From Dave Kandz - St. Petersburg Audubon Society
SPAS Action Alert 03-25-09 - Emergency Action Needed to save Egmont Key!
Here we go again.....
Dear Friends of Egmont Key --
Leaders of the Florida Senate have asked state agencies to submit new budget cutting proposals due to a potential $6.5 billion deficit in 2009-10. The Department of Environmental Protection is proposing that 58 state parks that do not have campgrounds and cabins be closed three days a week to reduce operating expenses.
What has not been discussed openly is that State Parks operating on land not owned by the State of Florida will be returned to their land owners.
Egmont Key State Park is one of those parks!
USFWS, the owner of Egmont Key, is not staffed to provide full-time protection to the Park.
Egmont Key is a park like no other --
There is no location in the state where migratory bird nesting, sea turtle nesting, a large and healthy gopher tortoise population come together in one place.
Egmont Key was visited by Robert E. Lee while a member of a U. S. Army survey team; the team recommended Egmont Key be set aside for future use by the Federal Government for protection of the mainland.
The Egmont Key light has guided mariners to safe harbor for over 150 years.
Egmont Key contains priceless structures dating from the Spanish-American war, one of the few places preserving remaining buildings from that era.
The island is truly a jewel in the mouth of Tampa Bay and it should be kept safe for residents and visitors to the State of Florida to visit and enjoy.
If Egmont Key State Park is closed and Park Rangers leave the island, we lose the 24 hour a day protection of the artifacts and expose all of the wildlife and historic structures to damage or destruction. Egmont Key State Park was created for exactly this reason - to protect the resources that were being lost due to the lack of 24/7 enforcement. We must not let this happen!
Please take action NOW....there is not much time left to reverse this terrible decision.
State Park Ranger guarding Black Skimmers, Royal and Sandwich Terns
(click for larger view)
The State Senate released their General Appropriations draft, which includes the DEP provision to transfer non-owned State Parks, including Egmont, even though Governor Crist previously did not support this. There may be action to pass this through committees in the House on Thurs, March 26th and then it will go to the full House for a vote.
Below are the email addresses of pertinent legislators who could MAKE OR BREAK the most prolific beach nesting bird site for Royal Terns in the entire state, not to mention Sandwich Terns, Least Terns, Black Skimmers, Brown Pelicans....the list of species goes on and on, including the threatened Gopher Tortoise.
Just copy and paste the email addresses below into a short email message and let your legislators know you want Egmont Key kept safe!
If the points above are not enough, keeping Egmont Key a State Park would cost $140,000.00 a year with round the clock protection. Every day the Legislature is in "overtime" session beyond the scheduled May end date will cost $40,000 a day!
j.d.alexander.web@myflorida.gov, Rachel.burgin@myfloridahouse.gov Rick.Kriseman@myfloridahouse.gov, tschrader@pascocountyfl.net, bennett.mike.web@flsenate.gov, trudi.williams@myfloridahouse.gov, ralph.poppell@myfloridahouse.gov, mary.brandenburg@myfloridahouse.gov, leonard.bembry@myfloridahouse.gov, debbie.boyd@myfloridahouse.gov, rachel.burgin@myfloridahouse.gov, steve.crisafulli@myfloridahouse.gov, brad.drake@myfloridahouse.gov, greg.evers@myfloridahouse.gov, richard.glorioso@myfloridahouse.gov, debbie.mayfield@myfloridahouse.gov, jimmy.patronis@myfloridahouse.gov, ronald.renuart@myfloridahouse.gov, faye.culp@myfloridahouse.gov, mia.jones@myfloridahouse.gov, mark.pafford@myfloridahouse.gov, ron.schultz@myfloridahouse.gov, dwight.bullard@myfloridahouse.gov, constantine.lee.web@flsenate.gov, jones.dennis.web@flsenate.gov, dockery.paula.web@flsenate.gov, baker.carey.web@flsenate.gov, lawson.alfred.web@flsenate.gov, aronberg.dave.web@flsenate.gov, king.james.web@flsenate.gov, rich.nan.web@flsenate.gov, sobel.eleanor.web@flsenate.gov, Charlie.Crist@myflorida.com
The birds thank you!
Dave Kandz - St. Petersburg Audubon Society