Environmental Agency Announces Everglades Agricultural Area Reduced Phosphorus by Nearly 3 Times the Goal
The South Florida Water Management District (SFWMD) announced that farmers in the Everglades Agricultural Area (EAA) achieved another successful year of water-quality success, announcing a 70 percent reduction in phosphorous for Water Year 2017. The reduction is nearly three times the 25 percent reduction goal set by the State. This continues a trend in which farmers have reduced phosphorous levels by an average of 56 percent annually over the past 23 years.
At the SFWMD Governing Board meeting, Vice Chairman Jim Moran said, “In Water Year 2017, the EAA basin achieved a phosphorous-load reduction of 70 percent. This success is proof positive of the hard work that the farming community is doing to ensure we deliver clean water to the Everglades. I want to publically acknowledge and applaud the work of our farmers on their success as good citizens in protecting the environment.”
John S. Hundley, President of EAA Farmers, Inc. said, “EAA farmers are part of the important water-quality-treatment train that has delivered clean water to the Everglades for more than two decades. We are thrilled to hear the tremendous 70 percent reduction accomplishment in the last water year. We are a community of farmers that love the land and environment, so this means a great deal to us all.”
EAA farmers, south of Lake Okeechobee, farm sustainably using innovative and high-tech farming solutions known as Best Management Practices (BMPs), which were developed with University of Florida scientists. The program, which is overseen by the SFWMD and the Florida Department of Environmental Protection, has helped ensure 100 percent of water in Everglades National Park and more than 90 percent of water in the approximately 2.4 million acres of the rest of the Everglades Protection Area is meeting the stringent 10 parts per billion standard for phosphorous.
Share this Post