'Ding' Darling Waterways by Renrsy Severance Executive Editor Volunteers from As Far Uwaj As Sarasota Gathered at She J.N
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ThE ISLAND S NEWSPAPER OF RD'ORO ^ to ;3 2 Nu MB E ft] ;0 • ^24; RAGE'Si Fly Fisher volunteers help 'Ding' Darling waterways By Renrsy Severance Executive Editor Volunteers from as far uwaj as Sarasota gathered at she J.N. "Ding' Darling Natioridl Wiidiiie Refuge on Saturday morning and again on Sunday to launch a new eilort to help the refuge with the task of clearing '•ome of its waterwa>s of brush remaining from Hurricane Charley. The event was part o! the Mangrove Recovery Initiative, a multi-year project for the recov- ery and restoration of south Florida man- groves Capi. Pete Grcenan is a charter captain who .-.peciaii/es in. fly fishing and runs his charters out of Gasparilia. He i1- well acquainted w ith the local waters around Port Charlotte. Pine Island Sound and San Carlos Bay and following last year's hurricanes, he became concerned about the overall effect on the environment. He saw the changes in the local waters, fewer lish and a significant Photo by kenny severance loss of mangroves Wildlife Biologist Kendra Willett (right) Greenan contacted the national head- of the refuge and Conservation quarters of the Federation of Fly Fishers in Coordinator Kajsa Stromberg from the Federation of Fly Fishers in Montana pre- See CLEAiN I V pare to launch the Mangrove initiative page 2 and waterway ciean up at 'Ding' Darling. Sanibel School kids place in state competition The Pitch in. Reel it in Sonibel School Anna Aulino, originally an alternate for commurut} problem solving group has her team, iook first place roi writing an placed third in a state-wide compctiiun essay with mo team members with whom for <••!»,bkin -"i^ors of iheir <uo s?rf«LIP .-he had n.?ve: v o;kc6 iviVre .-"i the deple- held i:i Oilandn tin*- week. Led bv fifth tion of oceanic species, during a Uvu hour grade leader Ann God^ea, the group's g writing -essson a* ihc competition.. goal to increase awaienass regarding Two other Sanibel School Cofr.nw.'iiH the danger- to fish and wildlife from Problem Soh ing (CrnPS) groups also par- and fishing line, and to ticipated in the competition but did not Capt. Pete Greenan gets in up to nis armpits when it comes to clearing ''Ding' g Dariing Refuge waterways clogged by debris from Hurricane Charley. help collect as much of (he lini e as possi- place. See (he complete story and photo> ble around SanibeJ and Capti\a. in next week's p:ipsr. Babcock Ranch purchase offer declined Delinquent Tax Notices By JENNY BURNHAM lists to be published [email protected] From staff reports For the second time, the owners of the Babcock Florida Company have declined an offer from the state of Once again Breeze Newspapers will publish the delin- Florida to purchase the 91,000-acre Babcock Ranch, a quent tax notices listed by the Lee County Tax property that crosses Lee and Charlotte County lines. Collector's Office. However, the participants in the deal are hopeful The tax notices will be published three times in The rather than downhearted, and relations between the nego- Island Reporter and The Cape Coral Daily Breeze. tiators and the owners of the ranch remain open and cor- There are two types of property auctions: real proper- dial. ty, or certificate sale; and tangible property, which can be In a letter to Governor Bush that Lee County electrical equipment, furniture, etc. By law, real property Commissioner Bob Janes called "a kind turndown," must be advertised for three weeks, tangible property for Richard Cuda of the Babcock Florida Company praised one week. the "careful thought" and "hard work and dedication"' of The real estate notices will be published in The Island the public and private individuals involved in the pur- Reporter and The Cape Coral Daily Breeze on April 2.1, chase project, saying, "We can not express enough admi- April 28 and May 5. The tangible tax delinquencies will ration and appreciation for their able and dedicated be published April 21. efforts.' In addition to publication in The Breeze Newspapers,, printed copies of all the notices will be available at 270 See BABCOCK locations throughout Lee County, (a full list of these page 7 locations will appear in The Neighbor next Wednesday) Photo by Jenny Burnham at the Tax Collector's Office and at all Breeze Newspaper offices. SCHOOL Breeze Corp. newspaper offices include: B The Island Reporter • LETTERS PAGE 6 Sanibe! School 2340 Periwinkle Way. Sanibel • S°CPTS . PAGE 9 DELINQUENT student paper • The Mander this week Promenade Center • VOXRRIU . PAGE 14 695 Tarpon Bay Road, Unit No. 13. Sanibel • DATELINE PAGE 15 TAX The kids put out their own • The Cape Coral Daily Breeze newspaper each month and it 2510 Del Prado Boulevard, Cape Coral • TVLCTNGS PAGE 17 runs in the Reporter.. • The South Lee Messenger • PERMITS & DEEDS PAGE 18 NOTICES 19260 San Carlos Blvd., Fort Myers Beach • PODCEBEAT . PAGE 20 See TAXES Seepage 12 • CLASS'FIEDS . PAGE 21 page 2 2 • Week of April 14 - 20, 2005 • ISLAND REPORTER Mangrove Recovery Initiative CLEAN UP launched in Ding Darling From page 1 The Mangrove Recovery Initiative is a cooperative Livingston, Mont, to see what sort of help was available. venture between the FFF, the USFWS at the J.N. The FFF is more of a conservation organization than a "Ding" Darling National Wildlife Refuge, and local sports club. Emphasizing the joy of being out in a beautiful partners to recover and restore Florida's rich and environment, Geenan observed at the outset of the cleanup diverse mangrove forests for strong populations of fish "flyfishing is a recreation, not a sport. In fact, much of the and wildlife. Mangrove forests, occurring in the fishing by fly fishers is catch and release, rather than seeing boundary zone between land and ocean, are home to who can get the most or the biggest catches. diverse assemblages of plant and animal life, including "The federation was interested in his concerns and ninety percent of gamefish and shellfish caught in offered financial support for clothing and equipment which South Florida. Fish like tarpon, snook, seatrout, and volunteers would need for the effort. They also dispatched redfish can be found hiding and searching for food in Kajsa Stromberg, the conservation coordinator lor the FFF and around the tangled roots of mangrove trees. In nationally, to help coordinate the effort on Sanibel. addition, mangroves provide important water quality Glenn Pittard of the Sanibel Fly Fishers Club participat- benefits and habitat for more than fifteen threatened ed in Saturday and Sunday's cleanup and expressed his and endangered species. These unique forests are part pleasure at the help extended by the national organization. of the ecological heritage of Florida and deserve appre- "I'm glad to see the federation involved in our back yard," ciation and strong conservation. he said. "Helpful? — absolutely." Impacts from human development and natural dis- Pittard went on to explain that snook, tarpon and redfish Photo by Rcnny Severance asters have threatened the survival and integrity of are among the local fish that are especially good for fly fish- Refuge Manager Rob Jess wields a chain saw on a pole large mangrove forests in southern Florida. Four sepa- ing. The refuge is a prime location for them and Pittard said to reach hurricane debris. rate hurricanes hammered coastal Florida during the that the fly fishing can be done from land or from a kayak storm season of 2004. leaving wide swaths of storm or canoe as long as the mangroves are not disturbed. was especially rewarding, therefore, when it started flowing damage in their wake. Hurricane Charley hit the The creek at the western end of the refuge is an impor- again Saturday afternoon and improved the flow on Sunday. Sanibel-Captiva barrier islands of southwest Florida tant part of the fish habitat in the refuge and it has been Fish started coming almost immediately and some snook particularly hard. When the hurricane made landfall on blocked by debris since Hurricane Charley. and several hundred mullet were spotted swimming August 13, 2004. the eye of the hurricane passed Armed with small chainsaws on long poles, handsaws, through. directly over Captiva and North Captiva Islands. hard hats and work gloves, volunteers were joined by "We were pleased with the progress." said Willett. "We Driven by the hurricane, winds and water had major Refuge Manager Rob Jess, Wildlife Biologist Kendra didn't get as far as we had hoped but (he results were better impacts to those islands and their neighboring island, Willett and Refuge Ranger Kevin Godsea as they proceed- than expected." Sanibel. home to the J.N. "Ding" Darling National ed to clear brush from the creek. The bulk of the difficult work was accomplished last Wildlife Refuge. Willett pointed out that the flow of this tidal creek is an weekend but volunteers will return Saturday and Sunday, Some of the mangrove forests in the National important part of the environment for both fish and birds. It April 16 and 17 to finish the job. Wildlife Refuge were severely impacted by Hurricane Charley. The strong winds stripped the leaves from the branches, snapped limbs and trunks, and even uproot- ed many of the trees. Surveys completed after the hur- ricane by the Sanibel-Captiva Conservation Foundation found that larger trees were more severely impacted by the storm. Debris from fallen and dam- aged mangroves was strewn across roadways and lit- Remal & TOUR Bom Tmps tered the feeder canals that supply tidal circulation through the estuary.