Sugar company buyout for Everglades restoration approved by board

The state of Florida's buyout of U.S. Sugar Corp. to restore the Everglades is a step closer to reality after the South Florida Water Management District approved of the deal last week, according to the Miami Herald and other sources.

The water district's governing board agreed to a scaled-back version of the original plan for the state to buy out the sugar company and take over the land. Florida lawmakers had threatened to disapprove of the deal back in December -- which still could happen -- and there is still the issue of funding. Previously, the state proposed to pay more than a billion dollars for 180,000 acres; last week, water managers approved of $536 million for 72,800 acres.

Florida revamping plan to buy out sugar company

Back to the drawing board. The state of Florida's plan to buy out U.S. Sugar Corp for $1.75 billion to acquire the company's 187,000 acres and its assets is likely to be scaled back, according to the New York Times and other sources. In the latest version of the purchase, the state would get land to hold water and help restore the flow of water from Lake Okeechobee into the Everglades, but U.S. Sugar would remain in operation.

The details are still being worked out, but environmentalists are saying that producing sugar in the Everglades is counterproductive to Everglades restoration, and some are even saying the cost to treat the polluted water should be deducted from the final sale price.

A transaction this big is sure to take some time to figure out....

Florida to buy land from sugar corporation to restore Everglades

This is huge news. The state of Florida is planning to buy 185,000 acres from U.S. Sugar Corp. for Everglades restoration, according to the Sarasota Herald Tribune and many other sources.

I feel as though I've woken up in an alternate-reality world. Who would have thought? This is an even bigger land deal than the Babcock Ranch from a couple years ago.

Could this be the beginning of the end of the problem the Everglades has with phosphates? And water-flow problems? And ... so much more?

St. Pete-area preserves

Pinellas County has caught the attention of USA Today as a destination that has nice green space despite being the most crowded county in Florida. (You would think Miami-Dade would have that top spot, but Pinellas is smaller geographically, so the population has to fit into less room. I think Miami-Dade is #2, though.) The article highlights Weedon Island Preserve and Booker Creek Preserve. Those are both great places, and if you get far enough into them on the trails, you'd never know you were surrounded by suburbia.

There is some debate about whether it makes sense ecologically to preserve "small" chunks of land like city and county preserves -- some people believe only large areas of land really work to help species. Whether small preserves are ecologically beneficial or not, though, I still think they are great for people's state of mind! I think we all need some "green time" now and then, and if you can get that down the street, that's great!

What do you think?