Statement of Roman Gastesi
Miami-Dade County
Water Resources Manager
Chairman Jeffords, Ranking Member Smith, and Members
of the Committee, thank you for the opportunity to comment on the Comprehensive
Everglades Restoration Plan (CERP). I am particularly gratified to be
testifying in the presence of Florida Senator Graham, whose diligence and
passionate work on Everglades Restoration has helped make the CERP a reality.
Miami-Dade County would also like to recognize the efforts of this Senate
Committee on Environment and Public Works in moving this historic restoration
effort along. Thank you
My name is Roman Gastesi, and I am the Water
Resources Manager for Miami-Dade County (County) and a member of the South
Florida Ecosystem Restoration Working Group.
Miami-Dade County is strongly committed to the
Comprehensive Everglades Restoration Plan (CERP); so committed, that Mayor Alex
Penelas and County Manager Steve Shiver established the Office of Water
Management to ensure the County’s active participation and dedication of
resources to the Plan’s implementation.
The County recognizes that preserving the delicate
balance between our environment, urban areas, and agriculture is critical to
all of South Florida. The long-term success of the CERP relies on all
interested parties working together within a comprehensive and inclusive
process. The region consists of 16 counties, 150 municipalities, two Indian
Tribes, a multitude of State and Federal agencies, public and private utilities,
and agricultural and environmental interests. The County acknowledges the need
to work together, coordinate efforts, and come to a reasonable compromise to
ensure that this vitally important project becomes a reality.
Today, South Florida is home to 6.5 million people, and the population is expected to double by
2050. The region also receives more than 37 million tourists annually. The
quality of life in South Florida and the region’s $200 billion economy depend
on the health and vitality of the Everglades, Lake Okeechobee, and the entire
South Florida ecosystem. It’s important to recognize that the coral reefs,
estuaries, and shallow waters of areas like the Florida Keys, Biscayne Bay and
Florida Bay, along with offshore waters, support populations of recreational
and commercial fisheries that can only benefit from our efforts to work
together on restoration. Likewise, our region’s wetland and upland areas
provide us with invaluable benefits such as wildlife habitat, recreational
opportunities, drinking water supply, water filtration, and stormwater
retention — all of which benefit our residents and visitors alike. Continued
cooperation among interested parties in the restoration process will serve to
enhance these benefits for all parties. Agriculture in Miami-Dade County is an
important component of the regional economy and way of life. Working together
with all stakeholders, the County will ensure that CERP will provide healthy
water supplies for the natural system as well as urban and agricultural interests.
Our policy body, the Miami-Dade County Board of
County Commissioners, has consistently expressed its commitment to Everglades
Restoration. For example, on November 20, 2001, the Miami-Dade County Board of
County Commissioners approved Resolution No. R-1311-01 recognizing that
protecting and restoring the “valuable, unique, irreplaceable resource of the
Everglades” is in the best interest of the County, and reaffirmed Miami-Dade
County’s commitment to work in partnership with the Federal government, the
State of Florida, and other public and private interests.
The County supports the fundamental concept of
“adaptive management” which has been adopted for the implementation of this
Plan as part of the effort to achieve a balance of benefits as restoration
progresses. Finding the “balance” while implementing this Plan is the biggest
challenge. Some of the restoration efforts, including increased canal and
groundwater levels, have the potential to negatively impact flood protection.
Conversely, some flood mitigation projects, including lowering canal and
groundwater levels, have the potential to negatively impact the health of natural
systems. Using the “adaptive management” approach will allow for continuous
refinements as the CERP progresses.
We are encouraged by the progress made in recent
years. For example:
• Teams
of scientists and other technical experts are working together to establish the
performance measures and monitoring systems that will make it possible to
systematically track the progress of this Plan.
• The
evolution of a transparent process that, on a project-by-project basis, strives
to involve the public, in addition to the Federal, State, local and Tribal
agency interests following CERP activities.
• The
binding agreement between the Governor of Florida and the President of the
United States regarding the implementation of the Everglades Restoration Plan
that reads “the state shall ensure, by regulation or other appropriate means,
that water made available by each project in the Plan shall not be permitted
for consumptive use or otherwise made unavailable by the state until such time
as sufficient reservations of water for the preservation of the natural system
are made under state law”.
• The
work of the Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) and the South Florida Water
Management District staff in providing early outlines and an initial draft of
the Programmatic Regulations to ensure stakeholder participation and
understanding of this critical step in the process. As the comment period for
the proposed regulations draws to a close, the Corps continues to provide
presentations on the subject at numerous meetings. While we continue to
evaluate the proposed rule, the effort to address stakeholder concerns is
obvious in the latest product.
• The
decision to advance the initiation of the Biscayne Bay Coastal Wetlands project
component to provide the Bay with early benefits.
• A
comprehensive Project Delivery Team meeting held earlier this year that brought
hundreds of CERP participants together to coordinate efforts and help expedite
the Plan’s implementation.
• Three
authorized Pilot Projects within Miami-Dade County, L-3 1 Seepage Management,
Wastewater Reuse, and Inground Reservoir Technology, that continue to move
forward in an effort to resolve major uncertainties and answer questions
critical to the Plan’s success
• The
formation of a new Project Delivery Team to explore the possibility of
providing additional clean water to both Everglades National Park and Biscayne
Bay.
Miami-Dade County will continue to do its part to
protect and restore the South Florida ecosystem. Protection of the Everglades
and Biscayne Bay has been County policy for almost a generation, beginning with
the 323 square mile East Everglades Moratorium Area Study in 1974, adoption of
the Comprehensive Development Master Plan in 1975 and subsequent amendments,
and development and implementation of the Biscayne Bay Management Plan in 1981.
County interests in protecting the Everglades and wetlands from inappropriate
urban development and associated need for drainage derive from the County’s
long-term requirements for municipal water supply for the growing urban
population, urban economic expansion, commercial and sport fisheries, tourism,
agriculture, and prevention of public health and safety hazards.
Miami-Dade County has demonstrated leadership in
protecting State and Federal interests in the Everglades and natural systems.
Miami-Dade County is not approving zoning for suburban development in the
Everglades or proposed Water Preserve Areas; has not programmed or constructed
urban infrastructure or services for such areas and has resisted such proposals
by others. In 1990, the citizens of Miami-Dade voted to tax themselves to
provide funding for the acquisition and management of environmentally
endangered lands. Since that time, and in partnership with the State of Florida
and non-government agencies, more than 10,000 acres of wetlands and forest have
been protected through acquisition. Miami-Dade County is also a leader in
promoting infill and revitalization of currently developed urban areas, and in
protecting ground and surface water quality through environmental monitoring,
regulation and educational programs.
In addition, Miami-Dade County is currently
embarking on a landmark watershed plan that will utilize innovative land use
tools in the final undeveloped frontier of South Miami-Dade County to ensure
successful implementation of water management operations and capital
improvements to be carried out through CERP.
In conclusion, although some critics may focus on
uncertainties and delays, we do not believe these are reasons to abandon our
commitment to preserving and restoring this national treasure. We must not
succumb to the will of the naysayers; nobody said it was going to be easy.
Instead of dwelling on problems, we must maintain patience and courage to work
through the challenges and come up with solutions. The consequences of not
moving forward are great. We simply must continue to work together and move
forward. The health of the natural system is directly linked to the health of
the people and economy of Florida and the nation.