North Central Florida Environmental Summit:

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• North Central Florida Environmental Summit
• A Socio-Demographic Analysis and Ecological
  Characterization
• February 16, 2002
• Mary Davis, PhD Candidate, Dept of Economics
• Thomas T. Ankersen, Director, Conservation Clinic
• Tom Hoctor, UF Geoplan Center
• Amy Knight, Florida Natural Resources Inventory
• Luther Quinn, M.S. Candidate, Inter. Ecology

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• What is North Central Florida?
• Political Boundaries
• Socio-Demographic Statistics
• Economics and Industry
• Environmental Issues

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Political Boundaries

• Counties included in NCF profile
• 16 counties covering 12,400 square miles, 19 of
  the total Florida land area

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Political Boundaries

• Regional Planning Councils
• North Central Florida, Northeast Florida,
  Withlacoochee

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Political Boundaries

• Water Management Districts
• Suwannee, St. Johns, Southwest

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Socio-demographics

• NCF population in 2000 - 962,306, 6 of the total
  FL population
• Distribution of the population
• Alachua, Marion, and Clay counties constitute 64
  of the NCF population
• Dixie, Gilchrist, Hamilton, Lafayette, and Union
  all have less than 15,000 persons each

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Socio-demographics

• Population Density
• 78 persons per square mile
• Florida average is 300
• Most densely populated counties are Clay and
  Alachua
• Least dense are Lafayette, Taylor, and Dixie

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Socio-demographics

• Population Growth 1990-2000 26
• State average 23.5
• Highest growth area is Gilchrist County at 50
• Smallest growth in Putnam County at 8

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Alachua County Growth SequenceSeparate PowerPoint
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Socio-demographics

• Major cities
• Gainesville, Alachua
• Ocala, Marion
• Lake City, Columbia
• Palatka, Putnam
• Orange Park, Clay
• Perry, Taylor
• Live Oak, Suwannee
• Starke, Bradford

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Socio-demographics

• NCF poverty rate (1997) 20.1
• State poverty rate 14.4
• Lowest rate in Clay County at 7.7
• Highest rate in Hamilton, Lafayette, and Dixie

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Socio-demographics

• NCF Per Capita Income 18,300
• FL average is 19,855
• Alachua county has highest income level - 25,650
• Union County has the lowest level - 12,750

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Socio-demographics

• High school education
• NCF graduation rate 65.4
• State average 74.4
• Alachua and Clay have highest rates at above 80
• Dixie and Madison have lowest records at around
  57

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Socio-demographics

• University Education percent to receive a
  Bachelors Degree
• NCF 10.4
• FL 18.3
• Alachua County 34.6
• Baker, Dixie, and Lafayette 5-6

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Socio-demographics

• 2000 Unemployment Rate for NCF 3.8
• Highest unemployment in Taylor County with 6.7
• Lowest rate in Alachua County at 1.9

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Economics and Industry

• Heavy Industries
• Phosphate Mining
• Cement Plants
• Pulp Mills

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Economics and Industry

• Government Services over 80,000 employees
• UF 1998-00 operating budget of over 1 ½ billion
  dollars
• Prisons 17,000 inmates housed in 20 NCF
  facilities, including the FL State Prison in
  Bradford County

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Economics and Industry

• Tourism
• NCF is a favorite spot for outdoor enthusiasts
• In 2000-2001, there were approximately 1,300,000
  visitors to NCF area state parks and managed
  areas, and over half of those visits were to
  local springs

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Economics and Industry

• 7,600 farms covering over 1 ½ million acres
• Major crops
• Tobacco, Corn, Cotton, Peanuts
• Livestock
• Total beef cattle 300,000 heads
• 72 producing dairies
• 272 poultry farms (broiler and egg)

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Economics and Industry

• Forestry/timber
• 70 of NCF land devoted to forestry
• State average is around 50
• Alachua and Marion have lowest use at 53
• Baker has highest at 92

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Economics and Industry

• Transportation infrastructure
• Over 200 road construction projects are currently
  in progress
• 62 projects have been completed within the past
  year

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Environmental Issues

• Polluting Industries
• Major industrial facilities releasing toxic
  substances, reported by the EPA in the Toxics
  Release Inventory
• Original TRI Industries
• 4 NCF companies are listed in the top ten
  facilities in Florida for on and off-site
  releases
• Buckeye Florida L.P. in Perry
• Georgia-Pacific Corp in Palatka
• Eveready Battery Co. in Alachua
• Gold Kist Live Oak Processing Plant in Live Oak

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Environmental Issues

• Seven New Industries reported by TRI
• 2 NCF companies listed among the top ten
  polluting facilities in FL
• Seminole Generating Station in Palatka
• GRU, Deerhaven Generating Station in Gainesville

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Environmental Issues

• NCF Superfund Sites
• Approximately 97 Superfund sites are located in
  NCF
• 5 sites are either currently listed or have been
  listed on the National Priorities List
• Currently on the NPL
• Cabot Carbon/ Koppers in Alachua County
• Brown Wood Preserving in Suwannee County

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Environmental Issues

• Solid Waste Disposal
• NCF average was 1 ton per capita in 1998
• State average is 1.77 tons
• Largest contributors to solid wastes are Alachua
  County residents with 1.8 tons
• Least amount of waste comes from Lafayette with
  .34 tons per capita

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Environmental Issues

• Groundwater
• NCF withdraws 365.4 million gallons of
  groundwater per day
• Marion and Taylor counties consume the greatest
  amounts at over 50 million gallons each per day
• Total demand on the groundwater system is
  projected to increase by 35 in the next 20 years

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Environmental Issues

• Surface Water
• NCF withdrawals of surface water totals 173
  million gallons per day
• 95 of the withdrawals occur in Suwannee and
  Putnam counties
• Minimum Flow Requirements
• 47 MFLs have been set for the NCF area, all of
  them within the St. Johns Water Management
  District

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Environmental Issues

• List of Impaired Waters
• 12 watersheds within the NCF boundaries reported
  their waters as impaired in 1998
• The number of water bodies within these
  watersheds total 185
• Reported impairments are the result of nutrients,
  coliform, dissolved oxygen, toxic chemicals,
  turbidity, and total suspended solis

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Environmental Issues

• Fish and Wildlife Advisories
• Rivers Oklawaha, St. Marys, Wacassassa,
  Suwannee, Santa Fe, Withlacoochee, and Alapaha
• Lakes and ponds Altho, Eaton, Kerr, Ocean, Mill
  Dam, Swim
• National Wildlife Refuge Lower Suwannee

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Environmental Issues

• Habitat Loss
• Wetlands converted
• Suwannee River 188 lost, 45 created, 7,343
  preserved, 14,028 improved
• St. Johns River 4,351 lost, 3,409 created,
  30,549 preserved, 1,254 improved

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Environmental Issues

• Local Government Environmental Programs
• Only Alachua and Marion counties have departments
  specifically devoted to environmental protection
• Only Alachua and Marion counties have local
  government land acquisition programs