Agenda 04/23/2024 Item #16A 2 (Application to Florida Fish and Wildlifer Conservation Commission's Invasive Plant Management)04/23/2024
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Recommendation to authorize the County Manager, or their designee, to submit an application to the
Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission’s Invasive Plant Management Section to be eligible to
receive funding assistance services worth $250,000 in FY 2025 for the removal of invasive exotic vegetation
within Conservation Collier’s Pepper Ranch, North Belle Meade, and Red Maple Swamp Preserves, and to
authorize staff to accept such funding assistance services, if awarded.
OBJECTIVE: To authorize the County Manager, or their designee, to submit an application to the Florida Fish
and Wildlife Conservation Commission’s Invasive Plant Management Section to be eligible to receive funding
assistance services worth $250,000 in FY 2025 for the treatment of invasive exotic vegetation within Conservation
Collier’s Pepper Ranch, North Belle Meade, and Red Maple Swamp Preserves, and to authorize staff to accept such
funding assistance services, if awarded.
CONSIDERATIONS: The Invasive Plant Management Section (IPMS) of the Florida Fish and Wildlife
Commission (FWC) provides funding assistance for invasive plant treatment projects on public conservation lands
throughout the State of Florida. The County must submit an application to FWC in order to receive this assistance.
If funding assistance is received, IPMS will pay State contractors to treat invasive, exotic plants within Pepper
Ranch Preserve ($150,000), North Belle Meade Preserve ($50,000), and Red Maple Swamp Preserve ($50,000)
during FY 2025; the work performed would be worth up to a total of $250,000. No funds will be transferred to
Collier County. Approval of this item authorizes Staff to submit the application to FWC for funding assistance
services and accept such services if awarded.
FISCAL IMPACT: If funding assistance is awarded, it will save the Conservation Collier Program approximately
$250,000, which is required for exotic plant treatment within the Pepper Ranch, North Belle Meade, and Red Maple
Swamp Preserves.
GROWTH MANAGEMENT IMPACT: This proposal supports Goal 6 of the Conservation and Coastal
Management Element of the County Growth Management Plan, which is to identify, protect, conserve, and
appropriately use native vegetative communities and wildlife habitats.
LEGAL CONSIDERATIONS: This item is approved as to form and legality and requires a majority vote for
approval. -SAA
RECOMMENDATION: To authorize the County Manager, or their designee, to submit an application to the
Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission’s Invasive Plant Management Section to be eligible to receive
funding assistance services worth $250,000 in FY 2025 for the removal of invasive exotic vegetation within
Conservation Collier’s Pepper Ranch, North Belle Meade, and Red Maple Swamp Preserves, and to authorize staff
to accept such funding assistance services, if awarded.
Prepared by: Christal Segura, Environmental Specialist II, Development Review Division
ATTACHMENT(S)
1. Annual Liaison Letter 2024-25 (PDF)
16.A.2
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04/23/2024
COLLIER COUNTY
Board of County Commissioners
Item Number: 16.A.2
Doc ID: 28364
Item Summary: Recommendation to authorize the County Manager, or their designee, to submit an application to
the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission’s Invasive Plant Management Section to be eligible to
receive funding assistance services worth $250,000 in FY 2025 for the removal of invasive exotic vegetation within
Conservation Collier’s Pepper Ranch, North Belle Meade, and Red Maple Swamp Preserves, and to authorize staff
to accept such funding assistance services, if awarded.
Meeting Date: 04/23/2024
Prepared by:
Title: Technician – Development Review
Name: Lucia Martin
03/14/2024 3:57 PM
Submitted by:
Title: Environmental Specialist –
Name: Jaime Cook
03/14/2024 3:57 PM
Approved By:
Review:
Transportation Management Operations Support Evelyn Trimino Other Reviewer Completed
03/15/2024 4:55 PM
Development Review Summer BrownAraque Other Reviewer Completed 03/18/2024 11:00 AM
Operations & Regulatory Management Michael Stark Other Reviewer Completed 03/22/2024 11:23 AM
Growth Management Community Development Department Diane Lynch GMD Approver Completed
03/22/2024 4:49 PM
Unknown Jaime Cook Division Director Completed 04/05/2024 10:32 AM
Grants Joanna Partyniewicz Level 2 Grants Review Completed 04/08/2024 1:24 PM
Growth Management Community Development Department James C French Growth Management Completed
04/09/2024 11:28 AM
County Attorney's Office Sally Ashkar Level 2 Attorney Review Completed 04/15/2024 1:01 PM
Office of Management and Budget Debra Windsor Level 3 OMB Gatekeeper Review Completed 04/15/2024 1:04 PM
County Attorney's Office Jeffrey A. Klatzkow Level 3 County Attorney's Office Review Completed 04/15/2024 1:24 PM
Office of Management and Budget Laura Zautcke OMB Reviewer Completed 04/15/2024 2:18 PM
Grants Therese Stanley OMB Reviewer Completed 04/15/2024 3:40 PM
County Manager's Office Ed Finn Level 4 County Manager Review Completed 04/17/2024 3:08 PM
Board of County Commissioners Geoffrey Willig Meeting Pending 04/23/2024 9:00 AM
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UPLAND INVASIVE EXOTIC PLANT MANAGEMENT PROGRAM
Fiscal Year 2024-2025 Priorities and Procedures for Submitting Proposals
A Guidance Document for Regional Invasive Plant Working Group Liaisons and Applicants
March 2024
Funding for the “Uplands Program” is provided as set forth in Section 369.252(4), Florida Statutes, which reads: “Use funds
in the Invasive Plant Control Trust Fund as authorized by the Legislature for carrying out activities under this section on
public lands. A minimum of 20 percent of the amount appropriated by the Legislature for invasive plant control from the
Land Acquisition Trust Fund shall be used for the purpose of controlling nonnative, upland, invasive plant species on public
lands.” Total funding for the Uplands Program in 2023 was $14.5 million.
The Uplands Program funds projects for the purpose of improving habitat conditions for Florida’s native plants and
animals. Since 1997, the Uplands Program has expended $262,500,000 to treat invasive plant species on 702 public land
management areas. The program funded 3,531 projects targeting 4,380,000 acres of public conservation lands that
together comprise 10,047,000 acres, or 90% of all conservation land in the state. Over the same period, cooperating
agencies contributed over $72,000,000 in matching funds and in-kind services towards project funding.
CALL FOR PROPOSALS
• The Uplands Subsection is currently seeking proposals for FY24/25. Applications for projects to control invasive
plant species must be submitted to a Working Group by the date specified. Each Working Group has its own
schedule, so applicants should contact the designated group liaison.
• All proposed project sites must be designated public conservation land.
• THIS IS NOT A GRANT.
Funding for approved projects is provided by the Uplands Program through a fixed price purchase order issued to
an approved Contractor, or through a task assignment issued to a government agency under an existing state
contract.
Interested applicants can find information related to submitting a proposal in the Proposal Handbook.
FY24 Program Priorities
These are our priorities if our budget remains the same as last year. Please be competitive and show your working group
why your project cannot wait another year to be funded, the amount of work you’ve already invested, and how valuable
the unit is.
Initial- Initial means the first time a unit has been treated by anyone. A new species after initial treatment is still
maintenance.
PRIORITY 1- Maintenance of most FLEPPC 2023 Category I species, particularly Lygodium spp. and cogon grass:
$150,000 cap. To qualify for Priority 1 status, the proposal must be for maintenance control of a project area that has
been continually treated for up to four consecutive years but is not yet in a maintenance rotation. EXAMPLE: A species that
requires yearly treatment for four consecutive years to achieve maintenance (think cogon or climbing ferns) as compared
to a woody species (like Melaleuca or Camphor) that need one treatment in a year and can then move to a two- or three-
year rotation. We know most projects have multiple invasives, but these priorities should be for the major problematic
species.
16.A.2.a
Packet Pg. 227 Attachment: Annual Liaison Letter 2024-25 (28364 : Conservation Collier Request for Authorization to Apply for FWC IPMS Funding Assistance)
PRIORITY 2- Maintenance of areas that were treated consecutively for multiple years, are currently in a treatment rotation,
and need the next treatment in the upcoming fiscal year: $150,000 cap.
PRIORITY 3- Initial control of some FLEPPC 2023 Category I invasive plant species: $150,000 cap. Initial means the first time
a unit has been treated by anyone. Category II species might also be considered, on a case-by-case basis, but don’t get your
hopes up.
PRIORITY 4- Treatment of areas that were previously treated but maintenance was not kept up, or areas that have been
treated that have low invasive densities but could be placed in rotation: $50,000 cap. Priority 4 proposals may not be
funded if it is determined that the infestation level is too low for cost-effective contracted work and treatment, or could be
safely delayed for a year or two, or could be managed by in-house staff if herbicides were provided.
The caps are for FWC contributions only, not the total cost with match and in-kind.
The Herbicide Bank continues to be available for any in-house maintenance control on Public Conservation Land. However,
due to major supply chain issues obtaining herbicide may be difficult, slow, or postponed a year.
FY23Proposals to the Working Groups
Please submit Ranking, including Melaleuca projects, no later than 17 May. Melaleuca treatment projects are for
Melaleuca only and should be submitted under the Special category in TIERS. These projects are ranked in Tallahassee.
CLARIFICATIONS
• In TIERS the treatment history table is for the PROPOSED UNIT in each scope of work to include: year, unit,
acres, funding source, species treated, funding amount, and whether it was initial or maintenance. PLEASE
ONLY ADD ONE ENTRY PER UNIT PER YEAR, DO NOT SEPARATE BY SPECIES.
• Unit description should include only the acres of the unit to be treated. Please give a range of invasive
plant coverage—plant growth can change before the contractors arrive on site; therefore, exact coverage acres
should not be used to describe treatment areas.
• Please provide an area map showing the current condition and a 2024/25 invasive plant maintenance plan (see
example next page following).
• Land managers may submit multiple scopes of work for a single public conservation land; e.g., Lygodium
maintenance on burn unit 1, cogon maintenance on burn unit 2, etc. However, proposals including multiple PCLs
managed by different agencies are not allowed—unless they are all contiguous and one designated Site Manager
is responsible for overseeing the entire project.
• If your proposal includes treating a significant amount of cogon grass, Scleria microcarpa, Scleria lacustris or Scleria
eggersiana write the SOW to include two treatments of the grass portions only. The two treatments are restricted
to the first three consecutive years of treatment. THE SECOND TREATMENT WILL BE FOR POLYGONED AREAS OF
THE SPECIES IN QUESTION. THESE POLYGONS ARE REQUIRED BEFORE THE PROJECT CAN BE FUNDED, AND THEY
WILL USUALLY BE SMALLER THAN THE MAIN TREATMENT AREA.
SPATIAL DATA
For funded projects, before the pre-quote meeting can occur, a shapefile of the final treatment boundary must be
provided. Please create polygon treatment units, not points. FNAI is available to assist applicants with the digitizing of their
treatment boundaries in ArcMap, QGIS or Google Earth. Please contact Mitch East 850-224-8207 x206
meast@fnai.fsu.edu if you need help.
Apples to Apples
16.A.2.a
Packet Pg. 228 Attachment: Annual Liaison Letter 2024-25 (28364 : Conservation Collier Request for Authorization to Apply for FWC IPMS Funding Assistance)
We will again allow breaking out “small” projects for a separate ranking list. Smalls must meet the following Project Criteria:
• Estimated project cost is (realistically) no more than $50,000;
• Property is designated as public conservation land;
• Property is owned by a city, county, or public university;
• Property contains less than 400 acres in its entirety—i.e., not a site/unit contained within a larger PCL managed by the
same agency and/or cooperators; and,
• Property is protected from future development in perpetuity (e.g., by deed, easement, or master plan restrictions).
Potential Ranking Criteria for Small Projects
• Project site contains an environmental education facility and/or program.
• Education program includes a curriculum featuring invasive plant identification, native plant alternatives, private
landowner training for plant control, workdays or events (e.g., air-potato roundup) that are geared toward increasing
community involvement. [Example: # of public outreach events scheduled for the proposal year.]
• Applicant records number of participants in events (as opposed to total visitors) and can show a positive trend
[i.e., an increased number of participants as a proxy for outreach effectiveness]. For example, hosting weekly school
group visits would get a better score than hosting monthly visits.
• Applicant demonstrates ability to conduct follow-up treatments.
Example: Area Maintenance Plan
Annual Invasive Plant Management Status Map – This is an annual snapshot of your area as it relates to invasive plant
management.
In Rotation = Maintenance condition where the unit has been treated to a condition of maintenance; 2-3-year rotations
(like burn rotations).
Not in Rotation = Initial condition or no longer in maintenance condition. Invasive Free =There are no invasive plants in the
unit.
16.A.2.a
Packet Pg. 229 Attachment: Annual Liaison Letter 2024-25 (28364 : Conservation Collier Request for Authorization to Apply for FWC IPMS Funding Assistance)
This map represents what the current invasive treatment needs are for your area. Your entire site/area may be small and in
one rotation, in which case just state the rotation interval for your area.
This map assists us in understanding what are the invasive treatment needs across the state, including where maintenance
treatment is in rotation and where initial treatment is still required to achieve maintenance level.
****Treatment units may change over time****
It would help our operations immensely if you could enter your ranked project lists as soon as possible, thus giving us time
to work out any remaining ‘kinks’ in the system before we start the next fiscal year.
GETTING SET UP IN TIERS - The Super-Quick Guide
Email John Kunzer John.Kunzer@myFWC.com in Tallahassee and let him know you need to get registered in TIERS.
16.A.2.a
Packet Pg. 230 Attachment: Annual Liaison Letter 2024-25 (28364 : Conservation Collier Request for Authorization to Apply for FWC IPMS Funding Assistance)