OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: January 6, 2000

Stephanie Hanna (O) 202/208-6416
(Cong. Shaw) Donna Boyer (O) 202/225-3026

MELALEUCA RESEARCH FACILITY AND EAST COAST BUFFER LANDS TO BE
FUNDED IN FINAL FARM BILL EXPENDITURES

Secretary of the Interior Bruce Babbitt and Congressman Clay Shaw announced today that a portion of the final expenditures from the 1996 Farm Bill will be used to construct a melaleuca quarantine facility in Davie, Florida, near Fort Lauderdale.

In recent years there have been promising research projects involving the eradication of this destructive invasive plant species in the Florida Everglades ecosystem using biological control agents. Melaleuca, left unchecked, propagates very quickly and displaces native plant and wildlife species, drying up wetlands, creating fire hazard and threatening the stability of the Everglades. Lack of quarantine space for testing biological control agents has impeded research and testing.

"Invasive plant and animal species are a great threat to the future health of the Everglades ecosystem and melaleuca is a particularly bad actor," Secretary of the Interior Bruce Babbitt said."We have unsuccessfully sought sources of funding for a melaleuca quarantine facility for several Congressional budget cycles. Now I believe it is a fitting to designate some of the last of the Farm Bill funds for this important and useful purpose."

"The construction of this quarantine facility is invaluable to the health and future of the Everglades," said Congressman Clay Shaw. "Currently, melaleuca poses a serious threat to the Everglades. It destroys the unique system of marshes, rivers and sloughs that make the Everglades a national treasure. I am thankful to Secretary Babbitt and the Department of the Interior for working with me to make the construction of this important facility happen."

In the agreement, the Department of the Interior will provide $6.2 million to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers for construction of the facility. When construction is completed, the facility will be run by the Agricultural Research Service of the U.S. Department of Agriculture at the University of Florida's Ft. Lauderdale Research and Education Center in Davie.

Another of the final land acquisition projects funded by the 1996 Farm Bill will include adding to an existing joint agreement between the South Florida Water Management District and the Department of the Interior to acquire 1,700-2,250 acres along the East Coast Buffer of the Florida Everglades. These buffer land acquisitions are considered critical to the restoration of one of America's greatest natural resources and is an important component of the Administration's comprehensive plan to restore the Florida Everglades ecosystem.

"The restoration of the Everglades ecosystem depends plentiful supplies of clean water," Secretary Babbitt said. "Acquiring lands in the East Coast Buffer greatly increases our chances of meeting this goal."

The East Coast Buffer plan is a series of marshes and reservoirs dedicated to receiving excess water now discharged into the sea. The East Coast Buffer reduces seepage lost from the Everglades, enhances wetlands habitat, provides stormwater storage and recharges aquifers.

To assist in this effort, the Department of the Interior will provide $13.9 million to the South Florida Water Management District from funds appropriated to the Department in the 1996 Farm bill. The District plans to equally match these funds for a total expenditure of $27.8 million. As required under the 1996 Farm bill, the Department of the Interior has spent $200 million to assist the State of Florida in acquiring nearly 100,000 acres in South Florida of particular importance to the restoration of the Everglades ecosystem.

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