Specifications

Section 2 Existing Conditions/Affected Environment
EAA Storage Reservoirs Revised Draft PIR and EIS February 2006
2-47
Sugarcane production began with the construction of the Clewiston Sugar Mill in
1929. Prior to the Cuban revolution of 1959, 50,000 acres of the EAA were
devoted to sugar cultivation. Imposition of the Cuban Embargo in the early
1960s, the arrival of Cuban refugees skilled in sugar production, and
abolishment of the production limitation imposed by the “Sugar Act” in 1974,
enabled the EAA to become the leading cane sugar production area in the United
States. In 1995, over 500,000 acres were devoted to sugarcane production.
In 2002, the Study Area contained about 505,000 acres in agricultural products
cultivation, about 90% of which is in Palm Beach County and 10% in Hendry
County. In the 2000-2001 fiscal year, approximately $1.2 billion in agricultural
sales were produced in the EAA, representing about one-seventh of Florida’s
total agricultural sales. The estimated $1.2 billion in sales is believed to result
in a total of $2.8 billion in the two counties’ economies, based on applied
multipliers.
About nine out of every ten (86.8%) crop yielding acres in the EAA are associated
with sugarcane. The remaining acreage is split between rice, sod, row crops, and
other agricultural uses. Table 2-4 shows acreage of agricultural uses in the
EAA.
TABLE 2-4: ACREAGE BY CROP IN THE EAA.
Crop
Palm Beach
County Acreage
Hendry County
Acreage
Total Acreage
Percent of
Total Acreage
Sugarcane*
423,358 45,442 468,800
92.7%
Row**
16,347
—
16,347
3.2%
Sod
9,846
—
9,846
1.9%
Nursery
618
—
618
0.1%
Pastures
1,075 1,884 2,959
0.6%
Miscellaneous
4,031 2,939 6,970
1.4%
Total
455,275 50,265 505,540
100.0%
* Includes rice and corn grown as rotation crops.
** Includes 1,814 non-productive acres associated with service area for row crops.
Source: USACE and SFWMD, 2003.
SFWMD anticipates a decline in sugarcane production within the EAA from
529,920 acres (1995 condition) to 491,520 acres (2050 condition) due to the
purchase of agricultural land for restoration projects. Sugarcane production will
also be directly related to future U.S. government import/export policies and
relationship with Cuba.