Protecting Our
Environmentally
Sensitive Lands
And Wildlife
12/2011www.hillsboroughcounty.org/parks
Parks, Recreation and Conservation
Department
Environmental Lands Acquisition
and Protection Program
Managing the Selected
Properties
A detailed management plan
is developed by County staff
with citizen input. Priority is
given to protecting a site’s
natural resources. All sites
acquired by the County are
accessible to the public for
compatible, resource-based
recreation to the greatest extent possible. No sites
acquired for preservation will be used for active
recreation, such as organized sports or athletics
or undergo any other form of public or private
development.
ELAPP also pursues funding to acquire and
preserve property that may qualify under other state
and federal conservation and open space programs.
These programs depend on the governing authority
to approve, such as the Florida Legislature for state
programs.
Sherman’s Fox Squirrel
For more information regarding the site
nomination process, site management, acquisition
of approved sites, or to participate in the
program, please contact:
Parks, Recreation and Conservation Department
P.O. Box 1110, Tampa, FL 33601-1110
(813) 672-7876
The Environmental Lands Acquisition and Protection
Program (ELAPP) is a voluntary program established
for the purpose of providing the process and funding
for identifying, acquiring, preserving and protecting
endangered, environmentally-sensitive and significant
lands in Hillsborough County. It is a citizen-based
program with volunteer committees involved in every
key aspect of the program. ELAPP is not a regulatory
program; a property does not become environmentally
sensitive because it’s in the ELAP Program, it is in the
ELAP Program because of its
environmental significance.
In January 1987, the Board
of County Commissioners
approved an Environmentally-
Sensitive Lands Ordinance
which provided $21 million over
a four-year period to acquire
environmentally-sensitive
lands. In 1990, County voters
approved the issuance of up to
$100 million in bonds over a 20-
year period to acquire additional lands.
Finally, in November 2008, voters approved the
issuance of up to $200 million in bonds.
The ELAP Program was established to conserve and
protect those lands which have environmentally unique,
irreplaceable and valued ecological resources. These
lands must satisfy one or more of the following criteria:
• Land containing native and scarce flora and fauna.
• Lands that supply a significant habitat for
endangered or threatened plants or animals.
• Land which plays a vital role in the protection
and enhancement of water quality but cannot be
protected through other government agencies or
regulations.
• Land that provides buffer zones, links, or additions
to existing environmentally-sensitive lands, or which
forms part of a natural greenway.
• Land containing unusual, outstanding, or unique
geological features.
• Land containing significant archaeological sites.
Some altered and degraded lands are approved
for preservation due to the importance of their
location (such as near the bay or along a stream) and
restoration to an environmentally beneficial condition
is practical.
Selecting County Properties
The land can be nominated by any property owner,
concerned citizen, community or environmental
organization. There is no fee or obligation associated
with the nomination. Applications and instructions
to nominate a “site,” are available through the
Hillsborough County Parks, Recreation and
Conservation Department. Nominations are taken
annually until December 31st and are considered
during the following year.
Once a site has been nominated, it goes through
a review and assessment process to determine
its environmental significance. Selected sites are
presented to the Hillsborough County Parks Board
and the Board of County Commissioners for approval.
Through December 2011, the ELAP Program had
preserved more than 60,500 acres with a significant
portion jointly-funded through state and local
government agencies.
Public meetings are held to present information and
answer questions.
After the sites have been approved for preservation
through ELAPP, the County’s
Real Estate Department will
contact the property owner and
start negotiations for acquiring
the site. Owners are contacted
based on anticipated costs,
environmental significance of the
site, and the owner’s previously-
expressed interest in the
program. Some properties are
donated, while most property
will be purchased. There is no
guarantee that an approved site
will be preserved.
ELAPP is a voluntary
program. Eminent
domain will not be used
to acquire property for
preservation. Property
owners may have their
property removed from the program. If a property
owner does not wish to sell, ELAPP does not force
the sale. If a property owner wants more than the
property is worth or more than the program is
willing to pay, ELAPP does not have to buy the land.
With the annual approval of new sites, the program
has far more land to acquire than available funding.
If a property owner of a selected site wants to
preserve their property, but does not want to sell,
they can provide the County with a conservation
easement for which the owner is compensated.
This is not unlike a water or electric easement.
It prevents development, construction, or other
activities that would disturb the environment, but
the property owners maintain their ownership
rights. They do not have to let the public on their
property, but the County will enforce the easement
to assure the area is protected and left in its natural
state. The easement can be customized to each
property and property owner. The owner can
also retain a life estate if they want the County to
eventually own the property.
Florida Golden Aster
Florida Scrub-Jay
Blackwater Creek Preserve
Protecting Our Environmentally-Sensitive Lands