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Attorney Collins informed the Board that in July 2007, the State legislature imposed <br />an additional requirement which requires the County to consider any information provided by the <br />Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT), regarding the effect the proposed moratorium <br />would have on the availability, transportation, and potential extraction of construction aggregate <br />materials on the local area, region, and the State. He read into the record a letter (copy on file) <br />from Ananth Prasad, P.E., and Chief Engineer for the Florida Department of Transportation, in <br />which was discussed a freeze on three mines in the Lake Belt region of Miami -Dade County. The <br />letter also set forth the State's concerns about how an aggregate shortfall might negatively impact <br />Florida's construction industry, transportation system, and the overall health, safety and welfare of <br />its citizens. <br />Attorney Collins explained that the State wanted the Board to postpone taking action <br />on the mining moratorium until the Strategic Aggregates Review Task Force (SARTF) report has <br />been completed, which is anticipated to be by February 1, 2008. Attorney Collins observed that if <br />something from the report suggested that the moratorium should be lifted immediately, that could <br />be done through an Ordinance. He reported that the new legislation also limited any moratoriums <br />to no more than 12 months, and noted that the proposed Ordinance was for a six-month <br />moratorium, with the understanding that an extension may be warranted. <br />Attorney Collins briefed the Board on the Bert Harris Act, which allows a claim for <br />damages for the diminishment of property values that result from any change to regulations. He <br />stressed that the proposed Ordinance was not intended to defeat approval of the Wild Turkey <br />Mine, but rather to maintain the status quo and not approve, process, or issue any mining permits <br />during the period of the moratorium while an evaluation on the impact of mining activities is <br />conducted. Attorney Collins declared that the end goal of the Ordinance was to better protect <br />public health, safety, and welfare, and to ensure compatibility between mining operations and any <br />land uses that are in relative proximity to it and its haul routes. <br />January 7, 2008 3 <br />