Michele Moen                                                                                       
Age: 50
Contact:         160 Ashby Cove Lane, New Smyrna Beach, FLorida 32168
                     386 423 8427 home/office
                     michele.moen@live.com


Office sought:  Volusia Soil and Water Conservation District, Seat 2 (second term)

Education:      Graduated high school in St. Johnsbury Vermont
                     Graduated from Florida Atlantic University paralegal program, Boca Raton, Florida

Occupation:     Employed as a paralegal in South Florida for ten years
                     Volunteer for the past eight years in Volusia County as a conservationist on issues of water, growth, agriculture and wildlife habitat.
                     Elected to Volusia Soil and Water Conservation District in 2006

1. Name the two most important issues that you believe are of concern to your district and how you would address each.

        Water
        Agriculture

        Water: The district promotes Low Impact Development (LID).  The goals of LID are water quality and water quantity. Florida's waters are failing the Clean Water Act. The St. Johns Water Management District has labeled Volusia a Priority Water Resource Caution Area meaning we do not have the water to meet our future needs. I believe the answer is in conservation. Outside the home, LID means water conservation in the form of native plants over sod and soil sensors over traditional irrigation with a water savings of up to 70%. Inside the home: circulating hot water systems and high efficiency toilets which save gallons every day, every household. Conservation is always the safest and least expensive route.  

In spite of loosing 100% of its county funding, Volusia Soil and Water Conservation District successfully partnered with the University of Florida to bring Volusia's citizens its first LID workshop. A second workshop was achieved through partnering with West Volusia Audubon and Citizens for Ormond Beach. The District plans further workshops through its continuing partnership with West Volusia Audubon.

I formed the Area Four Water Conservation Committee. AIVWCC's works with the local chapter of the Native Plant Society, Seminole Soil and Water Conservation District and Lake County Soil and Water Conservation District towards a goal of creating a model native plant ordinance which will be marketed to the eleven counties of Central Florida. 

 

    Agriculture: Volusia is loosing its agriculture community.  We regret our dependence on oil yet we accept our dependence on foreign food. The district partners with the United States Department of Agriculture to promote a balance of healthy environment and economically strong agriculture. This is done through cost share federal programs offered to Volusia's farmers and ranchers. The District also communicates and works with Florida's Department of Community Affairs, the Florida Department of Agriculture and local governments to plan a future considerate of the importance of agriculture in our lives.  Local foods consumed locally is the least costly, healthiest and most economically sensible course.

 

2. What is your position on the State Legislature dictating local government taxation and revenue policy? The Volusia Soil and Water District, under Florida Statute 582, addresses agriculture, soil health, floodplain, watersheds, and water conservation.  The district does not tax. At present, we receive no tax dollars. Personally, I have an opinion but not as a supervisor/candidate for the Soil and Water Conservation District. This question is outside our review.

 

3.    The Volusia Soil and Water District was organized in the 1930's. What adjustments would you consider appropriate in order to update the agency's goals?  There are two adjustments needed.  1) funding and 2) voting.  Under Florida Statute 582, the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (FDACS) is named as the governmental entity responsible for ensuring soil and water districts are able to complete their work plans yet we do not receive one penny of funding from FDACS.  This leaves us with no reliable source of funding.  Under F.S. 582 we are to work towards achieving all these wonderful conservation goals yet our hands our tied. It is our determination, creativity and commitment to the community that keeps us going.  As we are an elected body, we are required under Florida law to print legal ads, keep public records and conduct a yearly audit. Yet, we receive no funds to even do what we are legally bound to do.

Under F.S. 582, the District can create a watershed district and protect soil health through the creation of land use regulations. However, again our hands are bound because the statute only allows a vote of the local landowners who are not even required to be registered voters. So while the statute sets forth the need for district land use regulations to protect the watershed and soil health, it also makes it nearly impossible for us to do so.  I consider the statute language disallowing an opportunity for all Volusia's voters to protect our watershed system and soil health antiquated and possibly unconstitutional.

 

4.    As an elected supervisor, what steps would you anticipate taking to restore the financial viability of the Volusia Soil and Water Conservation District?

 

The district board has begun communications with the Florida Department of Agriculture and the Association of Florida Conservation Districts on the funding issue. We have submitted our work plan to the Department of Agriculture and requested funding under Florida Statute 582 to complete the work plan.  We have asked the Association of Florida Conservation Districts to make funding a number one priority. Ultimately, I believe it will take a unification of all districts to lobby the legislature and even possibly to take legal action with regard to the responsibility of the Department of Agriculture to ensure the districts can function. Under Florida statute, we can sue and be sued yet we have no funding for legal advice. We have no funding for accounting or insurance. Yet we are elected by the people who have a reasonable expectation that we can successfully complete our conservation goals. 

 

5. Given funding, describe the two most important programs or  projects that the Volusia Soil and Water Conservation District should implement for the benefit of the agricultural community?

 

1) Grow locally, feed locally

2) Create a positive and vibrant economic agriculture community

 

Volusia can feed itself. A good start would be a Farm to Schools program.  We could feed our children the healthiest, safest food while at the same time bolster agriculture by creating a local customer.

 

The future is in local organics, tourism and biofuels.  People want to know that the food they put on their table is of the highest quality. They can't know this if it is shipped in from South America and sprayed with chemicals they can't pronounce.

Visitors to Volusia and Volusia citizens should be able to drive into the country and enjoy its offerings while Volusia's agriculture enjoys the profits. County government must expand its agricultural zoning to allow for diverse and creative rural businesses (cottage industries).

 

Volusia Soil and Water District is sending an elected supervisor to the Florida Department of Agriculture's Fuel Summit.  We are the only elected body sending a representative from Volusia. Although the state focus has thus far been on ethanol, the district board feels we need to recognize that growing corn for ethanol means fertilizer run off into an already suffering ecosystem, the use of land that could grow our food and the unnecessary overuse of energy to create the ethanol.  A closed algae system produces up to 20,000 gallons of fuel per acre (corn produces 8,000), has no fertilizer run off to compromise our waterways and takes up little land. 

 

6.    Name a specific issue that we have not addressed that you feel is important to your constituents.

 

100 Year Floodplain.  Although they may not be fully aware of the great importance of Volusia's 100 year floodplain, the floodplain is crucial. While government sees the floodplain as elevations and insurance, the floodplain is a connected system, its wholeness necessary for our safety. Each day, more of it is filled in and elevated to "safe" levels creating peril for all our citizens. The district hopes to better educate local government and citizens on the necessity of our floodplains functionality.