Remember when the Florida Water and Land Conservation Initiative, Amendment 1 was on the November 4, 2014 ballot?
It was approved By the public and said the measure was designed to dedicate 33 percent of net revenue from existing excise tax on documents to the Land Acquisition Fund.The Land Acquisition Trust Fund was developed to acquire and improve conservation easements, wildlife management areas, wetlands, forests, fish and wildlife habitats, beaches and shores, recreational trails and parks, urban open space, rural landscapes, working farms and ranches, historical and geological sites, lands protecting water and drinking water and lands in the Everglades Agricultural Areas and the Everglades Protection Area.
The fund was designed to manage and restore natural systems and to enhance public access and recreational use of public land.
Do you think the 2nd Amendment will be destroyed by the Biden Administration?(2)
In short, Amendment 1 was designed to fund water quality and environmental projects across Florida.
The Everglades Foundation wants to buy 46,700 acres south of Lake Okechobee. The purchase price is $700 million but the price to build a 26,000 acre reservoir on the property is another $2 billion. The proposed reservoir will not hold enough water to have an impact on estuaries or the Everglades water quality.
Proponents say Amendment 1 money was supposed to be used to buy the small option land but the politicians are thwarting the will of the people.Also, if the purchase of the land goes thru, the requirements of Amendment 1 will be further violated and funds earmarked for other projects will be stolen.
So far, 365 Army Corp approved water projects have applied for Amendment 1 funds across Florida and it will ultimately affect drinking water quality. There funding is now being jeopardized.
Florida Citizens Against Waste (FCAW) website states the following about the land grab:
FCAW also says it is important for the state to finish the $10 billion Everglades Restoration instead of diverting money to buy unnecessary land because the restoration is working. Federally-mandated tests have shown a 55% drop in phosphates in the water which far exceeds Federal water quality standards. It is obvious the Restoration is working.An incredibly expensive land grab that makes no hydrologic, environmental or economic sense and will only disrupt the restoration program and divert resources from projects and efforts that are working.