gulf coast is one of Southwest Florida's major tourist attractions. The 

 beaches and related facilities play a major role in the economy throughout the 

 year, especially in the winter. 



Coastal waters and major tributaries provide routes for waterborne tran- 

 sportation of goods and supplies, such as oil and agricultural products. They 

 also provide sites for ports and harbors, and for other economic activities 

 that rely on coastal resources. The coast is a primary site for large 

 electric generating facilities, and in some areas it supplies an abundance of 

 sand, shells, and oil and gas. 



OCS OIL AND GAS 



Offshore oil and gas development, deepwater ports, processing and 

 shipping of petroleum products, and other OCS-related activities potentially 

 could have major environmental, economic, and social impacts on Southwest 

 Florida's coastal wetlands, natural resources, and communities. A major 

 environmental threat is the potential for oil spills during drilling and 

 transporting of oil. A major oil spill could be devastating because of the 

 coast's vulnerable environment and its heavy reliance on its beaches for 

 tourism. Intensive OCS exploration and development usually generates new 

 onshore activity that causes additional environmental, economic, and social 

 impacts (either beneficial or detrimental). These impacts are discussed in 

 the chapter on Mineral and Oil Resources. 



ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AND COMPETITION FOR LAND AND WATER 



LAND AND WATER DEVELOPMENT 



Historical Background 



Florida was acquired by the United States Government from Spain in 1821, 

 but was not granted statehood until 1845 when its population was about 55,000. 

 Upon statehood Florida received title to very little land, only 202,000 ha 

 (500,000 acres) for internal improvement purposes, and one section (259 ha or 

 640 acres) in every township for education purposes. The state did, however, 

 become owner and trustee of the bottoms of all navigable waters. 



It was not until 1850 that the State gained title to 8.3 million ha (20.5 

 million acres) of swamp and overflow land. The remaining land stayed in 

 Federal ownership or was conveyed directly to individuals by the Federal 

 Government. 



An early goal of the State and the Internal Improvement Board (created in 

 1851) was to encourage internal improvement. The primary tool for achieving 

 this goal was by disposing of land, its most plentiful commodity. In the late 

 1800's the railroads received approximately one-third of the land or 4.45 

 million ha (11 million acres) in exchange for laying 1,800 km (1,100 mi) of 

 track, an average 4,047 ha (10,000 acres) per mile of track (Landers 1975). 



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