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A clean-water governor wouldn’t sign these dirty-water bills

March 30, 2023

So what’s it going to be, Gov. DeSantis? You’ve styled yourself as a Teddy Roosevelt-style Republican with an eye for conservation. And frankly, we appreciate the record funding you’ve helped secure for Everglades restoration and other water quality projects around…

Judge tosses Big Sugar lawsuit – but a big question remains

March 27, 2023

Big Sugar just took it on the chin in court. But one of their central issues has yet to be fully addressed — and could have big implications for water storage south of Lake Okeechobee. In a March 21 ruling,…

Red tide: Not out of sight, but out of mind in Tallahassee

March 23, 2023

As red tide burns, our Legislature fiddles – and considers bills that could make things worse For months a nasty red tide has bloomed up and down much of Florida’s west coast, killing fish, causing respiratory distress and worse. You…

It’s time for Big Agriculture to help stop discharges — here’s how they can do it

March 16, 2023

Here’s an idea whose time has come. The key thing to realize about the system of drainage and water conveyance around Lake Okeechobee is that the system was built, and continues to be operated, to serve corporate agriculture – and…

VoteWater Deep Dive: Big Ag’s big pollution is a big problem for Florida

March 10, 2023

The question was simple, the answer complicated. But it needn’t have been. In late January Adam Blalock, Deputy Secretary for the Florida Department of Environmental Protection, gave a presentation on water quality to the new House Water Quality, Supply and…

Sprawl-backed bills would sound death knell for local clean-water rules

March 7, 2023

Is your local government spending too much time worrying about clean water? Are your city or county officials too concerned about blue-green algae or red tide? Are they overly obsessed with “nutrients,” spending too much time on dead seagrass or…

Will the EAA reservoir work as advertised? It had better

March 3, 2023

They came from all over Florida: Public officials, political appointees from both the state and federal government, even Big Sugar sent an emissary. The goal: To proclaim a new day dawning, one marked by clean water and prosperity as far…

Will technology save us from toxic algae?

February 23, 2023

In a frightening 2009 article titled “Re-Engineering the Earth,” The Atlantic magazine predicted that as the impacts of climate change worsened, mankind would turn to technology for salvation. Perhaps we’ll pump pollutants into the sky, turning it a reddish-orange, to…

The sprawl industry is pushing for more reckless growth – with plenty of inside help

February 16, 2023

The “Session of Sprawl” is upon us. With nearly a month to go before the 2023 Legislative session officially begins, several bills have already been filed which, if passed, will supercharge sprawl across the entirety of the Sunshine State. These…

Ready for a toxic algae ‘superbloom’ on Lake O this spring?

February 8, 2023

Toxic blue-green algae blooms on Lake Okeechobee are becoming a yearly occurrence. And this year’s bloom could be a doozy. Both federal and state officials are predicting a major bloom on the lake this spring, due in part to Hurricane…

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