St. Lucie Estuary

(Near) clean sweep for VoteWater endorsed candidates!

August 19, 2026

Four of five candidates endorsed by VoteWater in Florida’s primary election won their races Tuesday, with the fifth headed to an automatic recount. Winners are: Amanda Cochran, Lee County Commissioner District 5: Cochran bested incumbent (and Gov. DeSantis-appointee) Trish Petrosky,…

VoteWater endorsement: Christopher Collins, Martin County Commissioner District 2

August 12, 2026

VoteWater, a South Florida clean-water advocacy group, has endorsed Christopher Collins for Martin County Commissioner, District 2. Collins, a former Stuart City Commissioner and Mayor, has been an aggressive and sometimes controversial advocate for cleaner water. Shortly after taking office…

VoteWater endorsement: Merritt Matheson, Stuart City Commission Group III

August 12, 2026

VoteWater, a South Florida clean-water advocacy group, has endorsed Merritt Matheson for Stuart City Commissioner, Group III. “Merritt has been on the front lines of the fight to end damaging discharges from Lake Okeechobee to the St. Lucie River for…

VoteWater endorsement: Sarah Heard, Martin County Commissioner, District 4

August 12, 2026

VoteWater, a South Florida clean-water advocacy group, has endorsed Sarah Heard for Martin County Commissioner, District 4. “For more than 20 years, Sarah Heard has made clean water a top priority,” said VoteWater Executive Director Gil Smart. “She’s been a…

VoteWater endorsement: Campbell Rich, Stuart City Commission, Group I

August 12, 2026

VoteWater, a South Florida clean-water advocacy group, has endorsed Campbell Rich for Stuart City Commissioner, Group I. “Campbell knows that cleaner water depends on people working together,” said VoteWater Executive Director Gil Smart. “The fight to improve water quality and…

Rescue the River of Grass – and finish the job of Everglades restoration

January 30, 2025

 You want to save the Everglades, the northern estuaries and Florida Bay? You want to protect people and animals from harmful algal blooms and safeguard South Florida’s economy? Then it’s time to “Rescue the River of Grass.” Launched by…

Blue-green algae in Port Salerno: Is it connected to Lake O discharges?

January 8, 2025

Ladies and gentlemen, we give you: The first blue-green algal bloom of 2025 (photo courtesy of the Ohana Surf Shop in Stuart). Well, technically, the Florida DEP’s “Algal Bloom Dashboard” flags numerous blooms across the state; but one of those…

In Florida, it’s government against the people

December 19, 2024

Today is Day 13 of damaging discharges from Lake Okeechobee to the northern estuaries. On Instagram, our friends at Friends of the Everglades posted video of water rushing through the St. Lucie Lock and Dam with the caption “This is…

DEEP DIVE: What the muck? How ‘black mayonnaise’ impacts our waters

December 11, 2024

Let’s face it: The Indian River Lagoon and its tributaries are mucked up. That is, they’re full of muck, a gooey mix of eroded soil, animal waste and both organic and inorganic matter that covers about 6,000 acres of the…

Day 5: Why are we getting these discharges, anyway?

December 11, 2024

The rationale behind the damaging discharges to the Caloosahatchee and St. Lucie rivers and Lake Worth Lagoon goes like this: Army Corps officials say the goal of “Recovery Operations” is to give Lake O a break. For six years in…

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