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Florida Statutes

369.20 Florida Aquatic Weed Control Act.--

1. This act shall be known as the "Florida Aquatic Weed Control Act."
2. The Department of Environmental Protection shall direct the control, eradication, and regulation of noxious aquatic weeds and direct the research and planning related to these activities, as provided in this section, excluding the authority to use fish as a biological control agent, so as to protect human health, safety, and recreation and, to the greatest degree practicable, prevent injury to plant and animal life and property.
3. It shall be the duty of the department to guide and coordinate the activities of all public bodies, authorities, agencies, and special districts charged with the control or eradication of aquatic weeds and plants. It may delegate all or part of such functions to the Game and Fresh Water Fish Commission.
   
4. The department shall also promote, develop, and support research activities directed toward the more effective and efficient control of aquatic plants. In the furtherance of this purpose, the department is authorized to:
   1. Accept donations and grants of funds and services from both public and private sources;
   2. Contract or enter into agreements with public or private agencies or corporations for research and development of aquatic plant control methods or for the performance of aquatic plant control activities;
   3. Construct, acquire, operate, and maintain facilities and equipment; and
   4. Enter upon, or authorize the entry upon, private property for purposes of making surveys and examinations and to engage in aquatic plant control activities; and such entry shall not be deemed a trespass.
5. The Department of Environmental Protection may disburse funds to any special district or other local authority charged with the responsibility of controlling or eradicating aquatic plants, upon:
   
   1. Receipt of satisfactory proof that such district or authority has sufficient funds on hand to match the state funds herein referred to on an equal basis;
   2. Approval by the department of the control techniques to be used by the district or authority; and
   3. Review and approval of the program of the district or authority by the department to be in conformance with the state control plan.
6. The department shall adopt rules pursuant to ss. 120.536(1) and 120.54 to implement provisions of this section conferring powers or duties upon it and perform any other acts necessary for the proper administration, enforcement, or interpretation of this section, including creating general permits and exemptions and adopting rules and forms governing reports.
   
7. No person or public agency shall control, eradicate, remove, or otherwise alter any aquatic weeds or plants in waters of the state unless a permit for such activity has been issued by the department, or unless the activity is in waters expressly exempted by department rule. The department shall develop standards by rule which shall address, at a minimum, chemical, biological, and mechanical control activities; an evaluation of the benefits of such activities to the public; specific criteria recognizing the differences between natural and artificially created waters; and the different amount and quality of littoral vegetation on various waters. Applications for a permit to engage in aquatic plant control activities shall be made to the department. In reviewing such applications, the department shall consider the criteria set forth in subsection (2).
   
8. As an exemption to all permitting requirements in this section and ss. 369.22 and 369.25, in all freshwater bodies, except aquatic preserves designated under chapter 258 and Outstanding Florida Waters designated under chapter 403, a riparian owner may physically or mechanically remove herbaceous aquatic plants and semiwoody herbaceous plants, such as shrub species and willow, within an area delimited by up to 50 percent of the property owner's frontage or 50 feet, whichever is less, and by a sufficient length waterward from, and perpendicular to, the riparian owner's shoreline to create a corridor to allow access for a boat or swimmer to reach open water. All unvegetated areas shall be cumulatively considered when determining the width of the exempt corridor. Physical or mechanical removal does not include the use of any chemicals or any activity that requires a permit pursuant to part IV of chapter 373.
9. A permit issued pursuant to this section for the application of herbicides to waters in the state for the control of aquatic plants, algae, or invasive exotic plants is exempt from the requirement to obtain a water pollution operation permit pursuant to s. 403.088.

History.--ss. 1, 2, ch. 70-203; s. 3, ch. 80-129; s. 32, ch. 85-81; s. 1, ch. 89-151; s. 187, ch. 94-356; s. 2, ch. 96-238; s. 2, ch. 97-22; s. 75, ch. 98-200.
Note.--Former s. 372.925.

369.25, F.S.

369.25 Aquatic plants; definitions; permits; powers of department; penalties.--

1. As used in this section, the term:
   1.  "Aquatic plant" means any plant, including a floating, emersed, submersed, or ditch bank species, growing in, or closely associated with, an aquatic environment and includes any part or seed of such plant.
   2. "Department" means the Department of Environmental Protection.
   3. "Nonnursery cultivation" means the tending of aquatic plant species for harvest in the natural environment.
   4. "Noxious aquatic plant" means any part, including, but not limited to, seeds or reproductive parts, of an aquatic plant which has the potential to hinder the growth of beneficial plants, interfere with irrigation or navigation, or adversely affect the public welfare or the natural resources of this state.
   5. "Person" includes a natural person, a public or private corporation, a governmental entity, or any other kind of entity.
2. No person shall engage in any business involving the importation, transportation, nonnursery cultivation, collection, sale, or possession of any aquatic plant species without a permit issued by the department or the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services. No person shall import, transport, nonnursery cultivate, collect, sell, or possess any noxious aquatic plant listed on the prohibited aquatic plant list established by the department without a permit issued by the department or the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services. No permit shall be issued until the department determines that the proposed activity poses no threat or danger to the waters, wildlife, natural resources, or environment of the state.
   
3. The department has the following powers:
   1. To make such rules governing the importation, transportation, nonnursery cultivation, collection, and possession of aquatic plants as may be necessary for the eradication, control, or prevention of the dissemination of noxious aquatic plants that are not inconsistent with rules of the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services.
   2. To establish by rule lists of aquatic plant species regulated under this section, including those exempted from such regulation, provided the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services and the Game and Fresh Water Fish Commission approve such lists prior to the lists becoming effective.
   3. To evaluate an aquatic plant species through research or other means to determine whether such species poses a threat or danger to the waters, wildlife, natural resources, or environment of the state.
   4. To declare a quarantine against aquatic plants, including the vats, pools, or other containers or bodies of water in which such plants are growing, except in aquatic plant nurseries, to prevent the dissemination of any noxious aquatic plant.
   5. To make rules governing the application for, issuance of, suspension of, and revocation of permits under this section.
   6. To enter into cooperative agreements with any person as necessary or desirable to carry out and enforce the provisions of this section.
   7. To purchase all necessary supplies, material, and equipment and accept all grants and donations useful in the implementation and enforcement of the provisions of this section.
   8. To enter upon and inspect any facility or place, except aquatic plant nurseries regulated by the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, where aquatic plants are cultivated, held, packaged, shipped, stored, or sold, or any vehicle of conveyance of aquatic plants, to ascertain whether the provisions of this section and department regulations are being complied with, and to seize and destroy, without compensation, any aquatic plants imported, transported, cultivated, collected, or otherwise possessed in violation of this section or department regulations.
   9. To conduct a public information program, including, but not limited to, erection of road signs, in order to inform the public and interested parties of this section and its associated rules and of the dangers of noxious aquatic plant introductions.
4. The department shall adopt rules which limit the sanctions available for violations under this act to quarantine and confiscation:
   1. If the prohibited activity apparently results from natural dispersion; or
   2. If a small amount of noxious aquatic plant material incidentally adheres to a boat or boat trailer operated by a person who is not involved in any phase of the aquatic plant business and if that person is not knowingly violating this act.
5. Any person who violates the provisions of this section is guilty of a misdemeanor of the second degree, punishable as provided in s. 775.082 or s. 775.083.
   
6. All law enforcement officers of the state and its agencies with power to make arrests for violations of state law shall enforce the provisions of this section.

History.--s. 1, ch. 69-158; ss. 14, 26, 35, ch. 69-106; s. 4, ch. 70-203; s. 1, ch. 70-439; s. 350, ch. 71-136; s. 2, ch. 71-137; s. 140, ch. 77-104; s. 1, ch. 77-174; s. 23, ch. 78-95; s. 1, ch. 84-120; s. 1, ch. 92-147; s. 189, ch. 94-356.

1Note.--Section 9(1), ch. 92-147, provides that "[t]he administrative rules of the agencies involved in the reorganization of ss. 369.25, 581.011, 581.031, and 581.211, Florida Statutes, relating to aquatic plant regulation, that are in effect immediately prior to [July 1, 1992] shall remain in effect until specifically changed in the manner provided by law."

Note.--Former s. 403.271.

369.251, F.S.

369.251 Invasive nonnative plants; prohibitions; study; removal; rules.--

1. A person may not sell, transport, collect, cultivate, or possess any plant, including any part or seed, of the species Melaleuca quinquenervia, Schinus terebinthifolius, Casuarina equisetifolia, Casuarina glauca, or Mimosa pigra without a permit from the department. Any person who violates this section commits a misdemeanor of the second degree, punishable by fine only, as provided in s. 775.083.
2. The department shall study methods of control of plants of the species Melaleuca quinquenervia, Schinus terebinthifolius, Casuarina equisetifolia, Casuarina glauca, and Mimosa pigra. The South Florida Water Management District shall undertake programs to remove such plants from conservation area I, conservation area II, and conservation area III of the district.
3. The department has authority to adopt rules pursuant to ss. 120.536(1) and 120.54 to implement the provisions of this section. Possession or transportation resulting from natural dispersion, mulching operations, control and disposal, or use in herbaria or other educational or research institutions, or for other reasons determined by the department to be consistent with this section and where there is neither the danger of, nor intent to, further disperse any plant species prohibited by this section, is not subject to the permit or penalty provisions of this section.

History.--s. 1, ch. 90-313; s. 190, ch. 94-356; s. 77, ch. 98-200.

Rules

Chapter 62C-20, Florida Administrative Code

http://www.dep.state.fl.us/ogc/documents/rules/aquatic/62c-20.pdf
Or
http://www.dep.state.fl.us/legal/legaldocuments/rules/rulelistnum.htm

Chapter 62C-52, Florida Administrative Code

http://www.dep.state.fl.us/ogc/documents/rules/aquatic/62c-52.pdf
Or
http://www.dep.state.fl.us/ogc/documents/rules/aquatic/62c-52.doc (MS Word file)

369.22 Nonindigenous aquatic plant control.--

1. This section shall be known as the "Florida Nonindigenous Aquatic Plant Control Act."
   
2. For the purpose of this section, the following words and phrases shall have the following meanings:
   1. "Department" means the Department of Environmental Protection.
   2. "Aquatic plant" is any plant growing in, or closely associated with, the aquatic environment and includes "floating," "emersed," "submersed," and "ditch bank" species.
   3. "Nonindigenous aquatic plant" is any aquatic plant that is nonnative to the State of Florida and has certain characteristics, such as massive productivity, choking density, or an obstructive nature, which render it detrimental, obnoxious, or unwanted in a particular location.
   4. A "maintenance program" is a method for the control of nonindigenous aquatic plants in which control techniques are utilized in a coordinated manner on a continuous basis in order to maintain the plant population at the lowest feasible level as determined by the department.
   5. An "eradication program" is a method for the control of nonindigenous aquatic plants in which control techniques are utilized in a coordinated manner in an attempt to kill all the aquatic plants on a permanent basis in a given geographical area.
   6. A "complaint spray program" is a method for the control of nonindigenous aquatic plants in which weeds are allowed to grow unhindered to a given level of undesirability, at which point eradication techniques are applied in an effort to restore the area in question to a relatively low level of infestation.
   7. "Waters" means rivers, streams, lakes, navigable waters and associated tributaries, canals, meandered lakes, enclosed water systems, and any other bodies of water.
   8. "Intercounty waters" means any waters which lie in more than one county or form any part of the boundary between two or more counties, as determined by the department.
   9. "Intracounty waters" means any waters which lie wholly within the boundaries of one county as determined by the department.
   10. "Districts" means the six water management districts created by law and named, respectively, the Northwest Florida Water Management District, the Suwannee River Water Management District, the St. Johns River Water Management District, the Southwest Florida Water Management District, the Central and Southern Florida Flood Control District, and the Ridge and Lower Gulf Coast Water Management District; and on July 1, 1975, shall mean the five water management districts created by chapter 73-190, Laws of Florida, and named, respectively, the Northwest Florida Water Management District, the Suwannee River Water Management District, the St. Johns River Water Management District, the Southwest Florida Water Management District, and the South Florida Water Management District.
3. The Legislature recognizes that the uncontrolled growth of nonindigenous aquatic plants in the waters of Florida poses a variety of environmental, health, safety, and economic problems. The Legislature acknowledges the responsibility of the state to cope with the uncontrolled and seemingly never-ending growth of nonindigenous aquatic plants in the waters throughout Florida. It is, therefore, the intent of the Legislature that the state policy for the control of nonindigenous aquatic plants in waters of state responsibility be carried out under the general supervision and control of the department, and that the state itself be responsible for the control of such plants in all intercounty waters; but that control of such plants in intracounty waters be the designated responsibility of the appropriate unit of local or county government, special district, authority, or other public body. It is the intent of the Legislature that the control of nonindigenous aquatic plants be carried out primarily by means of maintenance programs, rather than eradication or complaint spray programs, for the purpose of achieving more effective control at a lower long-range cost. It is also the intent of the Legislature that the department guide, review, approve, and coordinate all nonindigenous aquatic plant control programs within each of the water management districts as defined in paragraph (2)(j). It is the intent of the Legislature to account for the costs of nonindigenous aquatic plant maintenance programs by watershed for comparison management purposes.
   
4. The department shall supervise and direct all maintenance programs for control of nonindigenous aquatic plants, as provided in this section, excluding the authority to use fish as a biological control agent, so as to protect human health, safety, and recreation and, to the greatest degree practicable, prevent injury to plant, fish, and animal life and to property.
5. When state funds are involved, or when waters of state responsibility are involved, it is the duty of the department to guide, review, approve, and coordinate the activities of all public bodies, authorities, state agencies, units of local or county government, commissions, districts, and special districts engaged in operations to maintain, control, or eradicate nonindigenous aquatic plants, except for activities involving biological control programs using fish as the control agent. The department may delegate all or part of such functions to any appropriate state agency, special district, unit of local or county government, commission, authority, or other public body. However, special attention shall be given to the keeping of accounting and cost data in order to prepare the annual fiscal report required in subsection (7).
6. The department may disburse funds to any district, special district, or other local authority for the purpose of operating a maintenance program for controlling nonindigenous aquatic plants and other noxious aquatic plants in the waters of state responsibility upon:
   
   1. Receipt of satisfactory proof that such district or authority has sufficient funds on hand to match the state funds herein referred to on an equal basis;
   2. Approval by the department of the maintenance control techniques to be used by the district or authority; and
   3. Review and approval of the program of the district or authority by the department to be in conformance with the state maintenance control plan.
7. The department shall submit an annual report on the status of the nonindigenous aquatic plant maintenance program to the President of the Senate, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, and the Governor and Cabinet by January 1 of the following year. This report shall include a statement of the degree of maintenance control achieved by individual nonindigenous aquatic plant species in the intercounty waters of each of the water management districts for the preceding county fiscal year, together with an analysis of the costs of achieving this degree of control. This cost accounting shall include the expenditures by all governmental agencies in the waters of state responsibility. If the level of maintenance control achieved falls short of that which is deemed adequate by the department, then the report shall include an estimate of the additional funding that would have been required to achieve this level of maintenance control. All measures of maintenance program achievement and the related cost shall be presented by water management districts so that comparisons may be made among the water management districts, as well as with the state as a whole.
   
8. The department shall have the authority to cooperate with the United States and to enter into such cooperative agreements or commitments as the department may determine necessary to carry out the maintenance, control, or eradication of water hyacinths, alligator weed, and other noxious aquatic plant growths from the waters of the state and to enter into contracts with the United States obligating the state to indemnify and save harmless the United States from any and all claims and liability arising out of the initiation and prosecution of any project undertaken under this section. However, any claim or claims required to be paid under this section shall be paid from money appropriated to the nonindigenous aquatic plant control program.
   
9. The department may delegate various nonindigenous aquatic plant control and maintenance functions to the Game and Fresh Water Fish Commission. The commission shall, in accepting commitments to engage in nonindigenous aquatic plant control and maintenance activities, be subject to the rules of the department, except that the commission shall regulate, control, and coordinate the use of any fish for aquatic weed control in fresh waters of the state. In addition, the commission shall render technical and other assistance to the department in order to carry out most effectively the purposes of s. 369.20. However, nothing herein shall diminish or impair the regulatory authority of the commission with respect to the powers granted to it by s. 9, Art. IV of the State Constitution.
   
10. The department is directed to use biological agents, excluding fish, for the control of nonindigenous aquatic plants.
    
11. The department shall adopt rules pursuant to ss. 120.536(1) and 120.54 to implement the provisions of this section conferring powers or duties upon it and perform any other acts necessary for the proper administration, enforcement, or interpretation of this section, including adopting rules and forms governing reports.
    
12. No person or public agency shall control, eradicate, remove, or otherwise alter any nonindigenous aquatic plants in waters of the state unless a permit for such activity has been issued by the department, or unless the activity is in waters expressly exempted by department rule. The department shall develop standards by rule which shall address, at a minimum, chemical, biological, and mechanical control activities; an evaluation of the benefits of such activities to the public; specific criteria recognizing the differences between natural and artificially created waters; and the different amount and quality of littoral vegetation on various waters. Applications for a permit to engage in aquatic plant control activities shall be made to the department. In reviewing such applications, the department shall consider the criteria set forth in subsection (4).

History.--ss. 1, 2, ch. 74-65; s. 4, ch. 80-129; s. 33, ch. 83-218; s. 16, ch. 84-254; s. 2, ch. 89-151; s. 188, ch. 94-356; s. 76, ch. 98-200. Note.--Former s. 372.932.

369.252 Invasive exotic plant control on public lands.--

The department shall establish a program to:

1. Achieve eradication or maintenance control of invasive exotic plants on public lands when the scientific data indicate that they are detrimental to the state's natural environment or when the Commissioner of Agriculture finds that such plants or specific populations thereof are a threat to the agricultural productivity of the state;
2. Assist state and local government agencies in the development and implementation of coordinated management plans for the eradication or maintenance control of invasive exotic plant species on public lands;
3. Contract, or enter into agreements, with entities in the State University System or other governmental or private sector entities for research concerning control agents; production and growth of biological control agents; and
   development of workable methods for the eradication or maintenance control of invasive exotic plants on public lands; and
4. Use funds in the Aquatic Plant Control Trust Fund as authorized by the Legislature for carrying out activities under this section on public lands.

History.--s. 3, ch. 96-238; s. 1, ch. 97-38.

Last updated: September 22, 2009