Ros-Lehtinen Plans Meeting on Habitat Lawsuit

By David Ball, The Reporter, Tavernier, Fla.

Jun. 13–U.S. Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen met with top officials from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and Federal Emergency Management Agency last week to discuss wildlife maps that, because of an 18-year-old lawsuit, could prevent development on thousands of Keys properties.

Ros-Lehtinen’s chief of staff, Arthur Estopinan, said the congresswoman is planning to meet with those same government agencies and Keys residents during the second week in July at the Marathon Government Center.

Also invited are National Wildlife Federation, Florida Wildlife Federation and Defenders of Wildlife, which all sued the federal agencies for violating the Endangered Species Act and threatening the habitat of several Keys species.

“Both the congresswoman and the federal agencies are in agreement to invite the environmental groups that brought the lawsuit to join the townhall meeting,” Estopinan said. “It’s to bring them to the table and see how everyone can move forward.”

But the groups’ attorney, Henry Morgenstern, said his clients wouldn’t likely attend.

“I do not think that kind of meeting is appropriate for a case that is in litigation,” Morgenstern said. “I don’t think any of the parties will be sitting down and discussing this.”

The case began in 1990, when the environmental groups filed a lawsuit seeking to compel the FEMA to consult with the Fish and Wildlife over where flood insurance can be issued. Flood insurance can only be issued in Florida by FEMA and is required for most new construction loans.

The groups claimed issuing flood insurance, and thereby allowing development, on certain properties jeopardized habitat of eight endangered and threatened species, including the Key deer, Key Largo cotton mouse, Key Largo woodrat, Lower Keys marsh rabbit, Schaus’ swallowtail butterfly, silver rice rat, Stock Island tree snail, Garber’s sponge and Key tree cactus.

In 1994, U.S. District Court Judge Michael Moore ruled in favor of the plaintiffs and ordered FEMA to consult with Fish and Wildlife. In 1997, that agency determined the FEMA flood program was jeopardizing the species.

After several revisions, the plaintiffs again challenged the program. In 2005, the court granted the plaintiffs’ motion for an injunction to stop FEMA from issuing flood insurance for any new development in the suitable habitat of the listed species based on Fish and Wildlife maps.

However, those maps were widely challenged — they originally included half of the Florida Keys Marathon Airport runway as suitable habitat — and work began on updating the information.

At first, 50,000 properties were affected, but now about 15,000 remain on the list. Morgenstern had allowed affected property owners to pay $100 to have lots surveyed for possible removal from the list. He said 650 had applied and 85 percent of the lots were removed.

“We want to make it clear the injunction has had no affect, zero affect, on development in the Keys,” he said, adding the full allotment of building permits has been granted every quarter by Keys governments.

“It may affect the location of development, but it’s not stopping development.”

Morgenstern said the issue can only be resolved in the courts, while Estopinan said Ros-Lehtinen is hopeful she can help expedite the removal of even more properties from the list.

“This is definitely an issue of great concern to a good number of her constituents,” Estopinan said. “She wants to be as helpful as she can at cutting down the red tape of bureaucracy sometimes involved with federal government.”

—–

To see more of The Reporter or to subscribe to the newspaper, go to http://www.upperkeysreporter.com/.

Copyright (c) 2008, The Reporter, Tavernier, Fla.

Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services.

For reprints, email tmsreprints@permissionsgroup.com, call 800-374-7985 or 847-635-6550, send a fax to 847-635-6968, or write to The Permissions Group Inc., 1247 Milwaukee Ave., Suite 303, Glenview, IL 60025, USA.