Rescue the River of Grass – and finish the job of Everglades restoration
Rescue the River of Grass – and finish the job of Everglades restoration
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 our friends at Friends of the Everglades — and enthusiastically supported by VoteWater — this bold new campaign seeks to address Florida’s increasingly critical water storage and treatment needs, to rehydrate the Everglades and Florida Bay and curtail the devastating discharges to the Caloosahatchee and St. Lucie estuaries and Lake Worth Lagoon.
The goal: Acquire at least 100,000 acres in the Everglades Agricultural Area south of Lake Okeechobee for water storage and treatment. The plan would utilize funding from Amendment 1 — which was passed in 2014 and uses document stamp revenue to pay for the acquisition of conservation lands. It’s projected to generate up to $1.6 billion annually through 2034.
VoteWater will assist with the campaign to convince Florida policy-makers to act and ensure a sustainable future for Florida’s economy, environment and public health.
CLICK HERE to sign the petition and help Rescue the River of Grass
As we noted last week, plans are afoot to turn 8,600 acres of Big Sugar-owned land in the EAA into a rock mine. Backers are calling it a “water resource project,” as the pit would be used for water storage once the limestone is dug out and sold. But this is exploitation, not restoration. And as more development proposals emerge in the EAA — and climate extremes require more large-scale water storage and treatment in South Florida — Florida needs a cohesive, comprehensive plan to secure the land needed for the next and final phase of restoration.
This isn’t intended to replace the Comprehensive Everglades Restoration Plan projects now underway; it’s intended to complement and supplement them.
“This is about looking down the road and answering the question, ‘What comes after CERP?’; and ‘How will we finally solve — not just address, but solve — the crisis facing the greater Everglades?’ ” said VoteWater Executive Director Gil Smart.
You can do your part: Sign the petition on our website and add your name to the growing chorus of people who want Florida to finish the job of restoration.
Learn more about the campaign via Friends of the Everglades at everglades.org/rescue.