The little island that could: mitigation banking helped save Florida wetlands.

The following passages are taken from Ray Pavelka, who was a presenter at the 7th Annual National Mitigation Banking Conference held March 4-5 in New Orleans, La. Pavelka's presentation on the Little Pine Island Wetlands Restoration and Mitigation Bank partnership project was part of the educational session, "Redevelopment and Protection of Public and Industrial Lands." For more information on mitigation banking, log on to www.mitigationbanking.org or contact Carlene Bahler via e-mail at [e-mail].

The Little Pine Island Mitigation Bank is a 4,700-plus acre wetland restoration project by Mariner Properties Development, Inc., in conjunction with the Florida Department of Environmental Protection. Little Pine Island originally comprised a productive Southwest Florida ecosystem surrounded by mangroves. The state-owned island's interior included large expanses of both freshwater and tidal marshes, plus stands of native Florida Slash Pine. But in the 1960s, the island's wetlands were drained by "mosquito ditches." The shallow lens of fresh groundwater was removed and the unique high marsh habitat withered. Soon, the island became infested with exotic plant species. By 1996, 1,600 acres of the island's interior was an exotic forest. Via state and federal mitigation bank permitting, Mariner Properties entered into a public/private partnership with Florida to fully restore Little Pine Island.

Although the cost to restore the state preserve will total $10 to $12 million, no public funding or taxpayer dollars are involved. Of the total revenue from mitigation credit sales, 7 percent is designated as a "State Use Fee," which constitutes about $2 million. This funding is returned to the Charlotte Harbor Buffer Preserve to be used in the acquisition and restoration of yet more wetland habitat.

The public/private partnership has created the Little Pine Island Preservation Trust Fund. This fund is the result of an additional 5 percent of the total revenue from mitigation credit sales being set aside. The Little Pine Island Trust Fund, which will exceed $1.5 million dollars, will fund the perpetual maintenance and monitoring of the entire island and sustain the important wetland ecosystem functions and wildlife habitat forever.

More than 100 projects have been permitted using cost-effective and high-quality wetland mitigation credits from the Little Pine Island Mitigation Bank. Public agencies such as Lee County Government, the South Florida Water Management District, Florida Department of Transportation and others have benefited from the use of Little Pine Island Mitigation Bank credits. The economic benefits of wetland mitigation credits versus alternate forms of mitigation is evidenced by the 55 percent rise in mitigation credit prices since 1997. Little Pine Island also provides efficiencies for state and federal regulators. The Mitigation Bank will represent more than 500 wetland mitigation projects in one location--replacing the old system of small Apostage stamp mitigation sites, which are less successful and more costly to restore, manage and monitor for compliance. Since Little Pine Island Mitigation credits are deemed successful in advance of wetland impacts and supported by a comprehensive consolidated annual report, the agencies are spared monitoring and enforcement efforts at both the impact and mitigation sites, which typically cost them a great deal of their valuable time.

The state of Florida Charlotte Harbor Buffer Preserve staff, having recently been incorporated into the Florida Park Service, have been very pleased with their role in this public/ private partnership: restoration work is being done on their land, they had substantial input into the restoration process, the improvements are being made at no cost to the state, they have the security of a substantial management and monitoring trust fund, they have the opportunity to act as a resource and/or service provider to the Management Trustees, and they have a revenue-sharing arrangement. Additionally, they are content to not have the responsibilities and risks associated with the entrepreneurial side of this partnership--all of which are better left with the private sector.

Little Pine Island is a substantial state resource, uniquely situated, such that this public/private partnership may or may not be a model that can be repeated in other areas of the nation. The key elements of evaluating other opportunities to model this public/private partnership will be to ensure that neither the environmental resource or public funds are put at risk, and responsibilities are placed with those entities that have the expertise, capacity and authority to complete the task.

Ray Pavelka a is the president of the Little Pine Island Wetland Mitigation Bank in Fort Myers, Fla. He is a past presenter of the National Mitigation Banking Conference. Pavelka is a member of the National Mitigation Banking, Association.