Estuarine Research Reserve in Collier County. Along with Department of Environmental
Protection (DEP) Secretary Michael W. Sole, Governor Crist announced the following items:

• Florida Forever – Since 1963, Florida has committed more than $7.5 billion to
preserve and conserve roughly 3.8 million acres of land. However, the program was
temporarily halted last year due to economic challenges. This year, Governor Crist revives
Florida Forever by recommending $50 million to continue the preservation of Florida’s
unique natural resources and wildlife.

Click here to read the entire press release.

A unique State Senate hearing at the annual Everglades Conference featured a discussion on the importance of Florida Forever funding to protection of springs and other water bodies of Florida.

The Select Committee on Florida’s Inland Waters, created last October by Senate President Jeff Atwater and chaired by Senator Lee Constantine, is tasked with freshwater springs protection, one of the more complex environmental challenges facing Florida, and an array of array of related water quality issues. The select committee has the authority to conduct hearings and propose legislation for the 2010 Legislative Session.

Senator Constantine, wisely connecting the committee’s work and the annual meeting on Florida’s famed “river of grass,” took the committee on-the-road to the annual Everglades conference in Palm Beach Gardens.  At the special hearing, a series of speakers cited the importance of Florida Forever to water protection and called for continued funding.

Jennifer Hecker of the Conservancy of Southwest Florida, Paul Gray of Audubon of Florida, Drew Martin of the Sierra Club, and Rae Ann Wessel of the Sanibel-Captiva Conservation Foundation — all member organizations of the Florida Forever Coalition — made strong statements on the need to fund Florida Forever at this critically important time.

Senator, Constantine, a long-time supporter of Florida Forever, responded by noting that the State is now selling last year’s bonds and that this money will be available for conservation land purchases by late January.

The Florida Forever Coalition has joined Facebook! Please click the photo below to join our group and spread the word!

This sixteen-month wall calendar features the work of some of Florida’s most beloved nature photographers.

For more than two decades, Florida Forever has been preserving natural Florida by purchasing and saving from developers individual parcels of land. Yet nearly three million acres of sensitive land and water have been identified that are still in desperate need of protection. But in these troubled economic times, continuing support from the state is in jeopardy.

This year, Florida’s leading conservation photographers have donated their time and efforts to contribute to a calendar that features some of these treasure places..  Each month in this beautiful calendar features a photograph of a high-priority landscape that is in danger of being bulldozed by developers.

The lenses of Clyde Butcher, James Valentine, Jeff Ripple, John Moran, Carlton Ward Jr., Connie Bransilver, Eric Zamora, and others reveal stunning vistas, endangered shorelines, and forests that could all-too-easily be replaced by houses, shopping malls, restaurants, and asphalt parking lots. -Legacy Institute for Nature & Culture

Find out more about how the Legacy Institute for Nature and Culture’s Florida Forever calendar sales can help sustain Florida Forever today.

Speaking in front of the House Military and Local Affairs Policy Committee this morning (Weds, Jan 13), Col. Bruce H. McClintock, Commander 96th Air Base Wing, Air Force Material Command, Eglin AFB, spoke briefly about the major issues facing the military installations in the state of Florida.

One of the top issues the Colonel addressed was Florida Forever, and how the program has been a great help to military installations across the state, with its ability to buffer installations from encroachment and help with conservation at the same time. He emphasized that while the state is facing economic challenges, Florida Forever is an essential tool for the military in our state, and any funding for the program would be a good outcome for Florida’s bases.

The Florida Forever Coalition will continue to work in support of military base buffering, protection from encroachment, and ecosystem conservation through Florida Forever, and we are very proud that the program has and will continue to support our military as they protect us each and every day.

Charles Pattison, President of 1000 Friends of Florida and a Florida Forever Coalition Steering Committee member, was published in the Miami Herald this week.  In “Fund Florida Forever” Charles comments,

…Florida Forever and the complementary land-conservation programs of local, federal and nonprofit partners represent a market-based, nonregulatory approach to protecting special places critical to the environment and quality of life in Florida. This program and its predecessor programs have received the unwavering support of many elected leaders from both political parties. In fact, four of Florida’s outstanding former governors are honorary co-chairs of the Florida Forever Coalition: Ruben Askew, Bob Graham, Bob Martinez and Jeb Bush.

To be blunt, land conservation is simply good business. Protecting environmental lands, whether through outright purchase or easement, supports almost every aspect of Florida’s economy, from job creation to real estate to recreation. In 2007, hunting, fishing and wildlife watching supported 120,000 jobs. Every 1,000 people visiting a state park on average spent $43,400 in the host community. More than 90 percent of Florida’s tourism leaders agree that the conservation of Florida’s natural and historical assets is necessary for the long-term success of their business. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service estimates the outdoor recreation business in Florida is an $8.1 billion industry — others put the figure higher at $11.6 billion….

Click here to read the full article.

The Senate Committee on Environmental Preservation and Conservation will meet on Tuesday, January 12th from 4:00-6:00PM. Among other topics, the Committee will discuss the current status of the Florida Forever program. Now is the time to contact the Committee members and let them know how important Florida Forever is to you. Remind them:

• Funding for Florida Forever is necessary — and is consistent with the Legislature’s unanimous approval of the ten-year renewal of Florida Forever in the 2008 Session.

• It is critical that the Legislature provide funding to ensure the program’s continuity through new bond authority for land acquisitions, allowing the state to negotiate in good faith with landowners. 

• The recent economic downturn has provided an unprecedented opportunity to purchase lands at bargain prices for public use and conservation. These opportunities won’t last forever.

• More than 42 counties and 28 cities have passed resolutions supporting Florida Forever, and more than 175 diverse organizations have joined the Florida Forever Coalition to fight for the program.

Visit the committee’s website here or contact them by phone (850) 487-5372.