Beef ranchers in Florida play an important part in land conservation.
It seems like every time we turn on the news, we hear some disheartening reports about losing Florida wild spaces and grasslands to development. From residential communities springing up in ecologically sensitive areas, to water pollution in Florida, or the increasing number of our rare and local wildlife that are being added to the endangered or threatened species list.
Sometimes it feels like we may be losing the battle. But we’d like to share something positive instead and shed some light on the amazing organizations and citizens that are working hard to conserve land in the State of Florida. There have been some recent victories in 2019 that are worth sharing, if you are a resident of Florida and you care about preserving our natural beauty and wildlife for generations to come. And some conservation organizations that could use our help.
Photo: Florida Department of Agriculture
Florida Forest Service: Rural and Family Lands Protection Program (RFLPP)
Did you know that the RFLPP received no funding for 2019-2020? The organization is an agricultural easement program run by the Florida Forest Service, and it is designed to identify and protect important agricultural land tracts across the state. After it finds environmentally sensitive working land areas, it moves to protect them by providing easements that are flexible but support agricultural lands from being developed.
The Florida Forest Service: Rural and Family Lands Protection Program (RFLPP) is one of the most vocal organizations for protecting traditional ranch lands, grazing pastures and other greenspaces from being sold to residential and commercial developers. To learn more about how you can get involved and help, visit the RFLPP website, and check out some of the important projects they have completed.
The Wetland Reserve Easement Program (WRE)
The WRE is a successful easement program that buys conservation easements on land parcels that used to be former wetlands and flood plains, for the purpose of restoring them to their natural function as a watershed and part of The Everglades water system.
The Wetland Reserve Easement Program has never restricted the use of grasslands for agricultural beef providers and is committed to maintaining grazing rights for Florida grass-fed beef producers. They recognize that cattle are a natural and important management tool for reducing overgrowth in grassland areas and want to continue allowing grazing access as part of environmental maintenance of the land conservation tracts. Beef ranchers are permitted access to essential grazing lands, at a significantly discounted lease cost.
The WRE Program acknowledges that the alteration of natural flood plains has had a detrimental impact on water quality, contributing to red tide algae and other issues. A major victory was won for the WRE, as they were awarded $13.5 million in program funds for 2019.
The Forest Legacy Program (Florida Forest Service)
Fighting to protect and conserve Florida forests means buying conservation easements before they fall into the hands of developers. Funding requests are reviewed and approved by the U.S. Forest Service, but there is a limit of (3) projects that can be allocated to Florida annually, with a maximum funding of $10 million dollars. Which sounds like a lot, until you see the cost of purchasing acres of land in our state to establish conservation zones; this organization sometimes partners with other national associations to secure large tracts of land against development.
To learn more about the areas of Florida that are currently eligible for protection with the Forest Legacy Program, click here.
Pasture Raising Beef Ranchers Need Your Support
One of the consequences of living in Florida, is the growing demand for land space both from residential and commercial developers. We get it; Florida is a paradise and a great place to live. But would we feel the same way if we “paved paradise and put up a parking lot?” What does Florida’s natural wild grasslands, The Everglades and beautiful lakes and natural rivers mean to you?
Grass-fed beef ranchers in Florida are part of the front line in Florida and have always been a highly active and vocal community encouraging and championing land conservation. You see, when you live on the land and you are raising cattle, you develop a close relationship and understanding of the importance of biodiversity; how everything in the environment is connected (including our own health).
Florida beef ranchers are also the ones that work most closely with conservation groups and participate in pastureland easements and leasing programs. Keeping cattle grazing naturally in these wild areas helps nourish the soil, improve aeration and keep grass levels manageable.
While the war wages on to protect Florida green spaces from development and urban encroachment, there is one small thing that every resident in Florida can do, to support the fight and help preserve and conserve land. When you visit the grocery store, choose Florida Raised grass-fed ground beef and other products that support our local agricultural producers.
Let’s keep Florida beef ranchers in business and thank them for making a deliberate choice to produce nutritious, hormone and antibiotic free meat that is healthier both for consumers, and for the environment.
Let’s keep our historic 400-year-old beef industry in business, as an important ecological, economical and cultural part of what makes Florida great.
Choose Florida Raised, when you shop for healthy grass-fed ground beef at Publix and other grocery stores across the state.
