Recreated Wetlands are No Substitute
On Nov. 21, the Herald Tribune featured a front-page story espousing an environmental virtue of suburban development. The article leaves the impression that the environment is better off after development than before.
True, most of Palmer Ranch, and most of Sarasota County for that matter, was once used as a cattle range. Palmer Ranch also has one of the most successful storm water management programs in the state, but the environment as a whole has and will be severely degraded by the development.
While some natural systems and wildlife were destroyed for the cattle operation, the ranch still has many functioning native habitats that support significant numbers of rare, endangered and native wildlife species. Many of these species benefit from some of the range management practices, such as periodic fire used to maintain grasses for cattle.
However, each time we alter the natural system, we lose another group of native species. The rate at which we lose these species is directly related to the loss of resources/habitat on which they rely.
For instance; a Sherman’s fox squirrel will survive with a moderate amount of cattle grazing because the periodic fires and mature pines (resources) on which it relies are left intact. However, remove the pines and fire, such as the case was with the Turtle Rock development, and the Sherman’s fox squirrel – a species on the endangered list and quickly becoming extinct in Sarasota County – is not legitimately considered in the evaluation of Sarasota County development proposals.
The Sherman’s fox squirrel is just the tip of the iceberg. Many of the lakes and “recreated wetlands” provide a food source for some wading birds. However, they do not replace the many intricate functions of natural wetlands. Except for the Myakkas, there are no natural lakes in Sarasota County. Consequently, many native amphibians (some endangered) rely on wetlands, which periodically go dry, to survive. These “wetlands” created for development simply will not and cannot fulfill the full gamut of functions required to promote healthy native ecosystems.
The list of resource deficiencies and affected species goes on and on. The fact is, after Turtle Rock and virtually all other Sarasota developments are completed, more than half of the native wildlife species will become extinct on these sites.
Let’s not fool ourselves. We have no example of an environmentally sensitive development in Sarasota County. Granted we have come a long way from the 1960’s when wetlands, storm water and wildlife considerations were ignored, but even with today’s standards the best we can hope for is to see limited wading birds, mourning doves and armadillos in residential developments. This is not representative of Sarasota wildlife.
The question we need to ask ourselves is, “Are we satisfied with the loss of more than half of our native wildlife species to development?” If the answer is yes, then fear not, for we are on the right track. Impact fees do not remotely cover the costs to purchase conservation lands needed to mitigate the tremendous loss of habitat caused by development, and the postage-stamp-size upland preserves left by developments accomplish nothing toward the long-term preservation of most upland wildlife species. The result is, Sarasota wildlife populations are trapped in a constant downward spiral.
So, the next time you see a great blue heron feeding at the edge of a neighborhood “wetland”, remember that this bird is but a token relic of what was once a rich, diverse ecosystem that supported a host of unique creatures interrelated and dependent upon each other and the habitat in which they lived. We can improve wetlands that we once degraded and we can celebrate achievements in storm water management, but, please, let’s not ignore the big picture. We are doing our environment no favors by developing it.