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RESOLUTION URGING THE U.S. ARMY CORPS OF ENGINEERS, THE FLORIDA DEPARTMENT OF ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AND THE SOUTH FLORIDA WATER MANAGEMENT DISTRICT TO EXPEDITE PHASE II OF THE BISCAYNE BAY COASTAL WETLANDS PROJECT SO THAT PLANNING FOR PHASE II MAY COMMENCE AS SOON AS POSSIBLE AND TO TAKE ALL NECESSARY ACTIONS TO COMPLETE PHASE I OF THE BISCAYNE BAY COASTAL WETLANDS PROJECT

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WHEREAS, Miami-Dade County is the only county in the nation that is home to two national parks, Biscayne National Park and Everglades National Park; and
WHEREAS, the health of Biscayne Bay and the Everglades is intrinsically linked to the economic well-being of Miami-Dade County through nature-based tourism and commercial and recreational fishing; and
WHEREAS, restoration of the greater Everglades� ecosystem is important for continued clean water supply, environmental and public health, and the economic viability of Miami-Dade County; and
WHEREAS, the Biscayne Bay Coastal Wetlands (BBCW) project, a critical component of the Comprehensive Everglades Restoration Plan (CERP), as authorized by Congress in 2000, is intended to restore natural coastal wetlands habitat by redistributing freshwater flow through more natural �sheet flows,� and reconnecting coastal wetlands and marine habitats in Biscayne Bay and Biscayne National Park; and
WHEREAS, the BBCW project is the only CERP project that is dedicated to restoring Biscayne Bay and Biscayne National Park, both of which are vital to the ecological and economic health of Miami-Dade County; and
WHEREAS, the BBCW project will provide increased water storage in the wetlands east of the coastal ridge, which is expected to protect against saltwater intrusion and thereby increase resiliency against sea level rise in southern Miami-Dade County; and
WHEREAS, both Phase I and Phase II of the BBCW project must be completed in order to achieve the full project benefits as envisioned in CERP; and
WHEREAS, although there is a plan in place for the completion of Phase I of the BBCW project, the planning for Phase II of the BBCW project is not scheduled to begin until 2021, and actual construction of Phase II would occur even later in time; and
WHEREAS, Phase II of the BBCW project is intended to provide water storage and rehydrate significant wetland areas between the Princeton and Mowry Canals as well as the Model Lands wetland area, which contains more than 20,000 acres of important wetlands that connect the Everglades to Biscayne Bay and Card Sound; and
WHEREAS, in addition, Phase I of the BBCW project has not been completed, and therefore the potential benefits of that portion of the BBCW project have not yet been fully realized; and
WHEREAS, Miami-Dade County is deeply invested and committed to seeing the BBCW project completed, and in order to do in a timely manner, Phase II of the BBCW project must move forward in advance of the current schedule; and
WHEREAS, to this end, Miami-Dade County has continued to contribute substantial resources towards the goals of CERP and the BBCW project, including land acquisition, technical data, and staffing resources to those project delivery teams; and
WHEREAS, in order to expedite Phase II of the BBCW project, the South Florida Water Management District, as the local sponsor for this project, would need to ask the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to include, in its budget for fiscal year 2017-2018, the 50 percent federal share of funding for the planning of Phase II of the BBCW project, and such a request by the South Florida Water Management District may need to be made as early as mid-May 2016 in order to meet budgetary deadlines; and
WHEREAS, as such, this Board wishes to request that the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers include the above-mentioned funding in its budget for fiscal year 2017-2018; and
WHEREAS, this Board also wishes to request that: (1) the Florida Department of Environmental Protection and the South Florida Water Management District move forward with planning for Phase II of the BBCW project on an expedited schedule, and take all necessary steps to do so, including the allocation of up to $3 million dollars, or equivalent in-kind services, as approved and required by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, for such planning efforts; and (2) the U.S. Army Corps, Florida Department of Environmental Protection, and the South Florida Water Management District take all necessary steps to complete Phase I of the BBCW project,
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS OF MIAMI-DADE COUNTY, FLORIDA, that this Board hereby:
Section 1. Urges the U.S Army Corps of Engineers, the Florida Department of Environmental Protection and the South Florida Water Management District to take all steps necessary to expedite the planning of Phase II of the BBCW project, so that such planning occurs as soon as possible, and in any event, sooner than the current schedule of 2021, including but not limited to:
(a) Urging the South Florida Water Management District, as local sponsor of the BBCW project, to ask the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to include, in its budget for fiscal year 2017-2018, the 50 percent federal share of funding for the planning of Phase II of the BBCW project.
(b) Urging the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to include such funding for the planning of Phase II of the BBCW project in its budget for fiscal year 2017-2018, and
(c) Urging the South Florida Water Management District to allocate up to $3 million dollars, or equivalent in-kind services, as approved and required by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers for the planning of Phase II of the BBCW project.
Section 2. Urges the U.S Army Corps of Engineers, the Florida Department of Environmental Protection and the South Florida Water Management District to take all steps necessary to complete Phase I of the BBCW project.
Section 3. Directs the Clerk of the Board to transmit certified copies of this resolution to the Members of the Florida Congressional Delegation; the Assistant Secretary of the Army for Civil Works, the Governor, the Chair and Members of the Miami-Dade State Legislative Delegation, the Secretary of the Department of Environmental Protection, and the Governing Board and Executive Director of the South Florida Water Management District.
Section 4. Directs the County�s state and federal lobbyists to advocate for administrative action that would accomplish the goals set forth herein and as described in Section 1 above, and authorizes and directs the Office of Intergovernmental Affairs to include this item in the 2017 State Legislative Package and the 2016 and 2017 Federal Legislative Packages when they are presented to the Board.