Florida Panhandle

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The forests and numerous rivers of the Florida panhandle provide recreational opportunities for hunters, fishermen, hikers, boaters and canoeists. In addition, the nutrient-rich fresh river water of the Florida panhandle makes the bays and estuaries along the Gulf Coast some of the most productive in the world. In fact, 10 percent of all the oysters harvested in the United States come from Apalachicola Bay.

Threats
The longleaf pine forests that once cove red approximately 90 million acres from Virginia to Texas have been reduced to fewer than three million acres. Until very recently, the Florida panhandle had escaped the development pressures seen in the rest of the state. However, the largest landowner in the Florida panhandle, the St. Joe Company (formerly the St. Joe Paper Company), has recently decided to commercially develop the region and has begun selling off a significant portion of its one million acres to land prospectors. Another threat to the longleaf pine ecosystems has been forestry practices on both public and private lands that have replaced the native longleaf pine forest with fast-growing slash pine plantations that retain only a fraction of the land’s original biodiversity. Fire, a natural regeneration process for the wiregrass community, has been suppressed. On public lands, largely unregulated off-road vehicle use is also increasing.

Efforts to Increase Protected Areas
The Nature Conservancy has a 6,000-acre preserve along the Apalachicola River and has recently signed a Memorandum of Partnership with the state of Florida and the U.S. Department of Defense to establish a 100-mile protected corridor that connects Eglin Air Force Base and the Apalachicola National Forest.

Written by Brett Paben
WildLaw
www.wildlaw.org

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