Environmental groups want the state to buy nearly 40,000 acres of land along the Apalachicola River.
Riverkeeper Dan Tonsmeire said he hopes Florida will add the project to the Florida Forever program. The proposed conservation easement aims to protect fish and wildlife in the flood plain.
“I think this is a very important and even critical acquisition for the continued protection of the Apalachicola," he said. "We have seen in other areas how development in the flood plain can harm the downstream resources.”
The state legislature decided not to fund Florida Forever land purchases this year. But Tonsmeire said the land can be bought in the future as long as it’s on the Florida Forever priority list. A land acquisition council will consider the project next month.
