FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: July 5, 2014
LETTER FROM DEP SECRETARY HERSCHEL T. VINYARD JR. TO BARRON COLLIER COMPANIES AND COLLIER ENTERPRISES
TO: Interested Media
FROM: Tiffany Cowie, DEP Press Secretary
RE: DEP Secretary Herschel T. Vinyard Jr.'s Letter
Florida Department of Environmental Protection Secretary Herschel T. Vinyard Jr. issued a letter today to Barron Collier Companies and Collier Enterprises. Below is a copy of that letter. Feel free to reach out if you need further information.
July 5, 2014
Mr. Blake Gable
Barron Collier Companies
2600 Golden Gate Parkway
Naples, Florida 34105
Mr. Tom Flood
Collier Enterprises
2550 Goodlette Road North, Suite 100
Naples, Florida 34103
Dear Mr. Gable and Mr. Flood:
As you know, the actions of Dan A. Hughes has left families in Collier County at unease, and we notified the Company that they must fulfill a list of demands by the Department of Environmental Protection’s (Department) July 15 deadline.
As part of ensuring we do everything possible to protect families’ groundwater from activities at the Collier-Hogan site, the Department went above and beyond to begin its own water testing on June 24, 2014. To date, the tests that were administered by the Department and two private labs have indicated that groundwater has not been impacted.
However, public trust has been damaged by Dan A. Hughes’ previous actions. As you stand to benefit financially from the Company’s activities on your property, we instruct you to work with both Collier County and the Conservancy of Southwest Florida to develop long-term groundwater monitoring strategies, based on sound science, that ensure the safety of current and future operations. Furthermore, we instruct you to exclusively fund the implementation of these strategies.
We look forward to seeing your plan. Obviously, consistent with the Department’s obligation to safeguard the community and the environment, we will continue our monitoring efforts at the site.
Sincerely,
Herschel T. Vinyard Jr.
Secretary
cc: Collier County
Collier County Water-Sewer District
Thomas G. Mosher
Matthew Schwartz
Preserve Our Paradise
Conservancy of Southwest Florida
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