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Developers want EPC eliminated from wetlands reviews

By By Michael Van Sickler, Times Staff Writer
In print: Thursday, July 10, 2008

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TAMPA — It's been nearly a year since Hillsborough County commissioners decided to rewrite the rule protecting wetlands in a bid to appease developers frustrated with restrictions and delays on their projects.

Commissioners promised that the rule change wouldn't destroy more wetlands, only bolster their protections by making enforcement easier to understand and more efficient.

But a week before commissioners are scheduled to vote on that rule, the county is fielding requests from developers and their consultants to change it further. These requests, some coming at the last minute, have a few residents worried about how much the new rule will safeguard wetlands once commissioners finally vote on it July 17.

"It's going to be dangerous to open up the rule like this," said Mariella Smith, a Ruskin resident and member of Hillsborough County's Sierra Club. "It'll be a political affair where stuff will get added, the gavel will come down, and we'll end up with a rule that won't protect our wetlands."

Smith and officials with the county's Environmental Protection Commission say they think the proposed rule, which took months and dozens of meetings to compose, is a fine way of clarifying the protections that already exist.

"There's nothing in this rule that is stronger or weaker than what we've been doing in the last 23 years," said Andy Zodrow, an assistant attorney at the EPC who helped rewrite the rule.

Yet developers are seeking changes that could weaken it.

One getting much of the attention is a request to eliminate the EPC's review of rezonings. The EPC is one of 14 departments or agencies that make comments on projects. Before commissioners or City Council members approve or reject a project, they consider these comments.

Developers say that with a downturn in the economy, it might be prudent to cut the staff and eliminate this step. The EPC does review projects at a later stage, and it's here where it can make recommendations that can save wetlands from destruction.

Last week, about 10 developers or their representatives made this pitch to EPC officials.

"The discussion was about the budget," said one of the meeting's attendees, Jennifer Doerfel, the director of governmental affairs at the Tampa Bay Builders Association. "We're not telling them how to do something. We're trying to be helpful. This was one example of how we thought they could save money."

But Rick Garrity, the EPC's executive director, said eliminating this round of reviews could hurt projects.

"This is a helpful stage for us to be involved," Garrity said. "It's early enough so that we can tell them how to avoid wetlands, rather than telling them later."

Another request came from some members of a technical advisory group that Garrity formed to advise the EPC about how to change its rule. They want to classify wetlands as "high class" or "low class" so that the EPC could make it easier for developers to destroy wetlands that are insignificant.

Garrity said this would slow the reviews of projects, adding a layer of bureaucracy that would struggle to differentiate between quality and degraded wetlands.

"If you go in that direction, that's more process," he said.

Zodrow said he didn't know if developers were going to ask commissioners to add these changes to the draft at Thursday's meeting.

"We have no idea," Zodrow said. "I wish I had an answer to that."

But Smith said she's not taking any chances. She said a big turnout of residents is being organized to make commissioners know that these changes aren't welcome.

"What I'd like to see is the rule gets approved the way it is now," Smith said. "Let's be done with it."

Michael Van Sickler can be reached at mvansickler@sptimes.com or (813) 226-3402.