Lake Apopka Bird Kill Settled
The St. John’s River Water Management District and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service have signed a memorandum of understanding which stems from the bird mortality that occurred around Lake Apopka in late 1998 and early 1999. An estimated 676 birds, mostly American white pelican, wood stork and great blue heron, died after the district reflooded former farm and to restore the northern shore of the lake. Residues of older insecticides such as toxaphene and dieldrin were cited as the primary causative factors of the mortalities.
While the memorandum absolves the district from legal responsibilities, it states that the actions of the district, which were material factors for the mortalities, were violations of the Endangered Species Act, the Migratory Bird Treaty Act, the Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act, and the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act (CERCLA).
Among the other things that the memorandum will accomplish include: establishment of FWS/SJRWMD cooperation, SJRWMD training and seminar presentation on environmental ecotoxicity and regulation, and pesticide monitoring for Apopka fish. It also prohibits the use of pesticides on a 8,465-acre marsh that the district and the state had purchased to make up for the bird loss at a price of $30 million. (Pesticide & Toxic Chemical News, 10/13/03).
