As we approach the end of our Section’s twenty fifth anniversary year, I’m delighted to share with you some personal observations about the Section’s birth and formative years.

     In the early and mid 1970s, a tsunami of new environmental and growth management legislation swept over Florida. The Florida Environmental Land and Water Management Act, the Water Resources Act, the Environmental Protection Act of 1971, the State Comprehensive Planning Act, the first local government comprehensive planning legislation and property rights protection legislation were all enacted.

     Not content with developing a significant new body of law, policy makers also reorganized state environmental agencies and created new agencies to provide additional oversight and regulation.

     Few people recognized what an extraordinary moment it was for Florida. A new course was set for the state and a framework for environmental protection and growth management was crafted for decades to come. There were few polestars, precedents or models. And many concepts were cut from new cloth. One thing was clear though – Florida’s future had changed and the state was about to embark on an evolutionary policy development process that would impact all of its citizens, including the Bar.

     In 1973 an informal, ad hoc group of attorneys began discussing the need to define, refine and ensure effective administration of the new laws. In time, we concluded the Florida Bar should formally recognize the maturing legal discipline.

     Later that year, the Florida Bar Environmental Law Committee was created to service and help shape the new practice area. Forming this committee was an important first step, but our goal was to achieve section status.

     In the summer of 1976, we filed our petition to create an environmental law section. We believed section status would elevate environmental law issues and help attract top legal talent to work on them. Not all of our colleagues shared this view. In fact, the Bar’s Board of Governors received our petition with considerable initial skepticism.

     The Board had several concerns. Few members were familiar with the subject. Though environmental awareness was increasing, environmental law was breaking new ground and few precedents had been established. Some questioned whether environmental law was a solid discipline. Others believed environmental and land use issues would be best addressed by existing sections and committees. And, some Board members didn’t approve of our aggressive efforts to gain section status; it was very “un-bar like.”

     In November 1976, I presented our petition to the Board. Though we were advised to prepare for an informal discussion with the Board, the discussion was contentious. The Local Government and Administrative Law Sections opposed section status. They objected primarily on the grounds we would raid their ranks and duplicate significant parts of their mission.

     But our arguments for section status were compelling. The rapid development, dramatic growth and high visibility of environmental and land use law were strong motivants for the Bar to recognize and devote resources to this increasingly important practice area.

     And the Environmental Law Section of the Florida Bar was born with 400 eager members.

     Because we were new, we were able to define our mission, goals and principles, and working process. In these early years, the section developed its own personality and characteristics that endure today.

     We embraced an “open arms policy” and encouraged broad participation in all section activity. We sought out fresh, diverse views. We recruited hard to ensure that all points of view – from across the state – were represented on the Executive Council. And we actively recruited new members to serve on the Executive Council and continued to benefit from the participation of former section chairs as ex-officio Executive Council members.

     Intellectual vigor has always been a core value. We are committed to provide a superior written product, and this is reflected in our first environmental handbook, and later in the manual, treatise, newsletters and Bar Journal columns. The competitive Maloney Writing Competition has helped attract law student interest to environmental law. We continue to offer outstanding continuing legal educational opportunities, workshops and seminars.

     I am proud that our section has been built on a spirit of meritocracy. For twenty-five years, talented people have ascended the leadership ladder through hard work on section committees and projects, not through popularity or political clout. And fortunately, our section work has been ably managed and enhanced by a team of extraordinary Florida Bar administrators, most recently Jackie Werndli.

     Today, we have more than 2,000 members, including a significant number of non-lawyer affiliates. Our practice touches many disciplines. We benefit from the expertise and perspective of engineers, scientists, planners and economists. And these contacts have enabled us to build section membership with professionals from related professions. They have enriched our section.

     The breadth of our practice also offers special opportunities to cross market. Rather than pirate their members, we share 372 members with the Administrative Law Section and 537 with Local Government.

     In the past twenty-five years we have accomplished much. And we are much more specialized. Consider these bench-marks. The first Environmental Law Section handbook comprised seven chapters that addressed federal and state regulatory programs, litigation techniques and the administrative process. It had ten authors, two hundred pages of text and an appendix. Today, our handbook is a three volume treatise – thirty chapters, 1600 pages, forty subjects, 122 authors – and available on CD-ROM. Yes, we are more specialized and we will become even more specialized as our area of law continues to evolve.

     And our practice area is more complex. Complexity presents tremendous practice opportunity. But attached to this opportunity is an even greater responsibility to reach out to our communities and schools and to elected and appointed officials to explain the relevance and importance of environmental and land use law and new policy initiatives.

     I am proud that Florida has been on the front line of environmental law and growth management policy innovation since the early 1970s. And our section members have contributed strongly. Your work has had a tremendous impact on the Florida we live in today – and will live in tomorrow. The cases and decisions our members participate in, the work we do every day, will continue to have a lasting impact on our quality of life, as well as our grandchildren’s. This, rightly, is the finest anniversary gift one could ask for. Happy silver anniversary, ELULS.