Saturday, February 6, 2010

Conservation rules lack common sense

Government mathematics 101: Last year I entered into an agreement with the state to offset a mitigation fee on a lot I own in Cudjoe Key. The mitigation fee was $18,000. I was advised by the state Department of Environmental Protection in Marathon that they would remove my monetary mitigation fee if I restored any wetland in the Florida Keys to its original footprint. ...

After months of research, I located a parcel in the Upper Keys that was an illegally filled wetland, and the DEP office here verified that determination. I filled out some papers, which verified that this lot was a great candidate for the swap for fees. I then contacted a company to remove the fill, and everything seemed to be moving in the right direction.

Then I received a letter from Bruce Franck ... at DEP, stating there would be a $500 modification fee. Mind you, there was no mention of a fee at the beginning of these discussions, and I was going to donate the lot to them for free when the mitigation was completed. The state is buying lots like this for conservation in this area for $46,500, and this lot is on the state's acquisition list.

Then I told them that I would not give them the lot if they were going to charge me the fee. Guess what they said? "Sal, here is the rule from 62-343.100 Florida Administrative Code regarding modifications. Since your project involves a site visit and substantially changes the permit conditions (restoration, monitoring, conservation easement or other preservation in perpetuity) it is considered a major modification, which requires a fee that is the same as the original fee, which is $500 as referenced in 62-4."

Now I will not restore the wetland, and [instead will] place this lot among the others I have involved in numerous lawsuits. It's time for government in general to start thinking a little bit more out of the box. This move made absolutely no sense. Now you know why no one has a job but government folks, and the state is $3.5 billion in the hole.

Salvador Gutierrez Jr.

Key Largo

Caption didn't reflect the crux of my letter

In the preceding days, I have been subjected to ridicule and innuendo about a letter that I wrote and then was published in The Citizen.

The Citizen took creative license when publishing my letter with the caption: "Writer has some nerve thanking contributors." This was disingenuous in the fact that the crux of my letter was about the mistruth that Mr. Estes asserted. He wrote: "And then there is Rush Limbaugh. How can anyone in this day and age be so filled with hate like this man? He is actually calling for Americans to not donate money for the relief efforts in Haiti. He is using the disgusting excuse that if you do, your name will be on an Obama fundraiser list."

Mr. Estes left out what Limbaugh did say: "If you want to donate, donate through private agencies instead of donating through whitehouse.gov." That was the point of my letter.

Mr. Estes also writes: "As I watch the tragedy that is the aftermath of the earthquake in Haiti, I am at a loss for words at the way Americans are dropping their political views to work together to help someone else."

Mr. Estes' last paragraph states: "What I would call the right wing is standing shoulder to shoulder with the rest of America to help the people of Haiti. I would like to thank everyone on the right and left of the political spectrum for coming together as Americans in this relief effort."

Again, The Citizen uses creative license in their caption: "Politics irrelevant to Haitian relief efforts." This letter was clearly about politics. He could have easily just thanked everyone for donating, but he wrote about politics throughout his letter and then took a potshot at the right-wing party. I believe his letter had more than a cursory mention of politics. What a difference two captions make.

We have never donated because we are Democrats, Republicans, or independents; we donate because we are compassionate people who care about our One Human Family and desire to help them in their time of need and suffering.

Curtis William Erling White

Key West