Third Ecosystem Management Agreement (EMA) with the St. Joe Company

On July 7, 2020, the St. Joe Company and the department established the Third Ecosystem Management Agreement (F.S. 403.0752). This EMA Area (EMA #3) encompasses 28,327 acres of St. Joe owned lands within the West Bay Sector Preservation Area in Bay County.

This agreement is the third such agreement entered into with The St. Joe Company. The first, in 2004, encompassed an area of 31,350 acres and provided for conservation for more than 20,760 acres of St. Joe owned property in Bay and Walton counties. The second, in 2015, encompassed an area of 42,889 acres and provided for conservation for more than 18,380 acres of St. Joe owned property in Bay County. The department and the federal government have urged St. Joe to take a comprehensive, regional approach to conservation and development that would provide for predictable community growth while affording greater protection to natural lands along the Emerald Coast.

St. Joe Company has extensive landholdings in Northwest Florida, some of which is earmarked for residential, commercial and recreational development, which require environmental permits. The agreement provides protective guidelines for activities associated with building roads, homes and community infrastructure.

As part of these three agreements, St. Joe is setting aside thousands of acres of high-quality habitat for preservation. The conservation areas create a two-pronged “Bay to Bay” wildlife corridor linking public land from Choctawhatchee Bay to St. Andrew Bay and preserving the ecological integrity of two of Northwest Florida’s most rapidly developing watersheds. 

EMA 3

Annual Reports

2021, 2022, 2023, 2024

For more information contact Russell Sullivan at 850-595-8300 or Russell.Sullivan@FloridaDEP.gov.

Last Modified: Thursday, Jan 08, 2026 - 11:51am