February 7, 2017
Hollywood, FL - At its Feb. 8 and Feb. 9 meetings, the South Florida Water Management District Project & Lands Committee and Governing Board will discuss a proposed modification to the District's land leasing policy for the purpose of cattle grazing.
In 2016, the Governing Board revised the SFWMD land leasing policy to extend cattle grazing leases on both project and conservation lands beyond their initial 10-year term for a 5-year extension based on annual land management performance evaluations. At this week's public meetings, the Committee and Governing Board will consider modifying the extension term for leases on conservation lands because the use of cattle grazing as a land management tool is likely to occur over a longer period of time than on project lands where cattle grazing is an interim use.
SFWMD's leasing program assists in managing lands acquired for water management purposes or for ecosystem restoration. Lease holders temporarily keep public lands in production, pay taxes and local assessments and implement agricultural best management practices and land management requirements for water quality improvements.