Wetlands Division Aims To Cut Red Tape

By MIKE SALINERO The Tampa Tribune

Published: Jul 17, 2007

TAMPA - In an effort to save Hillsborough's wetlands division, county regulators rolled out a plan Monday that would eliminate paperwork for developers and let them fill small "artificial" wetlands such as cattle ponds and roadside ditches.

The plan focuses on cutting red tape while keeping the county's wetlands permitting rules, which are stricter than state regulations. For instance, the wetlands division would continue to push developers to avoid destroying wetlands instead of mitigating the destruction by building wetlands elsewhere.

At the same time, the county would establish a wetlands advisory committee that includes developers to review a wide range of wetlands issues. An ombudsman would also be named to assist people who need permits to destroy wetlands, especially small farmers and other landowners.

"The goal of this was to maintain the integrity of our wetlands rule and not compromise that," said Rick Garrity, executive director of the county Environmental Protection Commission. "But at the same time, we wanted to address the issues brought to our attention by applicants that felt we needed to have a little more flexibility."

Garrity hopes the proposal will sway county commissioners who voted last month to end local wetlands protections. The commissioners who voted to disband the wetlands division said it performs the same services as state and federal agencies. Keeping the division with its $2.2 million annual budget doesn't make sense, they said, in light of the steep property tax rollbacks mandated this year by the state Legislature.

Commissioner Brian Blair, who chairs the EPC, has said he might change his vote in favor of keeping the division if Garrity could show him a plan that increased efficiency and ended duplicative services. Blair could not be reached Monday for comment.

Garrity sought to address the commissioners' concerns with a streamlined permitting process that eliminates multiple reviews by separate agencies and allows developers to file information online. By reducing the workload, Garrity said he can cut five of the wetlands division's 29 employees for a savings of about $375,000 a year.

Local environmentalists, who saw the plan Monday, see it as a step down the slippery slope toward widespread wetlands destruction. Lutz activist Dee Layne said it includes provisions that sound innocuous but that will strengthen developers' hands in paving over marshes.

For instance, a sentence in the plan says county wetlands rules will prioritize protection for "higher quality wetlands." Layne said that would lead to destruction of all but the highest-functioning wetlands.

"Wetlands are wetlands," Layne said. "They all have a function."

Garrity also wants to clarify what constitutes "reasonable use" of someone's property. Up to now, EPC has prohibited any wetland destruction unless a developer or land owner can show that by not filling the marshes he would be denied reasonable use of his property.

"You can't set up what reasonable use is until you know what property you're talking about," Layne said. "If we have a definition of reasonable use, it will tie [EPC's] hands."

The proposed budget and personnel cuts also worried local activists. Mariella Smith, a Sierra Club member from Ruskin, said the wetlands division had already cut spending in line with budget reductions sought by county Administrator Pat Bean. Reducing the staff and budget will increase the workload on the remaining employees, she said, limiting their ability to do their jobs.

"I'm for streamlining and reducing waste where we can, but that's not what this is about," she said. "That's a smokescreen being used to lower our wetlands protections."

Commissioner Al Higginbotham, whose district includes largely rural areas around Plant City, said the plan is a good starting point, but it is getting mixed reviews among farmers.

"Right now the concern is do we still have duplicity? Are farmers getting too much oversight," Higginbotham said. "The concern of people in the ag business is that EPC has made it difficult on them."

Still Higginbotham said Garrity's staff had made "incredible strides" in streamlining wetlands permitting.

Key to the plan's goal of reducing duplicative services is taking over wetlands permitting now performed by the Florida Department of Environmental Protection and Tampa Port Authority. The two agencies permit docks, marinas and shoreline stabilization. The state DEP also issues permits for single-family homes.

Those permits make up roughly half the permits EPC deals with annually. Both agencies would have to agree to delegate their authority to the county.

Commissioners are expected to discuss Garrity's plan when they gather July 26. A final vote on the wetlands division is expected in August.

Reporter Mike Salinero can be reached at (813) 259-8303 or msalinero@tampatrib.com.