FWC NEEDS PEOPLE ONLINE, LIVE, TO CREATE FLORIDA’S WILDLIFE LEGACY INITIATIVE

June 8, 2005
Contact: Angie Raines (850) 488-4676
Christine Small (850) 488-3831

“We’ve worked with hundreds of people to produce the first draft of
Florida’s Wildlife Legacy Initiative. Now we need to hear from the people of Florida again. Please review the document and register for the online workshop.”
~ Thomas Eason, FWC biologist

Hundreds of people all across Florida have worked together to create a blueprint for keeping Florida’s fish and wildlife populations healthy for future generations. The first draft of Florida’s Wildlife Legacy Initiative is posted on the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission’s (FWC) Web site at MyFWC.com/wildlifelegacy. It’s ready and waiting for people to review and make suggestions for improvement.

The 300-plus-page draft document is posted without edits from the FWC staff in order to give people the broadest-possible living document to comment on.

“We know that great ideas can come from the people of Florida -- people who know the areas they live in and want to provide something wonderful for future generations. The FWC needs to hear from concerned citizens,” said Florida’s Wildlife Legacy Initiative leader, Thomas Eason, said.

Eason will emcee a live, online workshop to help people get acquainted with the work so far. The workshop will be Thursday, June 9, at 7 p.m. EDT. All of Florida is invited to listen to a presentation about Florida’s Wildlife Legacy Initiative, the comprehensive wildlife conservation strategy that will affect all of Florida’s fish and wildlife for years to come. The FWC encourages people to join in and give feedback.

Everyone interested in “attending” the workshop, must pre-register online before the workshop begins. To get signed up, go to MyFWC.com/wildlifelegacy and follow the instructions to register.

For the convenience of people who do not have a computer with Internet access, the FWC is making the presentation available at six locations around the state. Concerned citizens can view the computerized workshop and meet with FWC biologists in Lakeland, Lake City, Ocala, Panama City, Tallahassee and West Palm Beach. (Click here to get addresses for the viewing locations).

A recorded copy of the virtual workshop will be available at MyFWC.com/wildlifelegacy after the live workshop ends. People can provide comments by clicking on the comment link on that site, or by writing to Thomas Eason at the FWC at 620 S. Meridian St., Tallahassee, FL 32399-1600. The deadline for submitting comments is June 18.

In addition to the live online workshop, the FWC is hosting a special workshop with scientific experts on June 17 at 8 a.m. On June 18, the public and FWC stakeholders are invited to an open house throughout the day to meet with FWC staff and comment on the strategy. Both meetings will be held at Holiday Inn Express, at 8310 Galbraith Rd. (I-75 Exit 270) in Tampa.

In a state with 17 million residents, diverse and even conflicting, ideas for managing wildlife will be proposed. The FWC sees this as a good thing. This document is being produced in an open forum. The FWC plans to post two more draft documents.

Eason said, “It is vital that people stay involved in the process so we can work through the controversies and finish with a good, balanced strategy that will serve Florida well.”

This is an ambitious effort to address the needs of all of our state’s fish and wildlife and the habitats they live in. We are seeking creative ways to avert future declines of native wildlife. It is a front-end approach for keeping common species common.

Complete information about our Wildlife Legacy Initiative and Congress’ requirements for the comprehensive wildlife conservation strategy is on the MyFWC.com/wildlifelegacy Web site.

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