Critical wetland flowway and wildlife corridor at risk
The Conservancy of Southwest Florida and our partners continue to push back against large development proposals that impact our water, our land, our wildlife, and our future.
The Rural Lands West (RLW) development has tried to gain approvals since 2008 – a testament to its flawed location and destructive threat to our natural resources. It must not succeed now.
Locally known as Rivergrass and Longwater Village, this project was permitted by Collier County and is close to breaking ground. However, its last major hurdle is a federal wetland dredge & fill permit under the Clean Water Act Section 404, which will be decided by the Army Corps of Engineers.
The applicant is proposing over 4,400 acres for this new town in eastern Collier County within the greater Western Everglades, a critical wildlife corridor for the endangered Florida panther. The proposed site is upstream of the Florida Panther National Wildlife Refuge and would destroy over 270 acres of wetlands within the Camp Keais Strand wetland flowway. Help protect our wetlands and this critical linkage for the endangered Florida panther that would be fragmented if this project is approved!
