By Randy Schultz
September 13, 2016
Sun-Sentinel
Credit: Steve Brooks
Is the bigger threat to one of South Florida’s natural treasures an invasive species or invasive politics?
That treasure is the Arthur R. Marshall Loxahatchee National Wildlife Refuge, about 145,000 acres of what remains from the aboriginal Everglades. It’s west of Boynton Beach, and for regular visitors it’s magical.
Last month, the district board — all of whose members Scott has appointed or reappointed — notified the Fish and Wildlife Service that the district intended to cancel that operating lease. The board charged the service with failing to ask Congress for money to control invasive plants, notably Lygodium, or Old World Fern.
To understand this story, one first must understand that Scott’s default position is to blame the federal government, especially President Obama, even when Washington isn’t at fault. Scott did it last year with Medicaid. He did it this year with toxic algae in the St. Lucie River.
So one must understand the letter from the water management district essentially was a letter from Scott. He controls the district like no other governor has. Just after taking office, Scott ordered the district to reduce its budget by 30 percent so he could claim to have cut taxes. Last year, Scott forced the board to fire the district’s executive director and replace him with Scott’s former legal counsel, Peter Antonacci.
One also must understand, however, that the problem in the refuge is serious. Old World Fern can strangle and suffocate native vegetation. Eradicating it could cost $25 million to start and $4 million annually after that.
So if the Lygodium threat needs an immediate response, why wouldn’t the water district use its reserves? Audubon Florida Executive Director Eric Draper suggested that option, and a spokesman acknowledged this week that the district would spend the money if it canceled the lease.
Instead, the district issued a “Get the Facts” propaganda release that said “Audubon Florida wants to raise your taxes to pay for the federal government’s failure to control invasive plants that are destroying” the refuge. The release reiterated the board’s commitment “to no new taxes on South Florida families.” It might have come from Scott’s press office.
On its face, none of this makes sense. If the district canceled the lease — doing so could take months — the district would get the Lygodium bill anyway. If the district canceled the lease, the district would be in charge of public access to the refuge. The district’s mission, however, involves flood control, water supply and environmental protection.
If the district canceled the lease, however, the district could seek to end the federal court consent decree that monitors the quality of water entering the refuge from farms in the Everglades Agricultural Area. Without the Fish and Wildlife Service, there would be no federal management. The consent decree arose from a lawsuit by the Department of Justice that accused the state of allowing pollution to harm Everglades National Park and the refuge.
As Draper put it, “If the state becomes the sole regulator of water discharges, the pollution from sugarcane farms can go on forever like Lake Okeechobee — endless plans and no final outcome.” In addition, ending the lease could allow the state to restrict public access and even to allow farming in the refuge.
Scott’s actions on other issues support this theory. The governor’s choice to run the Department of Environmental Protection has expressed support for opening state parks to ranching, logging and other uses, to bring more revenue. This year, the governor signed legislation to weaken state oversight of water quality. The governor’s political action committee has accepted $400,000 from U.S. Sugar since March 2014. A company spokesman said the refuge “is not our issue.”
In an Aug. 30 letter, a Fish and Wildlife Service official said the agency hopes for a “continued partnership” with the district on the Loxahatchee Reserve. That partnership includes the many people who enjoy the reserve and want it protected from politics.
http://www.sun-sentinel.com/opinion/columnists/fl-rsscol-loxahatchee-refuge-20160913-story.html