Bear Hunts, Developer Bailouts, and Double Dipping on Conservation Easements.
Description
This week, Ryan and Ryan discuss the Florida Black Bear hunt and the number of applicants for the bear tag lottery, many purchased by those who do not want to hunt bears in an effort to limit the bears killed during the season.
In Destin, a 4-acre sand dune is up for sale for 83.3 million dollars (when it was purchased in 2017 for 8 million), and can be bought with Florida Wildlife Corridor Funds, despite not being in the Wildlife Corridor or on any priority list for conservation lands. It has the appearance of a developer bailout.
Finally, the cabinet is going to vote on an exception where someone who has a conservation easement on their property also wants to use it to sell wetland mitigation bank credits. Nothing like being paid not to develop your property and then using it to allow the development of wetlands in other areas.
Florida got 160,000 requests to hunt bears, but many applicants plan to sit out
Florida wants to buy 4 acres in the Panhandle. The price tag? $83M (Tampa Bay Times)
September 30, 2025, Florida Cabinet Agenda (See items 3b and 4f)
2025 Florida Forever Priority Projects
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