(from DeSoto County website)
http://www.co.desoto.fl.us/images/bocc/Newspaper%20article%20response.pdf
Once again our local newspaper and author Clinton Burton have provided the public with an article that distorts facts and paints a completely inaccurate picture. The context of the Department of Community Affairs (DCA) response, commonly referred to as an ORC, at times can be vague and easily misunderstood.
We know of this potential misunderstanding because it is exactly what the Central Florida Regional Planning Council did when preparing their review and comments for DCA. After a brief discussion and clarification with the Planning Council’s reviewer, they resubmitted comments and found no objection to the proposed Phosphate Overlay; and furthermore, found it in compliance with regional goals, objectives and policies.
The point about the greater context of an amendment is necessary to understand because it can easily be dismissed. As part of the 2007 adoption and 2008 remedial amendments to our 2030 Comprehensive Plan, the County Commissioners adopted policies that ensure the protection of our natural environmental features and habitat. As a rural county that offers ample eco-tourism opportunities and relies on the river system for potable water, we recognize the importance of the Peace River and its tributaries. This is why the Conservation Overlay, a guiding map not a technical survey, was adopted in 2008 to include all wetlands, floodplain, endangered species habitat, and other environmentally sensitive areas, as identified by best available data from State and Federal sources. Due to the fact that this data is an estimate or best guess, the Conservation Overlay is not all inclusive. Many areas will be identified at future dates as on-site technical surveys are conducted by land owners. In addition, some Conservation Overlay areas will be removed from protection because additional analysis will document the property does not have environmentally sensitive areas.
Most of the protection policies are already included in our Conservation Element and therefore did not need to be resubmitted to DCA. There are seven separate policies sprinkled throughout the Conservation Element and an entire Objective with fourteen (14) additional supportive policies solely regulating mining, including Phosphate. It is these Objectives and additional policies that protect our natural resources. The proposed Overlay was intended only to map potential areas for phosphate mining and to clarify that this use could occur in those areas. The County is not introducing phosphate mining to our Comprehensive Plan. That was done in 1991 with the adoption of the first Plan. The BOCC did this in 1991 because phosphate mining had been recognized through zoning (9,000+ acres since 1981) and ownership by mining companies (since 1970’s). The potential presence of phosphate mining should not be a surprise to anyone within DeSoto or adjacent counties.
The proposed policies and Overlay are reliant on and enhanced by the existing environmental protection policies. DCA’s comment about the removal of protection criteria is misleading. The policies that were removed when we adopted our “new” Plan were specifically related to setbacks from uses, such as a residential structure. The setback regulations are not necessary in the Comprehensive Plan because technical
setback restrictions are only appropriate in the Land Development Regulations (LDR); and because we already have those standards clearly delineated in the LDR and by Ordinance adopted by the BOCC. The approval by DCA to remove those setback standards when they approved our Comprehensive Plan in 2008 is sufficient evidence that this was not detrimental to the protection of our environmental and natural systems.
Our Comprehensive Plan is already loaded policies that protect the environment (21 policies). DCA staff complimented us upon adoption of the Plan in 2008 for our progressive policies and commitment to protecting the environment. Nothing has changed since the 2030 Plan was adopted and nothing will change as a result of a Phosphate Mining Overlay.
In conclusion, there is nothing unique about this proposed Overlay. It is nearly identical to those of Hardee County, Manatee County, and Hillsborough County, which all were approved without issue by DCA and with no objection from Lee County. Staff is working diligently to resolve outstanding issues, incorporate several of DCA and FDEP’s recommendations, and to communicate the relationship between existing and proposed policies. The Comprehensive Plan is a document where each Element within it works in concert together, not in isolation from each other. We continue to follow basic procedures for responding to comments by a state agency.