Legislature provides cash for possible sweetheart deal

It looks like a sweetheart deal, though it's not clear yet who in the Legislature helped set it up.

A 436-acre parcel approved Tuesday by the Cabinet for purchase was the only one considered by the state under a $3.2-million special legislative appropriation for land acquisition.

The governor and Cabinet without discussion agreed to pay $1,975,000 for a conservation easement on 436 acres owned by Boothco Hansford LLC, which is managed by Tallahassee developer Hurley Booth. Appraisals supported the purchase price for the deal.

The state won't actually own the land, called Bailey's Mill, and there will be only limited public access. The state is paying Booth not to develop the property, although construction of a single home of up to 7,500 square feet -- which is a small mansion -- will be allowed.

Cattle will not be allowed on the property but trees can be cut down and sold in areas where timber operations have occurred in the past, DEP Secretary Michael Sole told the Cabinet on Tuesday.

A site review found that 40 percent was improved pasture and former watermelon fields. Still, the state Acquisition and Restoration Council in April voted to recommend purchase by the governor and Cabinet -- though the proposal was withdrawn by Booth from further consideration before it could be ranked against other parcels on the Florida Forever list awaiting state purchase.

DEP Secretary Michael Sole told reporters on Tuesday that there was discussion in the Legislature last year about setting aside money specifically for Bailey's Mill property or for other conservation easements but he said he didn't know why.

"There was reference to Bailey's Mill historically for acquisition, but when the appropriation act came out it was just, 'You get $3.2 million for acquisition of state land' " with no designation of property to be purchased, Sole said.

DEP spokeswoman Amy Graham said Booth contacted DEP shortly after the 2008-09 budget was announced. Booth did not respond to messages left for him at his Tallahassee office.

"He indicated he had a parcel that he felt was worthy of the state's purchase," Graham said. "And we began negotiations with him knowing that we had this specific appropriation and we proceeded to put it through the process to confirm that it met the criteria for acquisition, which it did."

The Legislature in 2008 approved $300 million in bonding authority for Florida Forever in addition to the $3.2 million appropriation being used to buy Booth's property. This year, the Legislature refused to provide any money for the state land-buying program for the first time since 1990.

Booth was involved in a controversial purchase at Letchworth Mounds in 2005. The state purchased from the Conservation Fund an option to buy land owned by Booth surrounding Letchworth Mounds.

The Cabinet agreed to buy 109 acres plus a conservation easement on 1,281 acres around the existing park only after then-Gov. Jeb Bush agreed to drop his objections. Bush initially said the $4.7-million purchase price was too steep.

The state Acquisition and Restoration Council earlier this year was told that the Division of Historical Resources said there are no archaeological sites of historical significance on the Bailey's Mill property. But DHR officials did note that the tract could buffer and protect Letchworth Mounds State Park less than a mile away.

A report by DEP's Division of State Land said Bailey's Mill contained no "strategic habitat" as identified by state wildlife officials but there was potential habitat for endangered wood storks. The site was ranked "medium" for water quality protection by DEP.

Under the deal with Booth, school children will be allowed to visit up to 12 times a year. Researchers will be able to visit up to six times a year if the request is submitted 30 days in advance.

Sole said money remaining from $3.2 million appropriation for land acquisition won't be spent to buy other land. That's because land purchased outside of the Florida Forever program do not receive the higher level of protection from resale as lands purchased within Florida Forever, he said.

(Story copyrighted by Bruce Ritchie and FloridaEnvironments.com. Do not copy or redistribute without permission.)

Top Florida wildlife officer takes over at Highway Safety

Jones, right, prepares to pose for a photo with Cabinet members today.

Col. Julie Jones says there will continue to be a strong public safety "hook" as she leaves the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission as its top law enforcement officer to take over as head of the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles.

The governor and Cabinet voted unanimously today to appoint Jones to lead Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles, which includes the Florida Highway Patrol. She has been director of law enforcement at the Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission since 2002 and had worked at the agency for 30 years beginning in the 1970s in a temporary position.

"I think the things I've been able to do at Fish and Wildlife -- continuing to move forward and create a vision -- I'll be able to do that at Highway Safety," she said. "The troopers are very interested, I think, about someone coming in with a little different perspective."

Jones' capability and leadership are well known within state government, Agriculture Commissioner Charles H. Bronson said.

"I just wanted to commend Julie for the outstanding service she has already given to the state of Florida," Bronson said.

Jones said being one of the first environmental investigators in the 1980s was a highlight of her job along with helping lead the merger of law enforcement units from the former Florida Marine Patrol and the former Florida Game and Freshwater Fish Commission.

Her law enforcement division also has had bitter disagreements in the past with some commercial net fishing supporters since a state Constitution amendment was adopted in 1994 restricting the use of gill nets in nearshore Florida waters.

"That was a highlight in that it was a difficult problem (that was) overcome with a lot of stakeholders," Jones told FloridaEnvironments.com. "Yes there are still some folks not happy. There are always going to be some folks not totally happy."

(Photo and story copyrighted by Bruce Ritchie and FloridaEnvironments.com. Do not copy or redistribute without permission).

Ecologist Bruce Means honored, describes NW Fla. biodiversity

Northwest Florida is a biological hotspot because it stands in the crossroads of different ecological areas and because of the Apalachicola River, Ecologist Bruce Means told a packed auditorium last week.

Means, president and executive director of the Coastal Plains Institute and an adjunct professor at Florida State University, was honored by the Tallahassee Scientific Society for his more than 40 years of research and work to conserve biodiversity in the Florida Panhandle.

He told the audience at the state's R.A. Gray Building that the region is one of six biological "hotspots" in the United States because of the high number of plant and animal species. Means, who has a doctorate in ecology from FSU, received the Tallahassee Scientific Society's annual gold medal for 2009.

The region has more than 2,100 native plant species, six of the world's 10 families of salamanders and the highest number of turtle species found anywhere in the nation, Means said.

Drying ponds that are less than one-tenth of an acre in size can contain up to 27 species of amphibians. The region's southern temperate hardwood forests contain 35 species of trees, the most of any forest type in the United States and Canada.

The Panhandle has high biodiversity for several reasons, including its warm climate. But the most important reasons are that it lies between the Florida peninsula and continental North America and because the Apalachicola River drains the southern Appalachian mountains.

The Apalachicola River is Florida's largest river and has allowed species to migrate from the mountains to North Florida, Means said.

"It has been a highway of dispersal for thousands of years," he said, "for plants and animals to migrate through deeply incised valleys and gullies along the river system down into Florida during glacial periods, then back up north during the interglacial periods like we have now -- but leaving outliers here like in the ravines especially along the Apalachicola River."

Joseph Travis, dean of FSU's College of Arts and Sciences and the Robert O. Lawton professor of biological sciences, introduced Means to the audience, recalling how Means did most of the work on a research paper that they co-authored soon after Travis arrived in Tallahassee.

"I'm pretty convinced my career would not have had the start it did, and therefore would not have unfolded as it did, without the generosity of Bruce Means -- his time his energy and his knowledge," he said. "He's done it time and again with my graduate students and lots of other people's graduate students.

"He's an invaluable resource for all of us. And he shares his knowledge and gives of his time without hesitation. I can think of no stronger praise than to say I wish I were like Bruce. I really do."

Means is author of "Stalking the Plumed Serpent" and co-author of "Priceless Florida" and "Florida Magnificent Wilderness" among other works.

(Story copyrighted by Bruce Ritchie and FloridaEnvironments.com).

A big TV weekend with "Big Cypress" and "National Parks"

After they produced "Living Waters: Aquatic Preserves of Florida" in 2004, renowned nature photographer Clyde Butcher joked with cinematographer Elam Stoltzfus that next time, they'd have to film in Butcher's backyard.

And they did just that, to produce "Big Cypress Swamp: The Western Everglades," which airs this weekend on PBS television stations across Florida. Check your local listings or click here.

Big Cypress is part of a twin act on television this weekend for nature lovers. PBS also will begin airing Ken Burn's series "The National Parks: America's Best Idea" on Sunday at 8 p.m.

Butcher, who lives in Big Cypress Swamp, has made his mark with the expansive black-and-white photography of the Everglades and Big Cypress. His son was killed in 1986 by a drunk driver, leading Butcher to escape to the swamps of South Florida for solitude and his photography.

Stoltzfus, owner of Live Oak Productions, lives in the Blountstown near the Apalachicola River. With Butcher, he also produced 2005's produced "Apalachicola River: An America Treasure."

Big Cypress National Preserve, Stoltzfus said, is his second home away from the Florida Panhandle. And he said he hopes his production along with Butcher of "Big Cypress" will make people interested that area of Southwest Florida.

"It's a tract of land that is really well-protected for the animals and rare plants," he said. "Fakahatchee Strand is where you have the ghost orchids, bromeliads and panthers."

"It's a story that not that many people know about or not that many people choose to even go out there," he said. "We are trying to provide, as (my wife Esther) coined, an 'armchair experience' of going into the swamp without having to go there."

(Photos courtesy of Live Oak Productions. Story copyrighted by Bruce Ritchie and FloridaEnvironments.com. Do not copy or redistribute without permission).

Former Florida state forester is remembered

John M. Bethea, Florida's chief forester from 1970 until his retirement in 1987, was recognized for his contributions to forestry after his death this week.

Bethea was an early advocate of the urban forest concept and led innovations in Florida's forest management, including the use of prescribed burning to improve forest ecology and wildlife habitat.

"Prescribed burning is front and center at the Division of Forestry . . . and John had a great deal to do with that," said Earl Peterson, who was head of the Florida Division of Forestry from 1992 to 2003

He described Bethea as a "professional's professional" who always wanted the best from himself and others. But he also was known for his downhome sayings, or "Bethea-isms" as his co-workers called them, such as "You got to dance with who you brung," Peterson said.

Bethea was born near Cedar Creek north of Sanderson in Baker County and received a bachelor's of science in forestry at the University of Florida in 1941, when he joined the Florida Forest and Park Service. After leaving to serve in World War II, he returned in 1946. He eventually won a Golden Smokey award for sustained forest leadership, was inducted into the American Foresters Hall of Fame and was a leader within the National Association of State Foresters.

"Our current state forests owe a great deal to John's vision and leadership," Agriculture Commissioner Charles H. Bronson said in a statement. "He was a man of great talent and energy whose entire professional career was spent developing and creating the forest system that millions of residents and visitors alike enjoy today on a daily basis."

In 2001, the state acquired nearly 38,000 acres in northern Baker County and the Legislature honored him by naming it the John M. Bethea State Forest. Peterson said Bethea was unable to travel to the dedication for health reasons so he and Bronson filmed a video at the forest and held a dedication ceremony in Tallahassee.

"He was very very appreciative of the fact that the state, the Department (of Agriculture and Consumer Services), and the Division respected him enough -- admired him enough -- to do that for him," Peterson said. "He was very honored by it."

Florida rural lands rule withstands farm groups' challenge

Florida farm groups supported the Rural Land Stewardship Act in 2001 because they said it would preserve agriculture while helping the economies of rural communities.

The bill created a pilot program that allowed landowners with between 50,000 and 250,000 acres to set aside land for conservation and agriculture in exchange for the ability to develop new towns consisting of homes, shopping centers, offices and industries.

The Legislature passed the bill in 2001 and amended the law in 2004 to remove limits on the amounts of land that it could apply to. But now those same farm groups that supported the bill in 2001 are on the losing side of a legal challenge to a Department of Community Affairs rule that implements the legislation.

The DCA rule requires local governments not only to get their local Rural Lands Stewardship programs approved but they also re required to request approval for each of those new towns. The Florida Chamber of Commerce, the Florida Land Council and the Florida Farm Bureau Federation challenged the rule, saying the law didn't require the additional comprehensive plan changes for those new towns.

"The process was supposed to be an incentive process," Tom Beck, a former state planning chief who testified for the farm and business groups during an administrative hearing, told FloridaEnvironments.com today. "And what this does -- having a second amendment (approval process) -- it greatly increases the time that the landowner has to go through to get final approval."

Administrative Law Judge Donald R. Alexander on Sept. 14 determined that the proposed rule does not exceed the department's rule-making authority as the challengers claimed. He said the rule is consistent with the law, which he said sought to protect rural lands and further the principles of "rural sustainability."

DCA held off on writing rules for the program when it was established as a pilot in 2001. But DCA began working on a rule after the 2004 changes led some landowners with hundreds of thousands of acres to inquire about getting development approval under the state law, according to Alexander's final order.

Collier County had a rural lands program that was adopted in 1999. However, DCA in 2007 said the Collier County program was directing development toward agricultural lands rather than preserving them.

DCA began to hold rule-making hearings that same year and adopted the rule on Dec. 19, 2008. The legal challenge was filed on Jan. 9.

The department says the law maintains the economic value of rural land while controlling urban sprawl and protecting natural resources and the state's agricultural economy.

"This ruling is an important one for the state," DCA Secretary Tom Pelham said. "The Rural Lands Stewardship Area Program can play an important role in conserving agricultural and environmental lands."

For more information on DCA's Rural Lands Stewardship Area Program, go to www.dca.state.fl.us.

To see the judge's ruling and other legal documents, go to the Division of Administrative Hearings web site at www.doah.state.fl.us..

Enviro group joins in criticism of PSC

One of the most active environmental groups before the Florida Public Service Commission says recent controversies show the panel is overly influenced by utilities and lobbyists, including former PSC staff and commissioners.

In the midst of electricity rate requests by Progress Energy Florida and Florida Power & LIght Co., three agency employees have been fired for exchanging text-messaging information with utility employees. A PSC staffer resigned earlier this month after disclosing that he and his wife went to a party hosted by a FP&L official.

State Sen. Dan Gelber, a Democratic candidate for attorney general, and Sen. Mike Fasano, a New Port Richey Republican, say they will file bills to change how PSC members are selected. Gov. Charlie Crist is opposing the rate requests and has hinted that he may not reappointment commissioners who support them.

But representatives of the Southern Alliance for Clean Energy today said concerns about the PSC should extend beyond the rate requests.

The Knoxville, Tenn.-based group is challenging energy conservation goals proposed by seven of the Florida's largest utilities. And the group also opposes requests by Progress Energy and FP&L to recover costs for four planned new nuclear power units in advance of construction.

Group representatives said they face teams of attorneys and former PSC commissioners Susan Clark and J. Terry Deason working for utilities and against policies that would improve energy efficiency. The PSC, the group said, allows greater leeway for utilities to present their experts during hearings while cutting off their witnesses and restricting public comment.

"I think there is something fundamentally flawed with the fact the power companies are able to use rate-payer dollars to in essence advocate for a position against what we think are against their long term interests," said Stephen Smith, executive director of SACE.

Utilities, he said, "are taking hostile positions against making the system more efficient in Florida because they are concerned about lost revenues."

FloridaEnvironments.com requested an interview with PSC Chairman Matthew Carter. In response, the PSC issued a statement by Carter stating that all commissioners had taken an oath to uphold the public trust.

"It's disheartening to see our agency, with its important mission, in jeopardy of losing the public's trust when organizations, such as (the) Southern Alliance for Clean Energy, make allegations -- being vetted through the media--which are unproven," Carter said. "Our record reflects our commitment as public servants to continue our good work for Florida's residents, who need our services, and for the utilities that need our oversight."

Deason and Clark did not return telephone calls and e-mails seeking comment.

A Progress Energy spokeswoman said the company is proposing to double its conservation goals but she did not address the broader concerns raised by the Southern Alliance for Clean Energy about the PSC and utilities.

An FP&L spokesman said the utility at no time sought to inappropriately influence anyone. All lobbying expenditures come out of shareholder profits, not the base electric rates, said Mayco Villafana, FP&L spokesman.

The utility deals with a lot of complex issues and hires experts to advise and represent it, he said.

"Florida administrative law is a very narrow specialized area so it's just common sense that utilities and intervenors would seek to hire from the small pool of experts," Villafana said.

(Photo and story copyrighted by Bruce Ritchie and FloridaEnvironments.com. Do not copy or redistribute without permission).