The site selection makes no sense. In a world of diminishing natural resources and a strong focus of companies to minimize their impact (commonly known as green initiatives) to the environment, it does not make sense to destroy a pristine wilderness in an environmentally sensitive area known as the home to several unique species. There are presently 20 State and Federally Listed threatened or endangered animals (such as the scrub Jay, Eastern indigo snake, Curtiss Milkweed) on the Merritt Island NWR. There are an additional 41 animal species designated as species of “Special Concern” by State or Federal agencies. There are 31 plant species listed by the State as Threatened, Endangered, or commercially exploited.
You have to ask the question would it be a wise decision to put an industry that uses highly toxic compounds and volatile liquids in Yosemite, near the coral reefs of the Keys or Yellowstone national park?
This area is considered the Redfish capital of the world. The closure will affect a multitude of users including birder, duck hunters, fishermen, kayakers, professional fishing guides, eco-tour kayaking companies as well as crabbers and will certainly have a negative impact on an already threatened lagoon. The Indian River Lagoon is a diverse and sensitive shallow-water estuary. According to the St. John's water management district, (http://floridaswater.com/itsyourlagoon) the lagoon is an important commercial and recreational fishery and economic resource with a total estimated annual value of $3.7 billion, supporting 14,000 jobs and providing recreational opportunities for nearly 11 million people every year.
In the past few years the area received hard freezes and a series of algae super blooms and by the end of 2011, approximately 32,000 acres of seagrasses were gone, a loss of about 44%. The lagoon is under duress and resulted in fish kills and a multitude of pelicans and manatees deaths. As far as we see it, the addition of such a massive development will lead to simply another attack to the stability and sustainability of this area. Our state government should be focused on repairing not destroying more habitat.
To date we have not seen any environmental study for this project.
The use of the Shiloh Tract on MINWR would violate the National Wildlife Refuge System Improvement Act of 1997 (http://www.fws.gov/northeast/planning/downloads/NWRSimprovementact.pdf) by preventing, or limiting the access to the northern area of MINWR. Thus far there has been no plan presented for the layout and access by the public through the Shiloh Tract, or to several boat ramps nearby. No plan has been presented to show restricted fishing areas (if any) in both the Indian River and Mosquito lagoon.
Additionally, the Space X site will split the MINWR into a north and south area. This will certainly affect The biological integrity, diversity, and environmental health of the refuge. (This is a direct violation of the MINWR System Improvement Act of 1997)
