At a minimum, the county should collect costs for additional inspection and paperwork caused by noncompliance, as well as a good percentage of the fine. I found that Alachua and Hillsborough counties take this route. Pope said there are some activities, such as the movement of large quantities of dirt, that by the nature of the work are more likely to get a contractor in trouble. Pope and his chief environmental inspection supervisor, Bob Bass, said that they don't believe the majority of violations are malicious. That's not to say that even inadvertent violations can't be serious.
Landowners sometimes fill in wetlands without realizing the harm they are wreaking.
One recent case with the Mitchell Brothers Inc. road construction company involved a misunderstanding about the difference between a holding pond and a wetland, and whether a 20-year old permit was still valid. So a company or person can be sloppy about erosion control one year, then fill in a wetland the next, yet not be deemed a repeat violator. Even the court system uses a more practical definition of repeat offender. At the same time, if the violation cuts across more than one parcel of land, the offender is seen as having committed two violations. County inspectors bring cases of noncompliance to the board.