[2] Such sustainability would be achieved through the various goals of the project, primarily a conservation effort to preserve Florida's existing ecosystems and landscapes, such as the Loxahatchee River at Jonathan Dickinson State Park and the Broward Urban River Trail in Fort Lauderdale,[3] while taking into account the habitats of native species such as the Florida panther, the Florida black bear and the crested caracara (their habitat data was taken into account when the network was updated) as well as to connect these remain systems and maintain their ability to function as "dynamic systems", as well as adapt to "future environmental changes", such as to mitigate the effects of climate change.
[2] The network is used as a main data source, Florida Forever, for identifying the most significant and intact landscapes for conserving in the state.
[4] In 1991, the Florida Department of Environmental Protection established a Statewide Greenways Program to achieve greater coherence among the state's large ecologically significant places.
The Greenways Program was developed to determine how conservation efforts could be distributed in order to best benefit the nature and people of Florida.
"[1] In the following year, the Florida Greenways and Trails Council prioritized the network into 6 different levels of significance, based on their importance for maintaining statewide ecological connectivity.
[7] The university, using GIS software, developed a prioritization of land presenting the best opportunities to create a connected statewide ecological system in 2002.
Data used in the GIS model include natural areas and features, geological formations, soil types, watershed boundaries, wetlands, water bodies, floodplains, wildlife movement corridors, endangered species habitats, nature-based trails and parks, outdoor education sites, cultural and historical resource sites, distribution and type of built structures, existing and planned roads, railways, and trails; and political boundaries.
[1] As a result of the program, the FGTC has approved over 700,000 acres and nearly 1,500 miles of land and water trails for designation and ten critical linkages have been identified as high priorities for conservation.
The FEGN system and organization has served as a model that exemplifies the use of hubs, links, and sites as critical to conservation, which is applicable on the regional, state and multi-state scale.
[6] Current progress on the network, lacks of support from the public and politicians, according to Tom Hoctor, PhD, director of the Center for Landscape and Conservation Planning at the university.