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developed to increase or restore the hydrology within a defined
area of a working ranch. These concepts were then tested on
eight ranches with an area of about 315 to 138,400 hectares. To
overcome the two other significant design challenges – docu-
mentation of services provided and the calculation of the pay-
ment – the FRESP developers initially intended to link the pay-
ment to the actual amount of water retained in the course of a
year or to the reduced nutrient levels. Accordingly, tools were
developed to analyze how much water is retained in the ranches
and by how much nutrient content is reduced in the course of
a year. However, both buyers and sellers had concerns that the
provision of both services would be subject to unpredictable
fluctuations due to the strong link with annual rainfall. The pay-
ing authorities were not able to create a financial plan to take
account of such fluctuations. At the same time, the ranchers
offering their land preferred a fixed annual source of income to
compensate for other even more variable earnings.
To address these concerns, a model was designed to calcu-
late annual water- and nutrient-retention based on average rain-
fall over ten years. A fixed annual payment was to be based on
this forecast. The aim was to develop a precise but at the same
time easy-to-use model which took account of specific local
conditions, such as existing and planned land use and infra-
structure. Data and information from the eight pilot projects
were also used to develop and adapt the model.
Ultimately, however, payments for ranchers participating
in FRESP were based on individual negotiations between the
government agencies and providers. The payments were set
according to the area used for FRESP and the time the ranchers
spent during meetings, phone calls and individual discussions.
Contracts run from five to ten years. The government author-
manner in comparison to other options. The assessment not
only showed significant potential to help address the problems
with on-ranch water management but also identified the main
challenges of program design and implementation that would
need to be addressed: (i) defining the ecosystem services that
would be paid for, (ii) methods to confirm that the service was
indeed provided, and (iii) determining how payments for ser-
vices would be made. At the same time, the program design had
to address different aspects related to regulatory programs.
Ranchers and the WWF, scientists from various research
institutions, as well as state and federal authorities began work-
ing together to successfully overcome these challenges. The lat-
ter were also prepared to pay for providing the service. In 2005,
all the stakeholders signed a memorandum of understanding
agreeing to work together to design a PES and start the Florida
Ranchlands Environmental Services Project (FRESP). One impor-
tant aim was to create an output-based PES. Accordingly, the
services were to be transparent and measurable under actual
agricultural conditions. This requirement led to the identifica-
tion of two ecosystem services which could be produced on the
ranches: (i) water storage through rainwater retention by maxi-
mizing groundwater seepage and (ii) removal of nutrients, espe-
cially phosphorus, from the water. To achieve the latter, water
from public canals or rivers adjacent to the ranch is diverted into
a natural or grazed area where it is stored and released slowly. It
is finally returned with its nutrient content reduced.
To offer both services cost-efficiently, existing water man-
agement infrastructure was to be used with small adjustments
wherever necessary. Water management alternatives (WMAs),
combinations of management practices and construction like
low-level berms and simple gravity water control structure, were
Florida ranchlands Environmental
Services Project (FrESP)
region (area):
Northern Everglades, Florida, USA (1.4 million ha
affected in total; implemented on about 4,700 ha)
Starting year (stage):
2005 (closed in 2012; led to the Northern Ever-
glades Payment for Ecosystem Service Program)
objective:
Improvement of water quality and water quantity
Beneficiary:
Residents of Florida represented by South Florida
Water Management District (SFWMD), the Florida
Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services
(FDACS), the Florida Department of Environ-
mental Protection (FDEP), the US Department of
Agriculture (USDA) Natural Resources Conservation
Services (NRCS), and the W. K. Kellogg Foundation
Service provider:
Ranchers
(other) Intermediaries:
World Wildlife Fund (WWF), Resources For the
Future (RFF), University of Florida Institute of
Food and Agricultural Sciences (IFAS),
MacArthur Agro-Ecology Research Center (MAERC),
Archbold Biological Station, University of Central
Florida, Florida Cattlemen’s Association
Budget:
$ 7 million for the six-year pilot phase
Payment arrangement:
Output-based payment sought, ultimately more
input-based; level of payment based on opportu-
nity and production costs, negotiated individually
Contact:
Sarah Lynch
sarah.lynch@wwfus.org
Benita Whalen
bmwhalen@comcast.net
www.fresp.org