Resolution 150-2009
RESOLUTION NO. 150 -2009
A RESOLUTION OF THE MONROE COUNTY BOARD OF
COUNTY COMMISSIONERS ACKNOWLEDGING THE
FINANCIAL COSTS AND ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACTS
ASSOCIATED WITH THE PROLIFERATION OF
UNPERMITTED VESSEL MOORINGS THROUGHOUT THE
WATERS OF THE FLORIDA KEYS, AND REQUESTING THE
FLORIDA FISH & WILDLIFE COMMISSION, THE FLORIDA
DEPARTMENT OF ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AND THE
BOARD OF TRUSTEES OF THE INTERNAL IMPROVEMENT
TRUST FUND TO ADDRESS SUCH IMPACTS AND
COORDINATE WITH MONROE COUNTY ON THE
REGULATION AND REMOVAL OF ILLEGAL AND
UNPERMITTED VESSEL MOORINGS.
WHEREAS, the Board of Trustees of the Internal Improvement Trust Fund is the
steward of state sovereign submerged lands, and oversees the use and development of
such lands; and
WHEREAS, the Florida Department of Environmental Protection, as staff to the
Board of Trustees, has regulatory and proprietary authority over the use of sovereign
submerged lands, and provides review and permitting of objects or structures placed on
or over such lands; and
WHEREAS, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission has
regulatory authority over waterway markers in, on, or over the waters or shores of the
state, including the permitting of vessel moorings; and
WHEREAS, the Monroe County Office of Marine Resources assists with the
development and implementation of boating infrastructure throughout the waters of the
Florida Keys, including the establishment of permitted moorings; and
WHEREAS, the placement of unpermitted or nonconforming vessel moorings in
or on the waters of the state is a criminal offense; and
WHEREAS, illegal unpermitted moorings have proliferated in recent years
throughout the waters of the Florida Keys, often as an alternative to docking or anchoring
of vessels for storage, residential and commercial purposes; and
WHEREAS, illegal unpermitted moorings may not be properly designed,
positioned or installed, often resulting in benthic resource degradation or the creation of a
hazard to navigation; and
WHEREAS, vessels on illegal unpermitted moorings may come unattached from
their mooring, resulting in such vessels going adrift and creating the potential for
property and resource damage; and
WHEREAS, the casino boat Pair-O-Dice recently came unattached from an
unpermitted mooring off of Key West for the second time within two years, endangering
public safety and causing significant cost to the tax payers of the State of Florida; and
WHEREAS, illegal unpermitted moorings directly contribute to the proliferation
of abandoned and derelict vessels; and
WHEREAS, no coordinated efforts between state and local governments have
yet been established to address the issue of illegal unpermitted moorings;
NOW THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE BOARD OF COUNTY
COMMISSIONERS OF MONROE COUNTY, FLORIDA THAT:
Section 1. The Monroe County Board of County Commissioners requests the
Board of Trustees of the Internal Improvement Trust Fund, the Florida Fish & Wildlife
Conservation Commission (FWC) and the Florida Department of Environmental
Protection (DEP) to recognize existing state statutes and administrative codes pertaining
to the depositing or affixing of materials or objects upon or into sovereign submerged
lands, and address the unpermitted use of materials or objects other than anchors for the
purposes of mooring vessels.
Section 2. The Monroe County Board of County Commissioners requests
FWC and DEP to work in a coordinated effort with the Monroe County Office of Marine
Resources to address the issues associated with illegal unpermitted vessel moorings.
Section 3. The Monroe County Board of County Commissioners directs staff,
in coordination with FWC and DEP to evaluate the potential for identifying and
removing illegal unpermitted moorings from the waters of the Florida Keys within
Monroe County, and develop measures to prevent future placement of unpermitted
moorings through education and outreach.
Section 4. The Monroe County Board of County Commissioners requests
FWC and its officers, the Sheriff of Monroe County and his deputies, and all other law
enforcement officers as provided in section 327.70 and 253.05 Florida Statutes, to take
reasonable and appropriate law enforcement action against persons who have unlawfully
placed, caused to be place, or maintained in place any unpermitted or nonconforming
vessel moorings.
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PASSED AND ADOPTED by the Board of County Commissioners of Monroe
County, Florida at a regular meeting held on the 20th day of May, 2009.
Mayor George Neugent
Mayor Pro Tern Sylvia J. Murphy
Commissioner Kim Wigington
Commissioner Heather Carruthers
Commissioner Mario Di Gennaro
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS
OF MON}OE COUNT\,!LORIDA
BY: ~-;,-~c O)~5~
Mayor George Neugent
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