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Photo © RJ Wiley

“Short hydroperiod wetlands are the type of wetlands that have seen the greatest reduction in extent as a result of human-induced alterations, and the greatest period of development has occurred over the past 20 years.” - Jason Lauritsen, Big Cypress Ecosystem Science Coordinator, Audubon of Florida.

Developers, such as Mirasol, set their sites on destroying the Cocohatchee Slough back in 2000 when Mirasol applied for a state and federal permits to build its residential golf course project. The original proposal to the South Florida Water Management District and US Army Corps of Engineers called for a regional drainage ditch.

First Mirasol Proposal in 2000 Denied in 2005

At that time, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the Cocohatchee Slough Coalition of Audubon of Florida, Collier County Audubon Society, National Wildlife Federation, Florida Wildlife Federation, and The Conservancy of Southwest Florida documented that the drainage ditch had no regional flood protection benefits. The Corps denied the permit in 2005.

Second Mirasol Proposal Challenged in 2006 and 2007

Mirasol’s developer reapplied shortly thereafter to both the District and Corps, maintaining its plans for the same golf courses and housing units (and more then 600 acres of wetland destruction) but deleting the regional ditch, and consequently reconfiguring the entire drainage and stormwater system for the site. The District Governing Board approved the revised version of the Mirasol state permit (without the regional ditch) in October 2006.

The Cocohatchee Slough Coalition immediately challenged this in a Chapter 120 Administrative Hearing, which took place in April and May 2007. On July 24, 2007, Administrative Law Judge Don Alexander issued a ruling, recommending that the District Governing Board approve the permit on July 24, 2007. The District Governing Board has scheduled a hearing on this Final Order for September 13, 2007 in West Palm Beach.