Florida Forest Service outlines $20 million plan for roads, invasive control and reforestation
Loading...
Summary
Florida Forest Service Director Rick Dolan told a House subcommittee the agency received $20 million in one‑time land management funding and will use it for roads and facilities, recreation upgrades, invasive‑plant eradication, reforestation (about 2.5 million seedlings) and equipment replacement.
Rick Dolan, director of the Florida Forest Service, told the Agriculture and Natural Resources Budget Subcommittee the agency received $20,000,000 in FY25/26 land‑management funding and will use the money to accelerate large projects on state forests.
“At the Florida Forest Service, we manage 38 state forests and ... a little over 1,200,000 acres,” Dolan said, noting the agency also receives about $8,900,000 in recurring land‑management funds. The one‑time appropriation will be applied across seven project categories including road and facility enhancements, recreation upgrades, invasive species eradication, reforestation, habitat restoration, prescribed burning and boundary work.
Dolan described several specific projects the funding will support: road repairs to open the newly acquired Sandy Creek State Forest (about 12,000 acres) to the public in 2026; capping 1.6 miles of primary roads at Cary State Forest; road repairs at Goethe State Forest; and a roughly 3‑mile lime‑rock road cap at Oculocuchi Slough (referred to internally as "Okay Slough") in Hendry County. He said those projects aim to ensure two‑wheel‑drive public access to state forests.
On habitat and restoration, Dolan said the service plans to plant 3,667 acres across 12 state forests—“a little over 2,500,000 tree seedlings”—and 42,000 wiregrass plugs, grown at Andrews Nursery in Chiefland. Invasive‑species work includes a 200‑acre cogon‑grass contract at Coochie State Forest and multi‑thousand‑acre treatments at Babcock Ranch and Picayune Strand.
Dolan also stressed equipment needs: the appropriation includes $3,000,000 for replacing loaders, a road grader, tractors, an excavator and a dump truck, but he said about $15,000,000 worth of state‑lands equipment are currently eligible for replacement.
The director framed the funding as an opportunity to both maintain essential infrastructure and grow public‑facing recreation offerings as timber markets remain unstable: the agency generated $4,240,000 from timber sales and about $7,100,000 total revenue from state lands last fiscal year, and the Forest Service is increasingly investing in recreation infrastructure to diversify revenue. Dolan emphasized most of the work funded will be delivered by contractors to meet the scale and timeline of the projects.
The subcommittee held questions for the panel after the presentations; members pressed on survey and boundary timelines, equipment‑replacement prioritization and how recreation and revenue projects are structured.
