OTHER ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUES 



Over the past few decades, extensive areas of Southwest Florida's 

 interior wetlands and uplands have been dredged and drained and extensive 

 diking has led to a major alteration of Southwest Florida's coastal wetlands. 

 Coastal ecological alterations have caused changes in habitat composition, 

 reduced the abundance of detritus and other sources of nutrients, decreased 

 dissolved oxygen concentrations, excessively increased coliform counts, 

 destroyed fresh-and saltwater marshes, and reduced natural purification of 

 urban and suburban runoff. Natural eroding processes such as beach and river 

 erosion and man-induced destruction of natural vegetation and habitat have 

 caused further stress on fish and wildlife species (Florida State Department 

 of Environmental Regulation 1979a). 



This section identifies major manmade and natural environmental issues 

 that are not necessarily pollution oriented. Because of its long coastline, 

 tidal action, and extensive river networks and high flows, the hydrology of 

 Southwest Florida is highly dynamic. Thousands of acres of marine grassbeds 

 and mangrove communities are found throughout the estuaries, rivers, and tidal 

 creeks. The status of environmental conditions in Southwest Florida as 

 described by Milliman and Sipe (1979) are given below. 



The Charlotte Harbor area, including Lemon Bay, Charlotte 

 Harbor, Piyone Sound, Matoachua Pass, San Carlo Bay, and 

 Estero Bay, is the largest estuarine system in Florida and 

 one of the most productive. Continued maintenance of natural 

 salinity levels is vital to this productivity. The quality 

 of water in the bays and estuaries is threatened by develop- 

 ment in the area. Urban and agricultural storm runoff, 

 sewage effluent and septic tank seepage provide fertilizer 

 for algae growth and result in oxygen depletion. Addition- 

 ally, coliform bacteria unacceptable to commercial shellfish 

 harvesting has resulted from septic tank pollution. Mangrove 

 forests cover thousands of acres around the bays and lagoons. 

 They provide habitat for wildlife, buffers from hurricane 

 storms and in recent years dredge and fill operations have 

 destroyed large areas of mangrove forests. Also, urban and 

 agricultural development have changed drainage characteris- 

 tics of upland flows and freshwater into the mangroves and 

 thus increase the amount and level of runoff concentrations. 

 Thus salinity balances are disturbed and more nutrients are 

 washed into the bay without natural filtration by the man- 

 groves. Development that interferes with mangroves thus can 

 affect the water quality, reduce hurricane protection, and 

 threaten production of fish and wildlife. 



Eight major environmental issues have been identified by the Southwest 

 Florida Regional Planning Council's report on growth management of southwest 

 Florida (1979). The most pressing issue is the competition for land and water 

 necessary to meet the multiple demands of a rapidly growing population. 

 Southwest Florida is confronted with potentially unserviceable and environmen- 

 tally unsuitable residential locations that would serve better as marshes. 

 About 94% of the undeveloped lots platted in Charlotte, Lee, and Sarasota 



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