SAVE CLAM BAY WETLANDS-KEEP IT NATURAL

We, the undersigned, support the County's goal to provide more beach access at Clam Pass Park, but We oppose the current plans that would degrade this serene NATURAL RESOURCE PROTECTION AREA with significant construction in undisturbed mangrove habitat, dredging out the ebb shoal, installing channel markers, or otherwise altering its shallow three bay system.

We, the undersigned, support the County's goal to provide more beach access at Clam Pass Park, but We oppose the current plans that would degrade this serene NATURAL RESOURCE PROTECTION AREA with significant construction in undisturbed mangrove habitat, dredging out the ebb shoal, installing channel markers, or otherwise altering its shallow three bay system.

Dear Legislator and Permit Agency Staff,We the petitioners highly value the Clam Bay/Clam Pass NRPA Preserve.  It isdesignated a Natural Resources Protection Area (NRPA) because the 570 acre coastal preserve includes an abundance of environmentally important and sensitive habitats. The dominant natural resource is a magnificent mangrove forest wetlands.  The Clam Bay/Clam Pass NRPA preserve has three shallow, lagoonal bays connected by shallow serpentine creeks that drain via Clam Pass inlet to the Gulf of Mexico over a sandy ebb shoal delta and out over productive hardbottom with sponges and soft coral before the seabed drops precipitously.This preserve is blessed with seagrass meadows, oyster and clam beds, sandy shoals, expansive mudflats, salt marsh, freshwater marsh, beach, dune, scrub hammock and transitional wetlands. This undeveloped coastal segment is also identified as FL64-P in the Federal System of Coastal Barrier Resource Areas. This rare and fragile area that contains essential and critical  habitats supports a tremendous diversity of marine, avian and other wildlife species-including Endangered, Threatened and Species of Special Concern.  
It is understandable that many Floridians and Visitors from all over treasure it deeply.  Most Floridians and Visitors do not know that this Paradise Coast treasure is in jeopardy because Collier County's Coastal Zone Manager intends to proceed with projects that would greatly alter its natural conditions that are so critical to all the wildlife.  The misguided projects for powerboating expansion and water diversion (divert/dilute problematic adjacent waterways) is opposed by nearly every person who becomes aware of this unwarranted, irresponsible and disturbing taking of listed species and to benefit a very few boaters in the Seagate subdivision and intentionally avoid  honestly resolving the problems of poorly planned adjacent Seagate and Moorings Bays that have vast amounts of untreated stormwater sourcepoint  and non-sourcepoint pollution dumping into those waterways and a problem of poor circulation due to dredging too deeply in some areas.  Convluted studies meant to mask the longstanding problems in those waterways that are adjacent and NOT within the Clam Bay preserve are being fraudulently used to co-mingle study data and justify targeting the Clam Bay/Clam Pass preserve for a terrible project to greatly alter the naturally shallow conditions of the NRPA to divert/dilute adjacent problem waterways.  
It is outrageous to the public that our local governments have gone to such lengths to avoid honestly addressing and resolving the problems in the adjacent waterways,  and instead have chosen an irresponsible and disastrous route that does nothing to solve the untreated stormwater dumping that occurs in Seagate and Moorings Bays, but instead would mask these problems and in the process ruin critical and valued habitats, and take away a treasured nature preserve and in its place create another costly, ugly, noisy navigation channel for powerboats that further reduces meaningful conservation areas.