(NSF) — Gov. Ron DeSantis backed a controversial reservoir being built in the Everglades while announcing the state will use a pool of environmental money to help Miami-Dade County protect Biscayne Bay from continued degradation. DeSantis said his office will continue to support the $1.6 billion Everglades Agricultural Area reservoir, which was approved by the Legislature in 2017 but has …
Backroom Briefing: Simpson Not a Fan of Reservoir
(NSF) — Senate President Wilton Simpson (R-FL/District 10) said he wasn’t sold on a $1.6 billion reservoir south of Lake Okeechobee when he voted in 2017 for the project, which was a priority of then-President Joe Negron, R-Stuart. And with the coronavirus pandemic punching a $3 billion to $4 billion hole in the state budget for next fiscal year, Simpson …
Sierra Club Says Addressing Climate Change Urgent
(NSF) — Sierra Club Florida Chapter Director Frank Jackalone warned Friday that time is running short as the state faces the consequences of climate change. “It’s just one minute to midnight in Florida, because the state is at ground zero for sea-level rise,” Jackalone told reporters in Tallahassee as he discussed environmental issues for the upcoming 2020 legislative session and other …
DeSantis, Senators Seek Everglades Money
Gov. Ron DeSantis has joined U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio and U.S. Sen. Rick Scott in urging President Donald Trump to include $200 million a year in the federal budget for the Everglades. In a letter released this week, the three Florida Republican leaders requested a commitment for construction funding. “The federal-state partnership to restore the Everglades is critical to protecting …
DeSantis Offers ‘Bold’ Plan to Address Water Woes
Gov. Ron DeSantis, appearing in areas hit hard by outbreaks of toxic algae and red tide, signed an executive order Thursday expanding state efforts to improve Florida’s troubled waters. And while he took shots from environmentalists on the campaign trail last year when arguing that climate change is not a problem for state government to alleviate, DeSantis said Thursday his …
Desantis Transition Panel Weighs Water Issues
Money set aside annually for the restoration of the Everglades and other waterways should also help end the use of septic tanks, a former House speaker suggested Monday as a panel considered potential environmental policies for Gov.-elect Ron DeSantis. Former Speaker Steve Crisafulli said the incoming governor should tap the “Legacy Florida” funding to aid conversions from septic tanks to …
Trump Signs Off on Major Reservoir Project
Construction of a reservoir south of Lake Okeechobee that state lawmakers envision as a way to help a region beset by toxic algae blooms was part of a wide-ranging water bill signed Tuesday by President Donald Trump. The $6 billion America’s Water Infrastructure Act of 2018 includes authorization for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to begin work on a …
Fried, Caldwell Face Off Over Medical Marijuana, Water
Democrat Nikki Fried, a medical-marijuana lobbyist, had to defend her desire to move the state’s oversight of medical marijuana into the agency she wants to run. Her Republican opponent, state Rep. Matt Caldwell, was questioned about his support for a bill that delayed for 20 years an unmet deadline to reduce nutrients flowing into Lake Okeechobee. Fried and Caldwell — …
Scott: Expedited Water Project Will Help Reduce Harmful Lake Okeechobee Discharges
Governor Rick Scott announced that, under his direction, another key Everglades restoration project is moving forward ahead of schedule. This year, Governor Scott included funding to expedite this project in his recommended budget and then signed into law this investment of $6 million to begin construction on the S-333 expansion project by the end of the year. This expansion project …
White House Backs Everglades Reservoir
The White House on Tuesday backed Florida’s effort to secure federal funding for a reservoir intended to move water away from Lake Okeechobee and reduce discharges that residents blame for repeated toxic algae outbreaks spreading on both coasts. The request by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to include funding for the roughly $1.6 billion Everglades Agricultural Area Reservoir, approved …
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