7/21/1998 - Laserfiche WebLink

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F-1 0 DRAFT - DRAFT -- Letter to be signed by ALL BCC Letter to U.S. House and Senate Appropriations Committee Members A number of your _ (fill in the Representative's state) constituents are visitors and winter resi- dents in Martin County. They come hen: to share our love and enjoyment of the St. Lucie Estuary. This spring we had an unnatural disaster in Martin County. Discharges from the Federal Flood Control System for South Florida destroyed our St. Lucie Estuary and caused an epidemic of diseased fish that is still with us. These discharges from Lake Okeechobze destroyed our economy and our environment. We will recover, but until the Central and South Florida Flood Control Project (Everglades Restoration) is totally rebuilt, we will fact the same kind of discharges on a regular basis. To protect and restore our estuary we need full and continuing funding for. - Kissimmee Restoration, - The Everglades Restudy, and - Restudy Critical Projects. Without restoration of the Kissimmee River, destroyed by a federal flood control project, pol- luted runoff will continue to be rapidly routed to Lake Okeechobee. When Lake levees are threatened, massive discharges to tide will result which destroy our estuary. Without the Everglades Restudy, there is no alternative to these discharges. Without the Critical Projects which ace already planned and ready to go, the Restudy benefits will be much mote uncertain and much slower in coming. WRDA 98 is the funding vehicle for these projects. The Corps' recommended budget has al- ready been painfully reduced by Senate Appropriations. The House WRDA budget destroys our Critical Project funding and halts Kissimmee Restoration. It has crippling reductions for the Restudy itself. These projects are not just important to Martin County and the St. Lucie Estuary. They are the key to Everglades Restoration as well. Everglades National Park, the Biscayne National Monument, the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary, the Big Cypress National Preserve, and the Loxahatchee Na- tional Wildlife Refuge are all hurting and will suffer continuing degradation until the Restudy is imple- mented. We need your help. Please call if you have any questions. Sincerely, 5 BCC Commissioner Ginn queried whether the Board wanted to express its concern over the lack of support to the Congressional delegation. Commissioner Adams felt there was not enough information and assumptions were being made regarding the causes of the various problems. There is an ongoing study being done. After discussion, Commissioner Adams thought it was interesting that people assume the water from a dam is released over the top when, in fact, it is released from the bottom with all of the muck. No action was taken. July 21, 1998 -29- Boof J 'PAGE 4366