Environmental groups aim to launch a volley of civil lawsuits to gain the upper hand on Florida habitat and wetlands oversight issues as President-elect Joe Biden’s administration prepares to assume power in Washington on Jan. 20.
The Center for Biological Diversity earlier this month filed a notice of its intent to file litigation against the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service over the agency’s failure to set aside habitat to better ensure the survival of eight plants that are native to Florida.
“We can file once the 60-day notice tolls and intend to do so,” Jaclyn Lopez, the center’s Florida director, told the Florida Record.
The endangered plants targeted by the center include the Big Pine partridge pea, a small shrub found in the southern Florida Keys, several perennial herbs, a prairie clover and the Everglades bully, a shrub native to Miami-Dade County.
The plants were formally listed for protection in 2017 and 2018, according to the center, and habitat set-asides are long overdue.
“Habitat loss is the biggest cause of extinction,” Lopez said in a prepared statement. “We’re not going to be able to save these remarkable native plants without protecting the places they live.”
The center plans additional litigation to speed protections to 20 other species nationwide so that it can work out a timeline with the Biden administration.
The planned lawsuits over habitat protection come in the wake of the federal Environmental Protection Agency giving the state Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) primary responsibility for a wetlands protection initiative, known as the Section 404 Program.
The Florida office of the environmental group Earthjustice filed a federal lawsuit this month challenging that decision and arguing that having the DEP take over management of the 404 Program will lead to more lax environmental protection.
“The EPA’s action will allow the state to violate federal law to the detriment of waters of the United States and the endangered and threatened species that rely on them, while depriving those adversely affected of federal rights and remedies,” the lawsuit filed Jan. 14 in the District of Columbia states.
Several Florida environmental groups, including the Nature Conservancy in Florida and the Everglades Foundation, support having the DEP oversee the wetlands protections.
“Our waters and wetlands are critical to our economy and way of life in Florida,” Alexandra Kuchta, spokeswoman for the DEP, told the Florida Record in an email. “As such, it is important for the state to take the lead in their protection. DEP staff know the state’s resources best and have the expertise to ensure their protection.”