The Pursuit Property is 111± acres located in St. Lucie County. The property consisted of undeveloped, disturbed land, with 79 acres used for cattle grazing. The Project plan was for the expansion of an existing boat manufacturing facility, the associated infrastructure, and a stormwater management system. We were initially asked to assist with Florida scrub jay services including vegetation and habitat mapping and a Florida scrub jay survey. Our services were expanded to include environmental permitting and St. Lucie County Development Plan approval.
The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service databases documented historical records of Florida scrub jays occurring within 2.5 miles of the Project. During our survey, Florida scrub jays were documented on the site. Through consultation with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, and St. Lucie County, we prepared a Florida scrub jay habitat management plan as a measure to minimize potential adverse effects to the Florida scrub jay and to address mitigation needs for the Florida scrub jay as recommended by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. The plan provided a comprehensive resource management plan for the Florida scrub jay within the Project’s preserve area. Included in the plan, along with management guidelines and activities, was a monitoring program to document the success of enhancement actions.
We also conducted a listed species survey per St. Lucie County requirements; conducted wetland flagging and wetland water level elevations; assisted with South Florida Water Management District and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers permitting including permit applications, wetland jurisdictional determinations, and a wetland mitigation analysis; consulted with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service for the Florida scrub jay and Eastern indigo snake and provided technical assistance for site plan development.
We were also contracted to assist with gopher tortoises. We prepared and obtained a gopher tortoise permit and excavated and relocated the gopher tortoise’s off-site to a recipient preserve area.
