FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Sept. 12, 2013
STATE CONSERVATION LAND WEBPAGE UPDATED WITH SITE ASSESSMENT REPORTS
~Friday ARC meeting scheduled to be webcast on The Florida Channel~
TALLAHASSEE –The Florida Department of Environmental Protection continues assessing the 3 million acres of state-owned conservation land in order to purchase more valuable conservation land. Continuing with its transparent process and to keep the public updated, the Department has updated its webpage with the current list's site assessment reports. The public can now see how each site currently on the list has been analyzed based on the weighted criteria used in this scientific assessment.
The Division of State Lands will provide an update on this process and the list at the Acquisition and Restoration Council public meeting starting at 9 a.m. Friday in Tallahassee. Susan Grandin, Director of the Division of State Lands, will provide an update about the scientific process the Department has used to assess the state's conservation land, what factors have gone into removing sites from the preliminary list and present the preliminary list to the Council.
"The fact that sites are coming off the list as our staff conduct site-by-site review shows that the process is working," Grandin said. "We have to look at all aspects of the land currently on the list to determine what the conservation value is and we are in the process of doing that."
To date, the preliminary list of sites for potential sale has been reduced from 5,300 acres to roughly 4,200 acres, which represents 0.14 percent of the 3 million acres of state-owned conservation land. The purpose of this assessment is to identify land that may be sold in order to purchase more valuable conservation land. More background on the assessment, the sites currently on the list, documentation and other information is available HERE.
The ARC meeting will take place:
9 a.m. EDT
Friday, Sept. 13
Conference Room A
Douglas Building
3900 Commonwealth Boulevard
Tallahassee
For those unable to attend the meeting, the Florida Channel will be broadcasting live gavel to gavel coverage both on television and online. Online access is available at The Florida Channel.
The Council, an independent body that evaluates, selects and ranks projects for the Florida Forever priority list and reviews state-owned conservation land acquisitions, will be briefed on the scientific assessment used to evaluate the state's land, provided the current list and be able to ask Department staff questions about the process. The public will also have an opportunity to provide comment. The agenda is available HERE.
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