GASPARILLA50

Vol. 26, No. 22 Boca Grande, Florida June 3, 2014

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GASPARILLAGAZETTE

Looking inside ...Page 9Howl at the

Moon date ...

Page 10Sea turtle report ...

Columnists this week:

P 12, Make Your Point

with

Bob Elliott

P 11, Suncoast

Salutations with Phil Synder

P 13, Bills Wild World

with Bill Dunson

GAZETTE

First place in the 2014 Ladies Howl at the Moon Tarpon Tournament was taken by Capt. Charlie Coleman and anglers Nicole Cole-man, Emily Wise and Amber Gassman aboard Casuarina. Second place went to Capt. Jason Futch and anglers Kari Hayden, DawnBalsizer, Stacy Wear and Katie Gamber aboard the Savannah. Third place went to anglers Kristie Coleman, Sarah Dixon, Kelley Sad-lowsik and Liz Woodroffe on Family Tradition with Capt. Matt Coleman. More than $1,300 was raised for the American Cancer SocietyRelay For Life as well. For the complete story, see this Fridays Boca Beacon. Photo by Daniel

ephorize

STAFF REPORT

Casuarina takes Ladies Howl!

Two local captains cited forbreakaway gearFlorida Fish and Wildlife Con-servation Commission offi-cers cited two island charterguides for allegedly using weightsthat were im-properly at-tached to theirlines.

The citationswere issued onthe evening ofSaturday, May28 in BocaGrande Pass.

DavidChatham, 35, ofPort Charlotte and Frank Davis, 53,of Placida, were both cited with usingbreakaway gear.

The originalstory posted inthe Tampa BayTimes was in-correctly titled,Boca Grandeguides cited forbanned jigs.

A court date ofTuesday, June17 has been setfor Chatham andDavis.

Proposed critical habitat designation could prove thornyThe United States Fish andWildlife Service has indi-cated that parts of Gaspar-illa may be included in a new criticalhabitat designation they are drafting.The species to be protected is theaboriginal prickly-apple (Harrisiaaboriginum), listed under the Endan-gered Species Act in October 2013,according to a presentation given bythe USFWS in the spring to localhomeowners, including the Gaspar-illa Island Conservation and Improve-ment Association, which holdsconservation lands and representsowners of private land.

The presentation shows 10 siteswhere the plant historically ranged,around the Charlotte Harbor area,

five of which are on Gasparilla.Those sites, which some believemay become the basis for the pro-posed critical habitat designation, in-clude some privately ownedresidential lots.

Ken Warren, a representative ofthe USFWS, said they are in theplanning, or, pre-decisional, phaseand hence could not give informationabout what would be included in thedesignation. He also declined to givean estimate of the draft's publicationdate.

The USFWS presentation, fur-nished by the GICIA, said that, oncethe proposed rule is published in theFederal Register, there will be a 60-

See PRICKLY APPLE on PAGE 3

CAPT. DAVID CHATHAM

BY JACK SHORT

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June 3, 2014 GASPARILLA GAZETTE PAGE 3

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day comment period and peer re-view, an economic analysis followedby a 30-day comment period, a pe-riod for service review comments andmore peer review, and the assimila-tion of new information. The final ruleis usually published within a year ofthe initial notice if supported by thebest available science and there areno extenuating circumstances.

Data sources for the critical analy-sis, according to the USFWS's pres-entation, include national heritageoccurrence data and natural heritagehabitat mapping (in the case of con-servation areas), both taken fromFlorida Natural Areas Inventories in2011 and 2012, and analysis of aerialimages.

The suitable habitats for theprickly-apple listed in the USFWS'spresentation include coastal strand,coastal berm, coastal grasslands,maritime hammock and shellmounds.

A representative of the GICIA saidthey are concerned about the possi-bility of single-family, undevelopedlots being included in the designa-tion.

A GICIA representative said, Iwould encourage property owners ofundeveloped single-family lots alongthe water to inquire with USFWS re-garding the 'proposed' designation. Iftheir property is included within theproposed boundary it could affecthow they develop their property or ifthey could obtain Federal Flood In-surance.

Section 7 of the ESA requires con-sultation with the USFWS for anyfederal action or any action that re-quires the issuance of a federal per-mit or which is affected by federalfunding.

Both Dick Yusk of Yusk Construc-tion and Kirby Outerbridge of Outer-bridge Construction said they havenever had to obtain federal permitsfor any of their numerous projects onGasparilla Island.

However, according to the USFWSpresentation, actions with a federalnexus, or, which may require consul-tation with the USFWS, include butare not limited to projects requiring afederal permit such as those requiredto build docks (the U.S. Army Corpsof Engineers must authorize them),or fill or drain wetlands. Other permitsissued by the Federal EmergencyManagement Agency, which adminis-ters the National Flood InsuranceProgram, may be affected, according

to the presentation. The Service said they will try to

work with Lee County on program-matic consultation to cover buildingpermits that that require NFIP (sic).

A FEMA representative said,There is no relationship between acritical habitat designation and floodinsurance coverage availability orflood insurance rates through the Na-tional Flood Insurance Program.

However, in 1994, The U.S. DistrictCourt for the Southern District ofFlorida concluded that FEMA's imple-mentation of the NFIP constituted afederal action for the purposes ofsection 7 of the ESA and requiredFEMA to consult with the USFWS onwhether their action was likely tojeopardize the continued existence ofthe endangered Florida Key Deer inMonroe County, Florida.

The related critical habitat designa-tion in Monroe (which includes theKeys) proved problematic for prop-erty owners seeking flood insuranceunder the NFIP when the NationalWildlife Federation, Defenders ofWildlife and the Florida Wildlife Fed-eration filed suit against the USFWSand FEMA in 2005. The SouthFlorida District Court granted an in-junction against both federal agen-cies to prevent FEMA from issuingnew federal flood insurance permitsand from implementing parts of theUSFWS's Biological Opinion, up-dated in 2003 from a 1997 BO. Thecourt's 2005 injunction included criti-cism that the USFWS and FEMAfailed to provide adequate protectionto the Florida Key deer by relying onvoluntary measures, and failing toprotect against cumulative effects ofhabitat loss and fragmentation.

The USFWS then issued a revisedBO in April, 2010, and revised it inDecember, 2010, in order to have theinjunction lifted.

The BOs issued by the USFWSmay include Reasonable and Pru-dent Alternatives, which are eco-nomically and technologicallyfeasible actions the USFWS be-lieves would avoid jeopardy to thespecies or habitat in question.

RPAs included in the 2003, 2006and 2010 BOs in the Monroe Countycase included minor measures suchas a requirement that brochures onthe destruction caused by feral catsbe distributed to permit applicants,but also a requirement, for example,that for parcels within potential suit-able habitat and associated bufferzones, issuance of building permitsfor certain construction activities

would require further consultationwith FEMA and the USFWS. Specifi-cally, consultation would be requiredfor any floodplain development per-mits related to lots or parcels wheredevelopment would expand the foot-print of existing structures, or expandthe associated clearing of or place-ment of fences into native habitat. Ifadverse effects were possible, theUSFWS would notify the participatingcommunity by letter of the may-af-fect determination and possibleneed for authorization under ESAsections 7 and 10. Those communi-ties would work with landowners andthe USFWS to ensure compliancewith the ESA. The RPAs also laid outextensive measures to be put inplace, in case of jeopardy to endan-gered species, and measures to betaken if communities did not complywith those measures.

Part of the revised, final Monroecase RPAs also cover what mayoccur in the case of incidental takingof endangered species where federalpermits are not required, but, at leastin some sense, the situation may notbe analogous. According to the inci-dental take statement, taken from theESA, plants are not given the sameprotections as animals listed as en-dangered. They are only protectedfrom harm, on lands under Federaljurisdiction, and on any lands if harmoccurs during commission of a crimesuch as trespassing.

The presentation given by theUSFWS to homeowners said meas-ures to reduce harm to the prickly-apple could include surveying andflagging plants to protect them during

Prickly appleFrom PAGE 1

See PRICKLY APPLE on PAGE 9

June 3, 2014 GASPARILLA GAZETTE PAGE 9

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Come, kiss the moon with me.Well float across the shadowed pond

And hear the bullfrogs serenade.Well fish for stars in the deep dim sky

And borrow lightning bugs for bait.Well watch the spider weave her web

While others lie asleep in bed.Come, kiss the moon with me.

Well lie among the spongy fernsand let the dew anoint us.

Well drift between the soft brown mothsAnd let their wings caress us.

Well dance across the Queen Annes laceAnd never leave a human trace.Come, kiss the moon with me.

Well skip down rows of evening primrosewhile daytime lilies slumber.

Well listen to the barred owls hootEcho through the quiet woods.

Well hitch a ride with a dragonflyAnd swoop through nighttimes darkened sky.

- Excerpt from Priscilla Kirkpatrickspoem from the book Poets of Boca Grande

MIDSUMMER MOON

project activities; training staff andcontractors to avoid impacts tospecies; requiring certain fire sup-pression resources; monitoring for ef-fects to individuals and populationsof the species; adjusting placementof new construction, roads, trails andother development; and measures toprevent the introduction of nonnativespecies.

Warren said that public input is anintegral part of the process, and thata public comment period will providepeople with an opportunity to weighin, once a draft of the designation ispublished in the Federal Register.

We want to base what we do onthe best science and let the publicweigh in. Someone may possessvaluable information (we don't al-ready have), he said.

He stressed that the bottom line,for the USFWS, is the protection ofspecies, and added that even if anarea is not included in a critical habi-tat designation, it is incumbent onpeople to avoid harm. The wholeidea, he said, is to prevent taking ofthese species, whether intentionallyor incidentally.

The USFWS, according to Warren,is eager to work with owners to helpthem carry out projects in a way thatwill minimize jeopardy to endangeredspecies. Examples he gave includedaltering floor or landscape plansslightly.

He said that measures taken byhomeowners, in the case where nofederal nexus is involved, are largelyvoluntary.

The hope would be that real es-tate agents would notify the propertyowners (if there are critical species orhabitats for them on their property).

People can also request a publicmeeting after the public comment pe-riod is passed, Warren said.

Part of their mission, he said, is topresent reasonable alternatives thatpreserve the rights of property own-ers, but also protect endangeredspecies.

The GICIA said they hoped toavoid the issue altogether, and of-fered to designate all of their conser-vancy lands as habitat for theprickly-apple, in a proposal to miti-gate the effects of development onprivately owned residential land, butwere told by the USFWS that wouldbe impossible.

Prickly applefrom PAGE 3

This Saturday, June 7 from8 to 11 p.m., the 10th an-nual Howl at the Moon In-vitational Tarpon Tournament,sponsored by Gasparilla Outfit-ters, will take place in BocaGrande Pass. There are still slotsavailable.

The entry fee is $500 per four-angler team. Prizes for first, sec-ond and third place will beawarded.

Contact Melina at GasparilllaOutfitters, 964-0907, for more in-formation.

Sign up now for Howlat the Moon

Crit habitat desp09