State DEP seeks biggest boost in years for land preservation

Agency wish list asks for $50M for Florida Forever program.

TALLAHASSEE — A request is on the desk of Gov. Rick Scott to replenish the state’s most prominent land-preservation fund.

The Department of Environmental Protection’s wish list for the 2018-19 fiscal year — presented to Scott last week as the governor’s office crafts budget recommendations for the Legislature — includes $50 million for the Florida Forever program.

“It’s a bigger number; it’s a different focus than what we’ve had from DEP for six or seven years,” said Eric Draper, executive director of Audubon Florida and a prominent environmental lobbyist.

The department’s proposals also include $50 million for pro grams to improve water quality and drinking water quantity. Another $50 million would go to support state parks.

Department spokeswoman Lauren Engel said the Florida Forever funding is expected to help the state “acquire rare and sensitive lands that will benefit our communities and environment.”

“We are proud of our recent successful acquisitions, including the Blue Spring and Horn Spring parcels, among others,” Engel said, referring to deals in Gilchrist County and in Leon and Jefferson counties.

Engel also noted that the proposed amount for water projects typically will go up as legislators pitch individual projects.

Already Senate Environmental Preservation and Conservation Chairman Rob Bradley, R-Fleming Island, has filed a measure for 2018 (SB 204) that would lead to the state spending at least $75 million a year on springs projects and $50 million annually on projects related to the restoration of the St. Johns River and its tributaries or the Keystone Heights Lake Region.

Scott will recommend his proposed 2018-19 budget later this year, with the 60-day regular session beginning in January. His office hasn’t given a date for the budget release.

Environmentalists called the proposed Florida Forever funding a “welcome sign” the state agency has a renewed commitment to buying important conser- vation lands.

But they would like to see a more long-term commitment from lawmakers under a 2014 voter-approved constitutional amendment that requires setting aside a portion of documentary-stamp taxes for land and water conservation. Environmental groups contend that lawmakers have improperly used part of the money for staff salaries and agenc y expenses rather than conservation — a contention that Republican legislative leaders dispute.

“It is good to see DEP step back into an advocacy role when it comes to Florida Forever. But $50 million isn’t nearly what voters expected when they approved the Water and Land Conservation Amendment in 2014,” said Aliki Moncrief, executive director of Florida Conservation Voters. “I hope the governor and Legislature take this recommendation as a starting point and commit to a comprehensive and dedicated funding stream for the remainder of the amendment.”

Florida Forever in the past offered up to $300 million annually for land preservation but has been scaled back in recent years.