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May 17, 2001 Minutes The mission of the Watershed Council is to protect, conserve, manage and/or restore the land and water resources of the Caloosahatchee and Big Cypress Watersheds through participation and cooperation of all stakeholders in consensus building, planning, and decision making to meet the economic, natural and cultural needs for this and succeeding generations. The
May 17, 2001 meeting of the Watershed Council was held at the Hendry County
Courthouse in LaBelle, Florida from 10:00 a.m. to 12:00 Noon. Present:
Karen Andress, Noel Andress, Lester Baird, Allison
Baker, Andrew Barienbrock, Mike Bauer, Ellie Boyd, Gene Boyd, Susan Brookman,
John Capece, John Cassani, Mike Clevenger, Mark Hampton, Tony Pellicer, Ellen
Peterson, Fran Stallings, Janet Strutzel, Howard Wegis, and Charlotte Zerof Agenda/Discussion Items: 1. Welcome/Introductions: Susan
Brookman welcomed the Council members and introductions were made.
The Council thanked the Hendry County representatives for hosting the
meeting. The Council was pleased to
hold a meeting in Hendry County because we want the organization to grow and
include more members from outside of Lee County. 2. Administration Committee Report:A.
Proposed By-laws and Articles of Incorporation
(Susan Brookman) Susan asked the Council if they had reviewed the
by-laws and the articles of incorporation on the website and asked if there were
any questions or concerns. A
suggestion was made to incorporate a clause into the articles that states that
the Council can perform any and all duties/actions that any corporation can
perform under the laws of the state of Florida. Fran Stallings reported that some other groups had run into
problems in the past regarding not being able to perform certain duties because
they didn’t have such a clause. John
Cassani asked if any restrictions might be associated with such a clause.
It is the understanding of the Council that there wouldn’t be any
restrictions associated with a clause such as this and it wouldn’t effect
which tax bracket the Council would fall into.
The Council agreed by consensus to incorporate the language, have an
attorney review the documents and then move forward with filing for the 501C3
and 501H status. B.
Board of Directors
(Susan Brookman) The proposed articles outline the board of directors
as consisting of 7 board members with the responsibility of implementing
policies of this Council, as opposed to establishing policies.
Susan sent out an email prior to the Coucnil meeting asking if anyone was
interested in serving as a board member. Noel
Andress, Mike Bauer, and Steve Luta responded.
Mike Duever was nominated by Mark Hampton, but has not been contacted to
determine his willingness to serve at this time.
Gene Boyd nominated Susan Brookman and John Cassani and they agreed to
consider serving. Lester Baird
nominated Bill Maddox. Bill was out
of the room at the time of nomination, so his willingness to participate will be
determined at another time. Another
individual that may be interested is Henry Spang, but he is currently in Europe
and will be contacted when he returns. Karen
Doyle also expressed her willingness to participate as a board member.
At this time, the Council agreed to post the names and affilliations of
interested individuals on the website and allow other members to consider adding
their names to the proposed list. At
the next meeting, the Council will decide who shall serve on the board of
directors. C.
Website (Susan Brookman reporting for webmaster Steve
Brookman) The website is up and running at www.swfwc.org.
The Brookmans volunteered to cover the cost of the website at this time.
The cost includes a two year domain name for $70, a $25 set-up fee, and a
$14.95/month fee. Steve is
maintaining the website and the Council agreed that he is doing a great job and
the website looks good. The account
comes with 5 email accounts. A
suggestion was made to give some of the board members or committee chairs an
email account. Please remember to
use the discussion group site on the website.
We have the capability to process membership dues online through this
website, so keep this in mind. Membership
dues can also be paid by check made payable to the Southwest Florida Watershed
Council. A free link exists with
Amazon.com that allows the Council to list a few favorite books. If someone accessess amazon.com through our website there is
a kick-back (a few cents if someone buys a book and a few more if it is one of
our “favorite” books.) So, this
is something the Council wants to look into.
Council members were asked to email Steve and let him know of any
problems you encounter (bad links, etc) and any ideas or information that you
would like to see on the website. D. Potential Office Sites
(Noel Andress) Noel informed the Council that we have several possibilities for office space and a permanant address, which is required to become a leagl entity and set up a bank account. These include the “Ding” Darling National Wildlife Refuge, the Calusa Nature Center and Planetarium, a private individual’s office in the Miles Building across from the South Florida Water Mangement District, and perhaps the Isaack Walton League which is located at the College of Life Foundation in Estero. Thoughts on potential sites included that “Ding” Darling may be too “geographically removed” and that the Isaack Walton League sounds like a good possibility due to the location near the interstate. Noel will pursue the possibilities with the Isaack Walton League. E. Proposed Budget
(Noel Andress) Noel passed out a proposed budget and the Council reviewed it. Suggestions included reducing the amount for the website design and maintenance, doubling the costs for postage and phone services, adding an “education” category, and adding a “special projects” category. The proposed budget will be added to the website with a link to Noel so that other suggestions can be made. Susan reminded the Council that once we have a board of directors, a Treasurer will be identified who will further develop this budget. This current budget Noel is working on is required for incorporation and is only a rough estimate at this time. Also, Susan reminded the members to record hours spent on these projects, as we need to recognize volunteer time. This is why it is important to sign in and for the committee chairs to keep a record of committee attendants. 3. Natural Resources
Committee Report (Allison Baker) A.
TMDL’s: The
Total Maximum Daily Load and Impaired Water Bodies Rule, at the time of the last
committee meeting, had two rule challenges, but had been adopted by the Florioda
Department of Environmental Protection (DEP).
There is concern that some “priority” water bodies in the two basins
may not be added to the Impaired Water Bodies list because of data requirements.
The committee’s action at this time is to gather more information on
this issue. Some suggestions made
by committee members for possible courses of action include interfacing with
DEP/EPA to determine how to get priority water bodies on the list, pursuing the
possibility of working with legislator’s to get resources assigned to DEP so
that water bodies can get on the list, and linking the TMDL website to our
website with a map. Andy
Barienbrock, Connie Jarvis, and Tony Pellicer will keep the committee up to
speed on this issue. Allison
requested that the Council add Pat Fricano (DEP) and a representative from the
Clean Water Network to the June agenda. B.
Minimum Flows and Levels: The South Florida Water Management District (SFWMD)
has identified specific minimum flows and levels for a few rivers and aquifers
and if no rule challenges occurred the MFL should be in effect soon.
Fran Stallings informed the Council that the MFL is being revised and
will be re-submitted to the Florida Administrative Weekly for comments/rule
challenges. Some concerns about the
rule were discussed at this time. John
Cassani and Allison Baker will review MFL revisions and bring information to the
Council. The committee hopes to identify a representative from the
Council to attend all Governing Board Workshops/SFWMD hearings.
At this time, it was suggested to post meeting dates and summaries on the
web. Tony Pellicer proposed adding
a calendar of events to the website. This
is being looked into at this time. C. Southwest Florida
Feasibility Study: This study
is a major project in our area coming out of the Comprehensive Everglades
Restoration Plan (CERP) and seeks to “provide a framework in which to address
the health of aquatic ecosystems; water flows; water quality; water supply;
flood protection; wildlife and biological diversity; and habitat restoration and
protection.” Howard Wegis,
Michael Clevenger, and Allison Baker will continue attending SWFFS team meetings
and report to the committee. Allison
asked the Council to consider inviting a representative from the US Army Corps
of Engineers and the South Water Management District to a council meeting to
present this study and other local CERP projects. The Council would like to have a presentation on this subject
at the July Council meeting. Lester
Baird informed the Council that there is a public meeting set with Chip Merriam
(SFWMD) for June 12 at 2 pm at the Clewiston City Hall to discuss issues
regarding CERP and land acquisition. There
is concern about land being acquired for CERP projects and the effects on Hendry
County’s fragile economy.
D.
Annual Water Summit: The committee requested that the Council host an Annual Water
Summit for the 2 basins similar to what the Charlotte Harbor National estuary
Program (CHNEP) does for the Charlotte Harbor area. The first step would be to coordinate with the education
committee and form a steering committee. John
Cassani spoke about the discussions the Education committee had on the subject
and a steering committee has been formed. The education committee came up with the idea of hosting a
joint conference with the American Water Resources Association.
At this time specifics and particulars regarding the content of the
summit have not been identified. Shannon
Ruby, John Cassani, and Janet Strutzel will take the lead for the natural
resources committee on this issue. E.
Water Quality: As
was discussed in earlier Council meetings, the committee seeks to determine who
is monitoring both water and soil quality (including effects of pesticides
/pesticide use) in the two basins. The
committee would like to link those organizations’ and agencies’ webpages and
data to the Council’s website. Connie
Jarvis has already begun researching agencies who are conducting water quality
analysis in the area. Karen Andress
and Allison Baker will assist her in these efforts. F. Next Meeting: The next meeting of the committee will be held on Thursday, May 24 at 2 pm at the Lee County Public Works Building, 1500 Monroe. The committee invites all interested Council members to attend. 4. Education Committee Report(Gene Boyd) A.
Brochure: The
committee is working on a brochure about the Council. Once it is finalized and approved by the Council, visitors to
the website should be able to download the brochure. Tony Pellicer has taken the lead on this project and
distributed copies of the draft brochure. The
text on the inside of the brochure is simply a place holder.
Please give Tony input on the topics and text for the inside of the
brochure. Gene asked that we
respond to Tony within the next few weeks. B.
FAQ’s: A
“Frequently Asked Questions” sheet is being developed by one of the
committee members. The committee
hopes to bring the FAQ sheet to the next Council meeting for review. Tony suggested getting the FAQ sheet on the web and having
the Council members supply answers to the FAQ’s.
The Council agreed that this was an appropriate way to get the FAQ sheet
together prior to Council review at the next meeting. C.
Water Resource Professionals Database: John Cassani put together a registration form and is
developing a database for water resource professionals.
The registration form is on the web and asks water resource professionals
to fill it out in order to promote collaboration and integration.
John asked that if you know or work with an agency or group with many
professionals, that you coordinate all of the information for the group and
email it to him. D. Other Work:
The committee is finding sites to link to the Council website.
Someone is working up an outreach presentation and a PowerPoint
presentation on Water Conservation. Additionally,
a committee member is working on a “State of the Tributaries” document.
Also, the committee is developing a workshop for environmental educators.
A question was asked if it would be possible to get the PowerPoint
presentation on the website. This
is a possibility to pursue. 5. New Business: A.
National Wildlife Reguge: Allison Baker informed the Council about the J.N. “Ding”
Darling National Wildlife Refuge Complex Proposed Boundary Expansion effort and
upcoming public information meetings. The
Complex (including “Ding” Darling, Island Bay, Caloosahatchee, Pine Island
and Matlacha Pass National Wildlife Refuges) is currently going through the
planning process to expand/establish our acquisition boundary.
This is a normal process that the Refuge has undertaken in the past and
that other refuges conduct regularly. The
Complex must identify a “boundary” in which we can acquire lands if they are
available and we have the money. The
normal process is to write a Draft Environmental Assessment and Land Management
Plan, which must be approved by the Director of the USFWS, seek public comment
by holding three public meetings and accepting written comments for 30 days, and
then publish the final Environmental Assessment (EA).
Our process is being modified to include initial public information
meetings, draft the EA, then hold more public meetings and seek written comments
for 60 days, and then publish the final EA.
Allison extended an invitation to attend and share comments at the three
public information meetings next week. You
must register to speak prior to each meeting (register at the meeting - ½ hour
early). The meetings will take
place as follows: Tuesday May 22, 7 pm, (registration at 6:30), Fishers
of Men Lutheran Church, Pine Island (Left
on Stringfellow, 2 blocks on the left) Wednesday
May 23, 9:30 am (registration at 9 am), JNDDNWR Center for Education, Sanibel Wednesday May 23, 7 pm (registration at 6:30 pm),
Ramada Inn at Amtel Marina (Old Sheraton),
Downtown Ft. Myers, Edwards Drive B.
Tape Grass Restoration Project: John Cassani is working on a tape grass restoration
pilot study in the upper Caloosahatchee. He
encouraged the members to participate and support this effort.
Possible participation will include going out in a boat and planting tape
grass. C.
Lee Plan: Noel Andress announced that he had initiated two
proposed amendments to the Lee Plan (the comprehensive plan for Lee County) and had
discussions with Lee County Planners. One topic is a set of Lee County
policies for management of the Caloosahatchee River. The second is
regarding the Charlotte Harbor Flatwoods project, seeking the possible expansion
of the Charlotte Harbor NEP to include the area south of Punta Gorda to
Alligator Slough. Noel also wants to explore the possibility of making
additional funding available for more water quality monitoring of Matlacha and
Pine Island Sounds. County staff hopes to have a first draft before the
July meeting of the LPA (Local Planning Agency). D.
Library: John
Cassani has established a library that is accessible via the website.
He asked that Council members add titles and sources of publication to
this library. Win Everham had
volunteered to find someone to scan some documents and make them available on
the web. The Regional Planning
Council has a good library with water resources information. E.
Miscellaneous: John
Cassani reported that the committee meetings are going well.
Mike Bauer commented that he is stunned at what progress the
committee’s are making. John also reminded the Council that as we move
forward formal membership will be required.
So, be thinking about joining. John
also reminded committees to get
meeting summaries, dates of meetings, and agendas to the webmaster for posting. 6. Next Meetings: Meeting
dates for July, August and September were identified. July 19th, Collier County August 16th, Lee County, September, Hendry or Glades County
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