PLACEMENT: Departmental
TITLE:
title
PETITION TO U.S. FISH AND WILDLIFE SERVICE TO ADD SPECIES IN THE INDIAN RIVER LAGOON TO THE FEDERAL ENDANGERED LIST
end
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY:
executive summary
On August 21, 2018, the Board requested that an agenda item be prepared to discuss the process submit a petition to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) to add species in the Indian River Lagoon to the federal endangered list.
body
DEPARTMENT: Administration
PREPARED BY: Name: Nicole Carey
Title: Purchasing Manager
REQUESTED BY: Board of County Commissioners
PRESET:
PROCEDURES: None
BACKGROUND/RELATED STRATEGIC GOAL:
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) has a process to submit a petition for plants and animals to be placed on the federal endangered or threatened species list. The petition process is extremely intensive and lengthy. The review period once the petition is submitted to USFWS is a minimum of eighteen months.
There are currently two (2) animal species and four (4) plant species on the federal endangered list that exist in the Indian River Lagoon (IRL).
It was suggested at the Board meeting on August 21st that a consultant be engaged to manage the process for the County to submit petitions for three species that are most endangered in the IRL. According to one expert, those species could be (1) Bigmouth Sleeper, Gobiomorus dormitor, (2) Opossum Pipefish, Mycrophis brachyurus lineatus, and (3) Swordspine Snook, Centropomus enciferus. These species exist only in fresh water and if the IRL is threatened, these species could cease to exist.
Staff spoke with two experts that believe if the intended outcome of this project is to stop the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers from discharging water from Lake Okeechobee, it likely will not work. Since there is no statute that speaks to protection of endangered species, human safety will always take precedent. However, if the petition were successful, it could be grounds for litigation.
...
Click here for full text