The St. Johns River Water Management District (SJRWMD) has announced a new process to consider surplus and dispose of public lands, including conservation lands previously purchased under the Florida Forever and Preservation 2000 programs. The program envisions a decision by the Governing Board of the District by December of this year on which lands the District will retain.

While it is too early to know if any specific conservation land of ecological importance is at risk, it is urgently important that Audubon Chapters and other conservation leaders participate in the public discussion being initiated by the St. Johns Water Management District.

Attend a Public Meeting

• June 25 – 6:00 PM - Gainesville City Hall, 200 E. University Ave., Gainesville, FL 32601
• June 27 – 6:00 PM – St. Johns County Auditorium, 500 San Sebastian View, St. Augustine, FL 32084
• July 2 – 6:00 PM – City of Palm Bay Council Chambers, 120 Malabar Road SE, Palm Bay, FL 32907
• July 5 – 6:00 PM – Winter Garden City Council Chambers , 300 West Plant Street, Winter Garden, FL 34787

The St. Johns River Water Management District will employ a GIS system based evaluation to rank properties for retention or surplus, based on factors relating to water management, ecological, and recreational values and manageability. It is not possible at the outset to determine what properties will become targets for surplus disposal, but the SJRWMD web page dealing with Surplus Lands states that:

“The evaluation will determine if any properties, or portions of these tracts, should be identified as surplus lands, or if portions of any properties should be considered for alternative uses. Sometimes, negotiations between the District and a seller may have resulted in the inclusion of acreage that has minimal water resource value or is in a condition or location that is difficult and/or expensive to manage as conservation lands. The District occasionally, though infrequently, may dispose of such lands as surplus property rather than spend taxpayer funds to manage them”.

A Powerpoint Presentation produced by the St. Johns River Water Management District attempts to explain the details of the process. It is available by clicking here.

Audubon members and other conservation leaders should attend these meetings and speak out against proposals to declare surplus and sell important tracts of conservation lands or permit “alternative uses” of these lands which would damage conservation values such as important bird habitat.

• Recommend that only properties absent conservation value be considered for surplus.
• Urge that a careful scientific process be employed to evaluate lands.
• Emphasize the importance of conservation lands to public recreation.
• Remind the district that Florida’s Constitution prohibits disposal of conservation lands unless it is determined that the land is “no longer needed for conservation” because conservation values are absent.
• Demand that any funds derived from any surplus sales or leases of tracts appropriate for such decisions be redirected to acquire other areas of environmentally threatened habitat.

Please click here for a recent article from the Daytona News-Journal for more information.