EcoAction Alert

Please support land conservation in Brevard County by voting YES on the referendum to approve an extension of the hugely successful Environmentally Endangered Lands Program.

The Florida Native Plant Society has long recognized that the most effective strategy for conserving our native plants and native plant communities is to conserve the natural areas where they occur! However, the rapid pace of land development in Florida means we are locked in an ongoing race against the bulldozers. Voters in Brevard County now have a special opportunity to support an extension of funding for the Environmentally Endangered Lands Program by voting “yes” on the ballot measure when they go to the polls on November 8.

The ballot measure would authorize Brevard County to finance bonds worth up to $50 million to purchase additional lands to protect the Indian River Lagoon and St. Johns River. The funding generated would also be used to manage land already purchased under the Program.

With voter approval, the annual ad valorem assessment used to fund the Program would be less than $30 annually on a home with a taxable value of $200,000 – about half the assessment overwhelmingly approved by voters when the Program was started in 2004.

You can find additional information about the Program at https://www.brevardfl.gov/EELProgram/home . Please vote “yes” in support of land conservation whether you are voting via mail, early voting, or voting on election day – November 8. Early voting in Brevard County runs October 31-November 4, from 8:00 am to 6:00 pm, and on November 5 from 8:00 am to 4:00 pm. Information on early voting locations is available at https://www.votebrevard.gov/News-and-Events/ArtMID/42045/ArticleID/6213/Early-Voting . The ballot will be long, and local referenda are placed at the very end, so please do not overlook it!

Thanks for everything you do to support native plant conservation in Florida!