Pssst! Wanna have your way with wetlands and habitat? For a good time, call the “biostitutes” at Biological Research Associates.
Finally, someone shined a light on these hustlers. 
Sunday’s St. Petersburg Times featured an exposé of a firm that has long been selling developers the “expert testimony” they need to destroy our natural resources.
“For years, Florida’s largest environmental consulting firm, Biological Research Associates, has helped private companies win government permits to pave over wetlands and destroy wildlife habitat.”
I have had to fight against B.R.A.’s sellout-scientists several times, and I can tell you it’s enormously frustrating for citizens to work our tails off putting together the facts & figures to make a case for saving some of our precious natural resources, only to have the developer trot out these pole-dancing “experts” to say that those natural resources don’t exist, or that paving them over won’t hurt them a bit, or whatever.
The Times reports a few of the most egregious examples of B.R.A’s role in environmental destruction across the state, including one in Hillsborough county in which
“B.R.A. reported finding no wildlife habitat on a development site, only to have county officials discover more than 100 acres still being used by wildlife.”
But there have been several instances where B.R.A was involved, and are not included in the Times’ report.
One local case which particularly infuriated me was not mentioned in the Times. The developer wanted to destroy gopher tortoise habitat on a skinny spit (300 feet wide!) of pristine sand pine scrub, sticking out into the middle of the Little Manatee River at Mill Bayou, just to build a couple dozen houses. 
Hundreds of citizens and several local & state environmental groups voiced their opposition, and even the National Humane Society sent a letter from Washington D.C. opposing the project for the sake of the 20 gopher tortoises living on the site.
B.R.A. argued for the destruction of the exceedingly rare sand pine scrub habitat, claiming the gopher tortoise population was not worth saving. They also pushed for an exception to our rules protecting native trees along the river. And they testified under oath that there were no listed plant species on the site. But there were.
Before the hearings, I visited the site with a couple of bona fide professional biologists and a Tampa Tribune writer whose subsequent article included photographs of the endangered plants. The listed species (Tillandsia Utriculata, endangered, and Garberia Heterophylla, threatened) were clearly visible from the road. At the hearings, I spoke about these plants, as did an honest, unpaid biologist. Yet B.R.A’s scientists testified that there were no listed plant species!
I can’t tell you how galling it is for citizens to be speaking truth to power at these hearings, only to have paid experts used to deny the truth. (The developer eventually won the Mill Bayou rezoning case, though citizens won a few concessions.)
Other local issues involving B.R.A., but not in the Times’ report include:
While other paid consultants have been known to slant the facts to benefit their clients, B.R.A.’s reputation is abysmal. I’ve often heard words like “biostitute” used to describe them, but it’s time their sleazy tactics were spoken of publicly:
• Inglis Town Commissioner Ed Michaels calls B.R.A. “biostitutes” — a word combining “biologist” and “prostitute” — explaining, “They’re for hire.”
• others in the environmental consulting industry say B.R.A. has long been known to put its clients’ demands ahead of accurate science.
• B.R.A. “is considered kind of a black hat in the consulting business,” said Ray Ashton, a longtime consultant from the Gainesville area. “You can make it really good for your clients by skirting the rules and endangering the resource.”
Hopefully, once everybody knows which consultants lack credibility, their testimony will become worthless, and consultants with integrity will be hired more often, so environmental decisions can be made based on the facts, not the best “expert testimony” money can buy.
Kelly
1 year ago
Great article Mariella! I hope the pole dancers on the BOCC responsible for approving these re-zonings take notice. Hopefully the recent election will help put an end to taxpayer funded lap dances for developers from our elected officials.
Pam
1 year ago
I think the picture says it all. It would be nice to think that the decision makers (BOCC/EPC)would at least try to educate themselves about the wonderful environmental assets that we have in this County. I think that even if they had a little bit of knowledge, they would not be so inclined to listen to the biostitutes, but to those that actually know the truth of what is there.
Claudia Davidsen
1 year ago
Thanks Mariella! Biostitute! The whole equals more than the sum of the parts. This firm desperately needs to be slammed with some criminal charges.
M. Curl
1 year ago
Mariella, I think biostitutes pretty much describes what activity has been taking place. Are there pimps involved? If so, maybe they should get their own word. Or better yet, name some names and then see what nastiness takes place when they are flushed from their own habitats.
Dan Roberts
1 year ago
Nice article. Thank you for your energy on these and other environmental issues.
GKR
1 year ago
It is difficult to find many in the Florida Land Development industry that have much personal integrity. Many who do usually get the hell out of the state as soon as possible and move someplace that has a clue.
Unless you have ties to this place, those with personal integrity don’t stick around; they don’t enjoy designing or building mindless crap, and aiding in the wantant destruction of the natural environment that makes Florida unique.
Traditionally, Florida is the cowboy/goof-off contractor’s get-rich-quick dream, and central Florida is worse than many other parts of the state.
The local Homebuilders Association would laugh but they should adopt the same mantra used by their cohorts in more mature (and better planned) regions:
“First, do no harm”.
Voice of Reason
1 year ago
Mariella your post is informative, but the Times article was pretty poor. Ray Ashton is a consultant and trainer who competes with B.R.A., he has an economic interest, is the “black hat” quote from him really fair? The Times also badly slanted B.R.A.’s work on the wellfields. The problem is that this yellow journalism backfires in the long run. See the responses on the Times web page.
BG
1 year ago
Ray Ashton has devoted many years of his life to conducting research on the behavior of gopher tortoises and other creatures in order to help conserve them. He and his wife Patricia have written an excellant book titled ‘The Gopher Tortoise-A Life History’ that is good for all ages.
Anonymous
1 year ago
No respect for 5th amendment of constitution “Taking away one’s property without due compensation”.
Just crucify the developer,easy.
Tax-payers instead of buying the property
make a EPC code and voila every one is happy.
Lets convert your backyard swimming pool/pond in to a new EPC definition of wetland.
And everyone will want EPC eliminated.
State of Florida and uncle Sam just paid some loose change so we all can enjoy Everglades.
Anonymous
1 year ago
GKR,
You could have been writing about me except instead of leaving the area, I bailed out of this horrible industry and went back to grad school to do something more worthwhile with my life than continute to participate in their shenanigans. I also volunteered in a position with the county that dealt with developers regularly. You would not believe the amount of pressure they would apply to try and get me to help them help get what they wanted just because they thought I was “one of them”. And when I made unbiased decisions that happened to go against them, it was like I was Judas to them. No acceptance of critical thinking or difference of opinion to those people. Frankly, the vast majority of people in that industry are really sh!##y people from the engineers to enviromental specialists to attorneys and obviously the developers. Ok, rant over.