One-brush stroke for permitting OK, judge says
By Ryan Burr
The St. Joe Co. can move forward under a single permit to develop thousands of acres in Bay and Walton counties, a federal judge has ruled.
Judge Timothy Corrigan said in a final order, which was filed Sunday in U.S. District Court in Jacksonville, that the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers? issuance of one permit in June 2004 for development on a portion of 48,150 acres was lawful, albeit by ?the slimmest of margins.?
With that opinion, Corrigan refused to grant a permanent injunction for use of the regional general permit, as requested by The Natural Resources Defense Council and the Florida Sierra Club.
Corrigan issued a temporary injunction in November 2005 pending a hearing.
The regional general permit is a way for the corps to regulate the contiguous 48,150-acre parcel instead of making developers obtain Corps approval piecemeal.
The NRDC and Sierra Club sued the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to stop landowners of the Bay-Walton property from building with the regional general permit. St. Joe, which owns 75 percent of the permitted land historically used for pine tree production, entered the dispute as an intervenor.
?We believe that the court made the wise and correct decision today in vacating the preliminary injunction, rejecting the legal challenge and allowing the RGP to proceed as planned,? Peter S. Rummell, chairman and CEO of St. Joe said Monday in a news release. ?(St. Joe) joined with a coalition of local citizens, leaders and local and national environmental groups in an effort to create a model for large-scale ecological protection across an entire region, which encompasses multiple watersheds.?
The legal action has had ?only a minimal effect to date? on St. Joe?s real estate development activity, the news release added.
The NRDC and Sierra Club alleged that the far reaching permit violated the Clean Water Act and National Environmental Policy Act.
Corrigan agreed that the regional general permit was a non-traditional use of the corps? permitting authority under the Clean Water Act, but determined it was ?a use which the court finds is at, but not beyond, the outer limits of that authority.?
NRDC attorney Melanie Shepherdson said Monday she was surprised that Corrigan ruled for the defendants.
?We are disappointed with the judge?s decision,? she said, ?but we?ll continue to work to protect the outstanding natural resources and biodiversity in the Panhandle.?
The resources most affected within the 48,150 acres, Shepherdson said, are wetlands and water quality.
?The wetlands remove pollutants (in the ground) and stop storm surge,? she said.
One of the reasons environmental groups are concerned about development in the permitted area is that there are 2,000 acres of wetlands. The regional general permit allows development on 30 percent of the 48,150 acres and limits wetland destruction to no more than 1,500 acres for the entire parcel.
St. Joe spokesman Jerry Ray said previously that St. Joe ?for a long while? has been voluntarily implementing an added layer of permitting standards ? called Environmental Resource Permitting, or ERP ? which regulate building activity that alters surface water flow. Earlier this year, ERP was approved for Northwest Florida, the only section of the state where it was not in effect.
By Ryan Burr
The St. Joe Co. can move forward under a single permit to develop thousands of acres in Bay and Walton counties, a federal judge has ruled.
Judge Timothy Corrigan said in a final order, which was filed Sunday in U.S. District Court in Jacksonville, that the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers? issuance of one permit in June 2004 for development on a portion of 48,150 acres was lawful, albeit by ?the slimmest of margins.?
With that opinion, Corrigan refused to grant a permanent injunction for use of the regional general permit, as requested by The Natural Resources Defense Council and the Florida Sierra Club.
Corrigan issued a temporary injunction in November 2005 pending a hearing.
The regional general permit is a way for the corps to regulate the contiguous 48,150-acre parcel instead of making developers obtain Corps approval piecemeal.
The NRDC and Sierra Club sued the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to stop landowners of the Bay-Walton property from building with the regional general permit. St. Joe, which owns 75 percent of the permitted land historically used for pine tree production, entered the dispute as an intervenor.
?We believe that the court made the wise and correct decision today in vacating the preliminary injunction, rejecting the legal challenge and allowing the RGP to proceed as planned,? Peter S. Rummell, chairman and CEO of St. Joe said Monday in a news release. ?(St. Joe) joined with a coalition of local citizens, leaders and local and national environmental groups in an effort to create a model for large-scale ecological protection across an entire region, which encompasses multiple watersheds.?
The legal action has had ?only a minimal effect to date? on St. Joe?s real estate development activity, the news release added.
The NRDC and Sierra Club alleged that the far reaching permit violated the Clean Water Act and National Environmental Policy Act.
Corrigan agreed that the regional general permit was a non-traditional use of the corps? permitting authority under the Clean Water Act, but determined it was ?a use which the court finds is at, but not beyond, the outer limits of that authority.?
NRDC attorney Melanie Shepherdson said Monday she was surprised that Corrigan ruled for the defendants.
?We are disappointed with the judge?s decision,? she said, ?but we?ll continue to work to protect the outstanding natural resources and biodiversity in the Panhandle.?
The resources most affected within the 48,150 acres, Shepherdson said, are wetlands and water quality.
?The wetlands remove pollutants (in the ground) and stop storm surge,? she said.
One of the reasons environmental groups are concerned about development in the permitted area is that there are 2,000 acres of wetlands. The regional general permit allows development on 30 percent of the 48,150 acres and limits wetland destruction to no more than 1,500 acres for the entire parcel.
St. Joe spokesman Jerry Ray said previously that St. Joe ?for a long while? has been voluntarily implementing an added layer of permitting standards ? called Environmental Resource Permitting, or ERP ? which regulate building activity that alters surface water flow. Earlier this year, ERP was approved for Northwest Florida, the only section of the state where it was not in effect.