Since October, the construction of many seawalls, docks and
boatlifts has been on hold in Cape Coral because of, among others, a pending
study on the smalltooth sawfish, a species that is listed as critically
endangered by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature Red List.
In the United States, the smalltooth sawfish population was listed by the
National Marine Fisheries Service as endangered under the ‘Endangered Species
Act’ in 2003.
A National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA)
National Marine Fisheries Service study of the habitat of the endangered
smalltooth sawfish, and other marine life, was requested last year by the Army
Corps of Engineers. In the meantime, an agreement that had allowed the city to
issue construction permits on behalf of the corps, because of an apparent
“internal miscommunication,” lapsed on October 12. Since then, permit
applications have had to go directly through the corps and this increased
potential waits of construction applicants from 24-48 hours to an estimated
3-18 months.
The long waiting time and the uncertainty of approval has
reportedly cut demand for work at the seawalls by half. Councilman Kevin McGrail said the city wants
to get the matter resolved soon. He said, “I think everyone understands this
is very important to jobs in the city of Cape Coral and the growth of the
construction industry, which is just starting to come back.”
On Monday, the Army Corp of Engineers announced that a
solution to the problem may be in sight which would allow projects to begin
flowing again, albeit with some restrictions. According to Tunis McElwain of the
corps’ Fort Myers Regulatory Office, a new process may be set in place by March which would
include a 10-day period for the NOAA Fisheries to comment on each permit
application.
Shelley Norton, the sawfish and Johnson seagrass coordinator
for NOAA Fisheries, said the new rules would, among others, call for a ban on
the use of impact hammers for the installation of metal piling and four new
noise restriction zones may be added between March 1 and June 30 as “that’s
when the mother sawfish are coming in to pup, to give birth.”
In related news, Lee County’s Conservation Land
Acquisition and Stewardship Committee (CLASAC) has just examined a 2,500-acre
chunk of Babcock Ranch that could be purchased with conservation funds.
According to Parks Supervisor Cathy Olson said after Tuesday’s inspection, “It
has great conservation value, and hopefully it will continue through the
process. The most important thing is it’s a very large piece, adjacent to some
of our other conservation land, which is very important when you’re trying to
conserve land.”
The county before offering to buy conservation land has to
have the CLASAC evaluate the property’s size, proximity to other conservation
lands, abundance of native habitat and other attributes along with that
property’s asking price. Larger properties that are close to existing nature
preserves and feature diverse native habitats receive more points under the
county’s scoring process. The scoring process is then used to rank properties
against each other and prioritize them for purchase.
The 2,500 acre of Bobcock Ranch was offered to Lee County
last November for $33.7 million by Kitson & Partners for purchase under the
county’s Conservation 20/20 program, a
program funded from a 50 cent tax the county levies on every $1,000 of taxable
property value that was established to preserve the county’s open spaces and
natural habitats.
That one is included in species i think so.If i am wrong so correct me.
ReplyDeleteMiami Midtown Condos | Miami Midtown Apartments
I guess these species were called "swordfish". Anyways, I hope its studies gets completed and construction work soon resumes.
ReplyDeleteRegards,
Bruce
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Thanks for the article. I have seen many cases of animal cruelty in my career. Animals who are innocent are abused and killed brutally. This shark has halted the work but thanks to people that they don't believe in animal cannibalism.
ReplyDeleteRegards,
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thanks for this valuable post..............Port Charlotte properties
ReplyDeleteJust because of a Shark construction of many seawalls, docks and boatlifts has been on hold. This sounds funny to me and also inspiring that there are some people who value animals more than their profit. I hope the problems get solved soon.
ReplyDeleteBest Regards,
Charlie
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