Protect panther habitat
Please consider protecting the prime panther habitat in Lee and Collier counties. There are two proposals before the U.S. Army Corp of Engineers to permit the new developments of Kingston in Lee County and Belmar in Collier County. We do not wish tens of thousands of homes to be built in this panther territory. These properties have been off limits to build for years because of the wildlife habitat it will destroy. Please deny these permits for these reasons. The Endangered Species Act deems it not feasible to build in any endangered species territory. This is totally against their way of thinking and maybe even their semblance of law. The wetlands will be destroyed which will create water shortages both now and in the future. The rural lands will be gone forever. Florida’s children will be dishonored in that they asked the Florida Legislature to declare the Florida panther our official state animal, which the lawmakers passed.
The most compelling reason is the loss of panthers on our roads in these developments. Anywhere from three to 24 panthers will be killed on our thoroughfares in these communities annually depending on which of the two government studies you may look at. A huge loss if we want to sustain our panther population in Florida forever.