land o lakes, florida – A group of environmental science students are opposing plans to build more than 100 homes in an area of ​​Pasco County.

For months, they’ve been investigating how the development will affect the lake’s water quality, traffic, student safety, drainage issues and wildlife. submitted to

Dozens of signs along Hale Road urge the Pasco County Planning Commission to “stop redistricting.” Lilly Xu, her senior at Land O’ Lakes High School, is one of her students spearheading the effort.

“This is not just an environmental issue. We learned a lot about the history of the area, and its features are irreplaceable,” explained Xu.

Developer KB Homes is asking the county to rezoning a section of Hale Road near Collier Parkway from farm housing to high-density housing to advance plans to build about 110 homes. .

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“This has implications for the future health of our entire region. I hope they understand that we young people are important stakeholders. I would like to see it,” said Xu.

A group of environmental science students are opposing plans to build more than 100 homes in an area of ​​Pasco County.

For months, the Land O’ Lakes High School Scientific Journal Club has surveyed the area to see how development affects everything from wildlife to transportation to drainage problems.

“We believe the root of this problem lies in the rapid growth of development in the region, which is simply unsustainable for our ecosystem,” said Xu.

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On Thursday, Xu and some fellow students took their concerns directly to the county planning commission.

A group of environmental science students have submitted their findings to the Pasco County Commission, hoping to study the impact of construction on water in the area and discourage construction of new housing developments.

“We believe the root of this problem lies in the rapid growth of development in the region that is simply not sustainable for our ecosystem,” Xu said at a conference on Thursday.

So far, the group has tested water from five lakes in Pasco County to analyze how development has affected water quality. They also submitted more than 200 letters from students urging the Planning Commission not to rezoning the area.

The fate of the rezoning request rests with the Pasco County Commission, which will make a final decision on the matter at its meeting scheduled for October 11.