The front line

Mangrove forests in urbanizing landscapes are at the front line of development and land use conversion in coastal areas of Florida. A battle being waged in Bradenton drew my attention to the subject.

 http://www.islander.org/2015/04/4-agencies-oppose-... 

Evidently, a housing development has been planned for an area which would require the cutting and filling of just over an acre of mangrove swamp. The Water Management District is the permitting authority for the project, which has faced substantial opposition by environmental groups and some agencies.

This illustrates what an interesting place Florida is. The Census Bureau reports that between 2013 and 2014, roughly 803 new residents were added to our state each day. We've recently passed New York to become the third most populous state.

All of this population growth results in new residential and commercial development. A (now somewhat dated) report found that in the years between 1985 and 2003 roughly 13.3% of Florida's natural lands were converted to urban, developed, or agricultural land uses. During this time period, around 3,578 acres of mangrove swamps were converted to urban or agricultural uses.

It's hard to picture over 3,500 acres of mangroves being cut, filled, and converted to upland use. Though it happens, even under the protections afforded by the Mangrove Trimming and Preservation Act.

So, why be concerned about the loss of mangroves? Jim Beever with the Southwest Florida Regional Planning Council states it well...

 http://www.news-press.com/story/news/2014/08/02/ma... 

Even with more than 9 million acres of Florida lands held in conservation by Federal, State, and Local agencies (according to a Florida Natural Areas Inventory 2015 report), large areas of mangrove swamps on unprotected lands are subject to ongoing development pressure.