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Martin County favors developers (again). But you can vote for change

May 9, 2024

Last week the Martin County Board of County Commissioners sided with a developer over clean water and constituents, approving a project known as “The Ranch” (formerly “Calusa Creek”) which will be some 6,000 feet — that is, more than a…

Discharges to the Caloosahatchee – good or bad?

April 18, 2024

After last week’s newsletter asking if our discharge crisis was over, we got lots of feedback from readers along the Gulf coast who said the answer was “no.” While the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers halted discharges from Lake Okeechobee…

PAC attack: U.S. Sugar, Florida Crystals gave more than $26 million to PACs since 2018

March 27, 2024

“Dirty money” to dirty politicians means dirty water. But what happens when the “dirty money” — campaign cash from polluters — goes instead to PACs, political action committees? As part of our “Dirty Money Project” we wanted to find out;…

No room at the (water storage) inn? Blame Big Sugar

March 21, 2024

At last week’s South Florida Water Management District meeting, several speakers took potshots at those of us who want to “send it south.” It’s all fine and good to call for water to be sent to the stormwater treatment areas…

Deep Dive: If we build a reservoir north of Lake O, who gets the water?

March 5, 2024

Everyone agrees that building a reservoir north of Lake Okeechobee is a good thing, a rarity among projects proposed for the greater Everglades plumbing system. More true to form is the fact that not everyone agrees on what ought to…

‘Dirty Money’ at work as mining giant digs deep for lawmakers

February 28, 2024

First, stop what you’re doing and visit the Friends of the Everglades website to register your opposition to House Bill 789/Senate Bill 738, which will be voted on by the full House and Senate soon. The bills deserve to die,…

Where are our champions? What are elected officials doing to stop these discharges?

February 22, 2024

Massive discharges to the Caloosahatchee and St. Lucie rivers began this past Saturday, with up to 6,500 cubic feet of water per second roaring through the Julian Keen Jr. Lock and Dam/S-77 in Moore Haven and up to 3,600 cfs…

Lake O discharges start Saturday. What are we going to do about that?

February 14, 2024

For months we’ve been predicting it. Thursday it became official: Beginning Saturday, Feb. 17, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers will begin hammering the northern estuaries with discharges from Lake Okeechobee. In a press release the Corps said water will…

Whatever happened to LOSOM – and why is Big Sugar STILL trying to game the outcome?

February 8, 2024

Hm. Seems we remember this new “lake management plan” that was being developed by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers for Lake O… what was that called again? Oh, right — LOSOM. Whatever happened to LOSOM, anyway? As Ed Killer…

Deep Dive: What will it cost to fix the Indian River Lagoon?

February 1, 2024

When is $100 million not a lot of money? When it comes to saving the Indian River Lagoon. In December, Gov. Ron DeSantis announced the allocation of $100 million in state funds through the Indian River Lagoon Protection Program for…

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