On Tuesday, the South Florida Water Management District’s Governing Board held a workshop on the potential acquisition of U.S. Sugar land holdings. The special workshop was to allow Governing Board members the opportunity to discuss the sales contract and the lease agreement, which were made public last week. Audubon has spent considerable time reviewing the sale contract and lease agreement in order to thoroughly assess the details of the deal. Audubon supports the acquisition of U.S. Sugar’s land and is dedicated to ensuring that the purchase agreement maximizes environmental benefits.

Audubon believes the concept of leasing back land to U.S. Sugar will help support the local economy through a transition period and keep land on the tax roles while restoration projects are planned. However, we are urging the District:

• to ensure that the state has the flexibility to take more land out of leases sooner than the proposed schedule, in order to achieve the earliest possible restoration benefits
• to discontinue water management and farming practices, such as maximum irrigation and drainage, in the Everglades Agricultural Area (EAA) that are harmful to the Everglades ecosystem
• to implement much more aggressive Best Management Practices (BMPs), and responsible irrigation and drainage methods
• to not allow land leased at below market rates to be subleased or mined for limerock.

The health of the Everglades ecosystem is in severe decline. Immediate actions are necessary in order to avoid irreversible environmental harm. Audubon believes that this ecological urgency must drive restoration activities. The acquisition of U.S. Sugar’s land and effective near-term restoration can achieve numerous ecological and hydrological benefits for Lake Okeechobee, the Caloosahatchee and St. Lucie estuaries, Everglades National Park, and Florida Bay.

Audubon commends Governor Crist and the District for undertaking this visionary endeavor. We believe an economically and environmentally sound agreement for purchase and leaseback is possible in order to achieve Everglades restoration.