TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – After the Florida House moved a water bill through Thursday against some environmentalists' wishes, lawmakers are now focusing on land.
A push from environmentalists urging the state to buy up U.S. sugar lands isn't gaining much traction. The deal would expire at the end of this session if the land isn't purchased.
Recommended Videos
Environmental groups have been preaching that Amendment 1, which passed in November, was intended to allow the state to purchase and conserve lands.
Lawmakers got an update from the state's Department of Environmental Protection on what's out there.
"We need to make sure that we have the information gathered together," House State Affairs Committee Chair Rep. Matt Caldwell said. "Why go buy a bunch of ranch land that is in an area that's a low priority for development when we can instead spend that money buying a priority spring?"
The tug-of-war over what exactly the $750 million of Amendment 1 money should be spent on will continue throughout session.
Besides just land conservation, some are now calling for money to be spent taking care of invasive species problems.
"We don't manage the national park, we don't manage the Big Cypress Preserve, we manage our lands which abut. There's no doubt that we've got real problems," said Caldwell. "What's the point of saving the Everglades if it is taken over by pythons and other animals? There's nothing left for anybody to enjoy at that point."
The DEP didn't get into specifics about what should and shouldn't be purchased with the money, but they said, bottom line, it needs to be maintained.
"We do want to make sure our state lands are managed properly," said Kelley Boree, of the DEP. "I believe there's still some key parcels that we should acquire as well, and we need to manage our lands and make sure the public has access to those."
Caldwell said he'd like to see a land bill in the same vein as the comprehensive water bill the House passed earlier this week.