Florida’s longest county is none other than Monroe County in the Florida Keys. And there, at the 112.5 mile marker, the first-time traveler will begin a trek spanning 43 scenic bridges, connecting 112.5 miles of federal highway, ending at Key West. One might begin by noticing the seemingly endless sawgrass as it morphs into island mangrove. Remarkably, the Florida Keys offers an angler, with a peppy boat on a calm day, an opportunity to start at America’s only living reef, to the brackish waters of Florida Bay, while ending in the fresh water of the Everglades National Park. On such a trip, one would have the chance to encounter almost every marine species in the southeast United States. Unusual flora and fauna would be noticeable, along with a vast array of exotic tropical birds and a wonderful place in the continental U.S. where one might find wild parrots, miniature key deer and salt-water crocodiles. In addition to maintaining our current status of critical concern, it could be easily argued the Keys are a national treasure possessing many of the characteristics of qualifying criteria to be considered, per se, as a national park. Nevertheless, it can certainly be argued that our string of islands is a unique and special place within our state and country, a place like nowhere else in our continental mainland.

And, that same traveler might also notice the saltwater, either oceanside or bayside, is never more than four miles away. But therein lies an obvious problem, as we only have one road and a water pipe. In essence, our road is our lifeline to the mainland and our water pipe is the lifeline to our very existence. Consequently, one could easily conclude that before Governor Crist and his Cabinet begin the usual pondering process about removing our status as an Area of Critical Concern, he might just want to consider an additional and more pragmatic argument less frequently heard concerning our currently restricted fresh water supply.

Fact is, rather than removing our critical concern status, our good governor might want to consider extending it to all of South Florida, especially after reviewing the 2003 Department of Environment Protection’s Annual Status Report which stated, “Four of the five water management districts contain areas of existing water sources insufficient to meet 20-year needs. Flows and water levels of the Apalachicola River and Lake Okeechobee have never been lower. Drought conditions and low water levels in the aquifer contribute to sinkhole formation, water quality degradation, and the drying up of wells”.

In addition, the 2007 Monroe County Public Facilities Capacity Assessment Report states, “With projected demand of 18.77 MGD (million gallons per day) in 2007 and with the assumption that demand will only continue to increase in 2008, once water restrictions are lifted, based upon water demand steadily increasing every year since 1991, with the exception of 2001, it can be anticipated that water demand will outweigh supply in 2009/2010.”

What happens then?

Aside from environmental preservation, water quality and hurricane evacuation, the present and projected availability of potable water should be moved up on the list as one of the primary reasons to maintain the Florida Keys as an area of critical concern. County Commissioner George Neugent, who also serves as a member of the South Florida Regional Planning Council tells us that the council has now recognized potable water as a factor in future development, saying, “Water will become more of a variable and limiting factor in this equation. In fact, it may very well become the wild card to determining future development throughout South Florida,” Neugent told me.

In 2006, addressing the last proposal to remove our critical status, prominent land-use attorney Richard Grosso wrote, “The current legislative proposal to remove the special Area of Critical State Concern protections for the Florida Keys would turn over Florida's most imperiled and fragile place to the real estate market - with devastating consequences. The Critical Area designation, first applied 30 years ago to allow the state to ensure that the development rules and their enforcement protected the statewide interest and investment in the Keys, is more necessary now than ever.”

And a couple years ago, a survey done by Lakes Research, found that 82% of respondents sampled oppose the removal of the ACSC designation. 52% believe that our environment has gotten worse over the past five years. The impending water crisis should be obvious to those who govern as well as residents of the Florida Keys. To some the very words “critical concern” denote little more than obstruction to profit but our citizens should expect their elected officials to represent the majority who dwell here, addressing the long-term concerns and a larger overview, one of protecting both an endangered lifestyle and a national treasure which simply happens to be a critical little county with a pipeline.