A coalition of developers and landowners is drafting a habitat plan for Eastern Collier County aimed at streamlining permitting, but environmentalists say the plan could take important habitat land away from individual species in the area, such as the endangered Florida Panther.
The plan is being called the Eastern Collier Multi-Species Habitat Conservation Plan. It would affect permitting in about 177,000 acres in the area. So far the plan has support from groups like Collier Industries and Alico Land Development, among others.
This new habitat plan is supposed to weigh the impact of development on a slew of species as a whole-- as opposed to considering an effect on individual species like panthers, wood storks and snail kites.
Jennifer Hecker with the Conservancy of Southwest Florida said she likes the idea of taking a holistic approach to weighing the needs of many species during development permitting, but there are concerns.
“It shouldn’t be a given that this is necessarily going to end up with a better result for the species,” she said. “And I think knowing this we need to be cautious and aggressive in advocating for the best available science to be used in this and to be built around what’s best for the species and not for the necessarily the stake holders and interested parties who stand to benefit from the activities that are being proposed in this.”
Hecker warned there’s already a lot of mining, drilling and development planned for this area, which is critical for wildlife preservation.
She said the proposed habitat plan would be like a “one stop shop” for federal permitting in areas meant for listed species.
If approved by U.S. Fish and Wildlife this plan would be in place for 50 years.
Backers of the plan have said right now permitting and development plans are piecemeal and could use improvement. Supporters such as Collier Industries and Alico Land Development were contacted for this story, but did not return calls.
