training programs and curricula in the 

 Franklin County secondary school system. 

 A group of educational films on the 

 Apalachicola drainage system has been 

 developed for showing throughout the 

 valley. The close interaction of aquatic 

 research with local and regional elements 

 has been one of the keys to the successful 

 a management program for 

 effort will be carried 

 the auspices of 

 Apalachicola Estuarine Sanctuary if 

 effective mode of administration can 

 establ ished. 



development of 

 the area. This 

 largely under 



out 



the 



an 



be 



7.4.3. Local Planning Efforts and 

 Integrated Management 



A series 

 Commissions have 

 establishment of 

 local development 



These 

 zoning 



plans have 

 restrictions 



of Florida County 



been responsible for the 



comprehensive plans for 



and resource management. 



the legal 

 which have 



status of 

 been upheld 



ST GEORGE 

 ISLAND 



SANCTUARY 



PROPOSED 



iiji 



EEL 



FEDERAL 



Figure 49. Boundaries of the Apalachicola 

 River and Bay Estuarine Sanctuary, includ- 

 ing actual and proposed purchases accord- 

 ing to the Environmentally Endangered 

 Lands (EEL) Program (state) and current 

 federal holdings. 



in recent court decisions. For some 

 years, agencies such as the Apalachee 

 Regional Planning Council, the Washington, 

 D.C. -based Conservation Foundation, 

 Florida State University, and the Florida 

 Sea Grant College have aided local 

 officials in the development of a 

 comprehensive management plan for Franklin 

 County. During the summer of 1981, the 

 Franklin County Commission passed a plan 

 which installed various restrictions on 

 the level and tyoe of construction 

 activities in the area and established low 

 density requirements in environmentally 

 sensitive areas. These areas include 

 wetlands, barrier islands, and portions of 

 the county that drain into oyster bars and 

 grass beds (Livingston 19R3c). This plan, 

 in conjunction with the estuarine 

 sanctuary program and state and federal 

 management, could eventually provide for 

 the orderly development of the area while 

 managing the natural resources of the 

 region. Passage of the plan is only the 

 first step in the planning process. 

 Successful implementation of the Franklin 

 County Comprehensive Plan has not yet been 

 achieved, and the status of local resource 

 management in the estuarine sanctuary 

 remains in doubt. 



7.4.4. Integration of Management Efforts 



A diverse series of management 

 approaches coordinated through local user 

 associations and the estuarine sanctuary 

 could provide the key for broadening the 

 economic base of the region while 

 conserving the unique natural assets of 

 the Apalachicola drainage system. This 

 resource use will have to be subiect to 

 specific internal controls as the 

 population grows to prevent overfishing 

 and other problems related to the fishing 

 industry. 



Long-term scientific data have been 

 used to address local problems such as 

 pesticide use, aquatic weed control, 

 shoreline development, and other aspects 

 of human activity around the bay. Such 

 problems have often been solved through 

 close cooperation between researchers and 

 local elected officials. The initial 

 studies, funded through a series of grants 

 administered by the Florida Sea Grant 

 College, provided needed information 

 concerning the ecologically sensitive 

 points in the drainage system. These 



110 



