Lee County, FL Invasive Plant Rules: Prohibited Species (2026)

Section 33-1741 sits in Article XI, Division 5 of the Land Development Code (Open Space, Landscaping, and Invasive Exotic Vegetation), a division that applies only to Upper Captiva as defined in Section 33-1701: the portion of North Captiva lying north and west of the state park, mapped as Map 17 in Appendix I. The eradication duty covers 'all real property, including easements, rights-of-way, and common area tracts' and is not limited to new construction. Property owners had to complete eradication by whichever came first of two triggers: issuance of a Certificate of Compliance, issuance of a Certificate of Occupancy, or January 1, 2021, which means existing parcels were already required to be cleared by that date regardless of any pending permit.

The obligation does not end once the pepper is gone; the section requires the property to 'be maintained free of Brazilian pepper in perpetuity once it has been eradicated,' so any regrowth reopens the violation. Section 33-1701 also sets a conflict rule for the whole Upper Captiva article: where this article conflicts with another Land Development Code provision, such as the sea turtle nesting-habitat rules in Sections 14-78 and 14-79, the more stringent requirement controls, so a landowner cannot use one chapter to escape the other.

The eradication requirement traces to Ordinance No. 14-13, adopted June 17, 2014, codified as part of the county's broader push to protect native shoreline vegetation on the outer barrier islands.