IMPLICATIONS OF RESTORATION FOR AGRICULTURE

 Agriculture is an important part of South Florida in terms of landuse, the economy, and life style. The future of agriculture in South Florida is threatened by a number of factors, including, on the one hand, urban development, and, on the other, the oxidation of organic soils. While restoration may mean the reclamation for nature of a small part of the extensive former wetlands now used for agriculture, it can also mean the salvation of the soils that will support future crop production. Restoration could provide the water supply to support crop production during the winter dry season. It could also mean the protection from freezes once provided by proximity to large areas of surface water. Once taken for granted in at least some areas, this protection is now almost absent.

 This restoration program encourages a sustainable agriculture, which can only be accomplished by abating the massive soil oxidation occurring because of drainage. Restoration would hope to achieve a balance of natural, urban, and agricultural landscapes. There is a place for sustainable, ecologically compatible agriculture in a restored South Florida. If some problems can be curtailed, then, in some areas, agricultural uses are more compatible with natural area management than urban uses. An agricultural restoration plan and program should be part of the overall South Florida Ecosystem restoration program.