Partnership for Community Programs, Inc.

Contractor sentenced-Target department Stores-Escambia County

Mark Ribbe, former roofing contractor for Target department stores has been sentenced for his role in a chemical spill that occurred in October 2003.

According DEP records, in October 2003, David Hayes Marshall, a roofing foreman employed by Target, punctured a 275-gallon container of acrylic coating at the Bayou Boulevard department store and rinsed the container's entire contents into a grated storm drain in the parking lot. The drain leads to Carpenter Creek, which feeds into Bayou Texar and Pensacola Bay.

Several days later, a resident noticed a white substance in Bayou Texar and reported the spill to the DEP. Mr. Ribbe was sentenced to five years' probation received a $5,000 fine and will spend the first six months of his probation under house arrest. He faced a maximum sentence of three years in prison and $150,000 in penalties. His sentence also requires him to pay $75,000 to the West Florida Regional Planning Council's Partnership for Community Programs, which will use the money to improve water quality in Bayou Texar and Carpenter's Creek. Amount: $75,000.00.

Northwest Florida Grasses in Classes Program (NWFGICP)- Escambia, Santa Rosa, Okaloosa, Walton, and Bay Counties.

The Bay Area Resource Council (BARC) under PCP has received funding from the US Fish and Wildlife Service for the implementation for the Grasses in Classes (GIC) program. The GIC program is a hands-on, interactive education project that enables students to play a direct role in shoreline stabilization and/or restoration projects. Teachers are provided with all equipment and instructions required to grow grasses in their classrooms. With guidance from Environmental Education Coordination Team, the educational arm of BARC and the school's Science teachers, the students will maintain and monitor the nursery throughout the school year. As part of the monitoring process, students will collect baseline data at the site prior to and several months after the restoration has taken place. In addition, the existing extensive curriculum that has been developed by Baldwin County Grasses in Classes program will be modified as needed to ensure compliance with the Florida Sunshine State Standards. By studying the ecological importance of coastal plant species and by participating in the restoration, students will gain a sense of stewardship and awareness of the sensitive and fragile community in which they live.  The grasses will be used for shoreline stabilization and/or restoration projects located in Escambia, Santa Rosa, Okaloosa, Walton, and Bay counties with Gulf and Franklin counties as future projects.

BARC will provide staff to act as Project Coordinator and as point of contact for Project Leaders, Teachers, and Students. Staff duties also include, but are not limited to the collection of timesheets associated with student/teacher participation and field trips to restoration sites, and monitoring information as collected by Students, Teachers, and/or Project Leaders. The Project Coordinator will help establish a schedule for each phase of the nursery cycle as well as coordinating the transplanting, which will take place in the spring and/or fall depending on when the plants are ready and when the restoration projects are scheduled.  BARC will compile monitoring information and draft a scientifically based document discussing emergent vegetation and its water quality influence. This report will be presented for scientific review and possible publication.

Funding from U.S. Department of Interior Fish and Wildlife Service: $30,067.00 and from National Association of Counties/National Fish and Wildlife Foundation, and Wildlife Habitat Council: $19,905.00. Total grant amount: $49,972.00.

Oyster Lake Restoration Project-Walton County

The proposed project is to work in conjunction with an existing grant (The Oyster Lake Restoration Project) issued by the Northwest Florida Water Management District (NWFWMD) to Walton County. The grant consist of the restoration of the hydrologic connects between Oyster Lake and two associated wetland systems, as well as reestablishing natural hydrologic exchange between Oyster Lake and the Gulf of Mexico through the replacement of a causeway with a timbered bridge and the replacement of several culverts with bridge spans. This proposal specifically addresses the removal of invasive and/or exotic species that have been able to propagate due to these anthropogenic activities and the re-vegetation of wetland species within the restoration area in order to reestablish the historical native ecosystem.  Grant amount: $17,101.25