Bay County and Florida Environmentalists on the Nature Center

Leading Audubon’s efforts in Florida and on the proposed nature center is David Anderson, former director of the San Francisco zoo and now executive director of Audubon Florida. Anderson said:

“The actual experience of nature, of seeing birds and wildlife, is missing from the lives of many children and families. We intend to provide that experience and a rich education in the natural history of Northwest Florida.”

Eric Draper, deputy director for Florida Audubon, added:

“Our hope is that this is not just an inspiring environmental center but a center that inspires environmental lifestyles in this community.”

John Robert Middlemas, a Bay County member of the Florida Audubon board of directors and leading local environmentalist, said:

“The nature center will better enable the public to enjoy and understand the land to be preserved on its behalf. One day my children and grandchildren will be able to enjoy West Bay the same way my father and I have, but the experience will be much more meaningful with an Audubon Nature Center.”

Middlemas, many may recall, was a founding member of Citizens for Sensible Airport Development, the group that opposed expansion of the current airport in the mid-1990s because of the threat it presented to the St. Andrew Bay system.

Middlemas added:

“It is important to remember how we got to this point….The facility, and the preservation area around it, represent a ‘win-win’ solution that has its roots in an effort in the mid-1990s to prevent expansion of the current airport into the bay. From a threat to the bay, we have moved to permanent protection of the bay with the West Bay Sector Plan."

Dr. Neil Lamb, president of the Bay County Audubon Society, said:

“This is a major milestone for the entire Panhandle region….The Bay County Audubon Society looks forward to being partners in this effort. The nature center will be a gateway to some of the nation’s best birding venues…. We have an opportunity to really do something unique, to preserve a part of our bay system and to restore it to what it was long ago.”

Dr. Ed and Lisa Keppner, local environmental researchers and experts said:

“We are very excited about the possibility of an Audubon Nature Center being located in Bay County…. We envision programs such as field trips, workshops, hikes and tours of the center grounds, which would help acquaint people with the biodiversity of the ecosystem…"

Interesting, isn't it, that the "environmentalists" who oppose the nature center live in New York City.