[Congressional Record Volume 155, Number 12 (Wednesday, January 21, 2009)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E111-E112]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




 PINELLAS COUNTY, FLORIDA VOLUNTEERS HONORED FOR THEIR WORK TO PROTECT 
                          ENVIRONMENTAL LANDS

                                 ______
                                 

                         HON. C. W. BILL YOUNG

                               of florida

                    in the house of representatives

                      Wednesday, January 21, 2009

  Mr. YOUNG of Florida. Madam Speaker, I rise today to honor the more 
than 500 volunteers with the Pinellas County, Florida, Environmental 
Lands Division, which help manage and preserve Pinellas County's 
natural resources. These volunteers, whom I have the privilege to 
represent, are a diverse group that range from the age of 12 on up.
  These volunteers make a vital contribution to the county's 
environmental protection efforts, ensuring that all citizens and 
visitors are able to enjoy Florida's native environment. They 
supplement the efforts of the Environmental Land Division's staff, 
helping to oversee the nearly 16,000 acres managed by the division. In 
the first half of 2008 alone, these volunteers provided over 13,605 man 
hours in a wide range of activities.
  The division's conservation efforts were recently honored both 
regionally and nationally. In April 2008, the National Association of 
Counties awarded the program with an Act of Caring Award for community 
improvement. Additionally, in March 2008, the Tampa Bay Regional 
Planning Council recognized the division for its community service, as 
well as environmental and public education efforts. Following my 
remarks, I will include for my colleagues the full story of the 
volunteer effort as reported by Mariana Minaya of The St. Petersburg 
Times as well as an editorial from the same paper.
  Madam Speaker, the spirit of volunteerism and giving back to the 
community is alive and well in Pinellas County, Florida and I am 
honored to represent those who make such an invaluable contribution to 
the protection of Florida's natural resources. Their hard work and 
dedication allows the natural beauty of the land to be accessible to 
all visitors and I would ask my colleagues to join with me today in 
recognizing their outstanding achievements and to thank them for a job 
well done.

             [From The St. Petersburg Times, July 30, 2008]

                         500 Environmental Gems

                          (By Mariana Minaya)

       Thirty years ago, before development swallowed up swaths of 
     Florida, Pinellas County had the foresight to begin setting 
     aside thousands of acres of land for environmental 
     protection.
       Now, a robust corps of volunteers is striving to protect 
     the county's natural resources. The Environmental Lands 
     Division, which manages the county's preserves and other 
     protected areas, has seen its ranks swell to more than 500 
     people. It is the fastest-growing sector of volunteerism in 
     Pinellas County government.
       The division's conservation efforts were recently honored 
     both regionally and nationally. The volunteers are an 
     ``invaluable resource'' to managing the nearly 16,000 acres 
     under the department's care, said division director Dr. H. 
     Bruce Rinker. Without the volunteers, the division's staff of 
     34 people would be seriously disadvantaged.
       So far this year, volunteers have provided more than 13,605 
     man hours, equaling more than $263,433. These numbers are up 
     from the 1,387 hours of volunteer service in 1998, the year 
     the division was founded within the department of 
     Environmental Management.
       The volunteers care for 30 different ecosystems. They staff 
     educational centers at the Brooker Creek and Weedon Island 
     preserves, maintain trails and grounds, survey flora and 
     fauna, perform clerical work, lead hikes and help with 
     research.
       The sheer number of volunteers, the hours of labor they've 
     donated, and the variety of duties they performed impressed 
     judges of two awards programs this year. In April, the 
     National Association of Counties recognized four counties 
     from about two dozen entrants with an Acts of Caring Award 
     for community improvement, said spokesman Bill Cramer.
       In March, the Tampa Bay Regional Planning Council 
     recognized the division for its community service, as well as 
     environmental and public education efforts. The division 
     received a $2,500 grant for its volunteer program from the 
     Community Foundation of Tampa Bay.
       Judges ``were amazed . . . to have a program that has that 
     many volunteers,'' said Wren Krahl, spokeswoman for the Tampa 
     Bay Regional Planning Council. ``The other thing they were 
     impressed with is how much they've accomplished with the 
     stringent budget that they've had.''
       Over two years, as the division's staff has shrank by 14 
     positions, the volunteers recognize that the need for them 
     ``is real, not feigned,'' Rinker said. The division wants to 
     grow by 10 percent more volunteer hours each year to offset 
     the effects of staff and budget cuts.
       To keep the ranks full, the division keeps the red tape to 
     a minimum, said Kristin O'Meara, the land division's 
     volunteer site coordinator. Once a background check clears, 
     volunteers are open to the wide range of activities. They 
     accept anyone age 12 and up.
       Interest appears to be as strong as ever from both young 
     and old. About half the volunteers are retired. About 15 
     percent are under age 18. Some do it for school requirements; 
     others have a passion for wildlife and nature.
       ``How can you resist being able to work in the great 
     outdoors?'' Rinker said. ``Driving down our driveway is like 
     going back in time is what I've heard from people.''
       That is the appeal for Bill Brown, 62, of East Lake, who 
     lived in Groveland as a child, spending time at his 
     grandmother's boarding house for orange grove workers, living 
     off the land.
       ``I can remember eating things on the endangered species 
     list,'' Brown said.
       Volunteering gives Brown the freedom that 30 years of 
     office work as an Army Corps of Engineers spokesman never 
     afforded him.
       ``You don't have a timetable,'' he said. ``They give us a 
     job to do and then turn us loose, which I kind of like.''
       On Tuesday mornings, he spends about four hours with his 
     buddy, Ty Miramonti, 65, of Tarpon Springs. As a former Navy 
     man and firefighter, Miramonti is the more adventurous and 
     the more experienced, having started in 1993. But once in a 
     while, his wild streak has gotten him literally stuck in the 
     mud, and his partner's caution adds some balance to the team, 
     which has worked together for seven years.
       Together, the pair cruises through the Brooker Creek 
     Preserve on a four-wheel drive Ranger, clearing trails with 
     machetes in hand. It's hard work for old men, Brown said, but 
     it lets them stop to soak in the scenery or debate the 
     identities of the critters crawling on them when they need a 
     break.
       ``It's the type of thing you think an old man wouldn't be 
     interested in doing, but it really is invigorating because 
     you are totally immersed in the environment,'' Brown said. 
     ``It really is cathartic to get out there.''
                                  ____


             [From The St. Petersburg Times, Aug. 10, 2008]

                    Preservation Requires Volunteers

       Without an army of volunteers, Pinellas County's 
     environmental lands would become impenetrable jungles 
     dominated by exotic, invasive species.

[[Page E112]]

       In no time, these lands that were preserved so residents 
     could always observe native Florida would look nothing like 
     native Florida.
       Just how large an army is working at the task was revealed 
     in a recent story in the St. Petersburg Times. Several 
     hundred volunteers have been helping the county's 
     Environmental Lands Division maintain the almost 16,000 acres 
     for which it is responsible.
       The sad fact is, even that number of people can scarcely 
     scratch the surface of the work that needs to be done in the 
     county's preserved lands. If more don't help, the battle 
     eventually will be lost.
       It is clear that government will not be able to take up the 
     slack, at least not as it is currently configured. Because of 
     budget cuts, the staff of the county's Environmental Lands 
     Division has been reduced by 14 positions and now numbers 
     only 34. And only a handful of those are assigned to full-
     time maintenance duties in the preserves.
       The lands division now is hoping to grow its volunteer 
     ranks by 10 percent each year to offset its staff cuts. All 
     ages are welcomed--even youths from 12 to 18 can volunteer 
     with parental involvement.
       A variety of tasks is available to volunteers, from the 
     hard but essential job of removing invasives such as air 
     potato and Brazilian pepper, to leading hikes, doing research 
     and staffing educational centers.
       The problem, of course, with relying so heavily on 
     volunteers is that they don't generally spend as many hours 
     at the tasks as paid employees, and they usually insist on 
     flexibility. Some, like Bill Brown of East Lake, can offer a 
     half-day every week to the effort. Few spend as many hours as 
     Reggie Hall, a volunteer who devotes much of his life to 
     maintaining the Ozona Preserve in North Pinellas.
       The combined effort of all those environmental volunteers 
     led to recent recognition for the program from the National 
     Association of Counties and the Tampa Bay Regional Planning 
     Council.
       The role of volunteers will be even more important in the 
     next few years, as budgets continue to tighten and the 
     pressure on Pinellas environmental lands grows. If you are 
     over 12, and you have a few hours to spare helping to 
     preserve these precious open spaces, consider signing up as 
     an environmental lands volunteer.

                          ____________________