TC PALM (Stuart, Florida) Burying tortoise burrows draws criticism in In...

TC PALM (Stuart, Florida) 25 April 06 Burying tortoise burrows draws criticism in Indian River County (Tony Judnich)

Indian River County: State officials say they've received many complaints over the years from residents about the "incidental take permit" that allows a developer to pay for tortoises killed when their burrows are filled in.
Money from the permit fee buys land in one of seven public, state mitigation parks, where other tortoises can safely live.
"We're in the business to ensure these species are around forever," Joy Hill, Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission spokesman, said Monday. "However, sometimes to ensure they are around forever, tough decision are made."
But many Floridians, such as 18-year Sebastian resident Betty Bettner, don't agree with burying tortoises alive.
Bettner, 90, said all developers should be required to set aside land at their construction site for the tortoises. And she made reference to how the tortoises share their burrows with others. The burrows can provide refuge to more than 360 animal species, according to the Gainesville-based Gopher Tortoise Council.
"Look at all the animals they help," Bettner said. "(Developers) can't keep gobbling land up and mistreating these creatures."
Hill said the commission recognizes burying tortoise burrows is "a very distasteful practice."
"And we know people don't want tortoises killed for development," she said. "We're exploring options to reduce the number of gopher tortoises left behind when developers choose the incidental take option."
The commission has issued 345 incidental take permits — including six in Indian River County — to developers since the start of the agency's fiscal year July 1, commission biologist Rick McCann said.
Developers using the permits include those developing single-family home sites, small commercial sites and large developments, he said. The number of tortoises killed under those permits wasn't available.
Hill is a liaison for the commission's nine-member Gopher Tortoise Issues Team, which formed two years ago and meets every two weeks to discuss improving the tortoises' survival. The tortoise is a species of special concern, the lowest level of state wildlife protection behind threatened and endangered.
Hill said the commission team is looking at whether any additional public land is available where tortoises could be relocated from construction sites. The team also is looking at ways of improving the management of tortoise habitat owned by private individuals, who developers pay to provide land for tortoises relocated from construction sites.
Hill said she doesn't know when the team will form any recommendations to Fish and Wildlife commissioners.
Besides getting an incidental take permit, developers who come across tortoises at construction sites can:
• Avoid development.
• Avoid destruction of gopher burrows by building around them or erecting barriers so bulldozers stay away.
• Get a permit to relocate up to five tortoises on site.
• Get a permit to relocate more than five tortoises on site or relocate any number of tortoises to one of several privately-owned sites.
While many developers choose to bury tortoise burrows, some would rather relocate them on site.
Late last week, workers for Sebastian homebuilder Ameron Homes Inc. — using a conservation commission relocation permit — relocated a tortoise at a single-family home site on Seahouse Street. The property is south of County Road 512 and west of Laconia Street.
Workers dug a hole near the tortoise's burrow and placed an empty 5-gallon bucket at the burrow opening. The tortoise fell into the bucket, then was released on another part of the property where it can dig a new burrow, an Ameron Home official said Tuesday.
Anyone concerned about the state's incidental take permit — which allows a developer to pay for tortoises killed when their burrows get filled — can call the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission's regional office in Ocala at (352) 732-1225, or go online at www.myfwc.com and click on the "ask FWC" link.
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