TALLAHASSEE, Fla., April 4, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- The Florida
Cabinet on Tuesday approved the purchase of 5,534 acres of
sensitive lands from Alico, Inc., for the Devil's Garden Florida
Forever project.
"We are incredibly proud to support the State of Florida to preserve this critical
land and the biodiversity it hosts for future generations," said
Alico Interim President Ben
Fishman. "Alico is committed to conserving Southwest Florida land and water resources,"
Fishman said.
"In addition, Alico is working every day to complete our
dispersed water management project on adjoining land in
Hendry County to help improve
water quality in the Caloosahatchee estuary. Between the Florida
Forever land sale and our water project, Alico has dedicated 40,000
acres of property in Hendry County
to environmental protection," Fishman said.
The soon-to-be acquired Alico lands are part of the Devil's
Garden Florida Forever project, an 83,000-acre area in Hendry and Collier Counties. The 5,534-acre Alico
acquisition is comprised of 3,233 acres of uplands and 2,301 acres
of wetlands. The state purchased the land from Alico for
$14.8 million.
Currently used for cattle grazing, Cabinet staff analysis noted,
"The long-term stewardship of the landowner is evident through the
diversity of ecosystems and resource integrity found throughout the
western portion of the project area."
Specifically, this property:
- Provides a natural habitat to several threatened native plant
and animal species, and has numerous recording sightings of the
Florida Panther;
- Adjoins the Great Florida Birding and Wildlife Trail; and
- Provides a critical flow of water to the natural systems of
Fakahatchee Strand and Big Cypress Preserve
For more information on the land sale, please read the article
"Alico to sell 5,500 acres to Florida for conservation" in the Naples
Daily News and Fort Myers News-Press. For more information on
the dispersed water project, please read the editorial "More Bad
Water? We hope not." from the Fort Myers News-Press.
About Alico:
Alico, Inc. primarily operates two
divisions: Alico Citrus, one of the nation's largest citrus
producers, and Alico Water Resources and Other Operations, a
leading water storage and environmental services division. Learn
more about Alico (Nasdaq: ALCO) at www.alicoinc.com.
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SOURCE Alico