Rick Scott wants Floridians to believe that he had a Road to Damascus moment, suddenly realizing that allegiance to Mammon makes for a dirty Florida and an unhappy electorate, but his 11th hour eco-enlightenment is as hard to swallow as a cup of algae from the Indian River Lagoon, argues Diane Roberts.
Environment & Water
Fracking in South Florida? Environmentalists Steamed Over Texas Company Drilling Near Lake Tafford
The Dan A. Hughes Company used an unapproved method of drilling that had never been used before in Florida to extract oil from a well near Lake Trafford. Florida’s DEP has not been entirely forthcoming.
Gov. Scott Punts on Proposed Land-Preservation Amendment
When asked after the Cabinet meeting whether he would support or oppose an amendment in November that would cement funding for land conservation into Florida’s Constitution, Scott avoided directly answering the question.
A Florida Panther Struck By a Car Last May Is Returned to the Wild After 10-Month Rehab
The 9-month-old kitten was panther was rescued in Collier County last May after a homeowner saw it drag her hind leg. She went through two surgeries and rehabilitated in a 10-acre enclosure before she was released back into the wild on March 10 by the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.
First Manatee Count in 3 Years Shows Healthier Number Despite 2013’s Record Deaths
Biologists with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission reported a preliminary count of 4,831 manatees in Florida during a statewide aerial survey conducted on Jan. 24 and Jan. 27. That’s the third-highest number of manatees recorded since such surveys began in 1991. No surveys were conducted in 2013 and 2012 because of unusually warm weather.
GOP Lawmaker Calls State’s Surplus Land Sale Program a “Disaster”
The Department of Environmental Protection effort was created with the intent of generating $50 million and replace the defunct and once-popular Florida Forever program, but so far no money has been raised and what has become a shortened list continues to draw criticism for sites remaining under consideration.
Record 769 Manatee Deaths So Far This Year Represent 15% of Endangered Population
With two months to go in the year, 769 manatee deaths have bee recorded in Florida waters, breaking the previous record of 766 set in 2010. Deaths are blamed mostly on a red tide bloom that started in southwest Florida in September 2012 and that only recently dissipated. Four manatees have died in Flagler so far this year.
Fish and Wildlife Commission’s Lionfish Summit Will Explore Threats to Florida’s Ecology
As the linfish populations’ expansion threatens marine ecosystems in Florida, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) is hosting a Lionfish Summit Oct. 22-24 at the Hilton Cocoa Beach Oceanfront hotel in Cocoa Beach, to determine research and management gaps and to bring together leaders in the lionfish issue.
FPL Customers in Flagler Will Again Pay Nuke Surcharge for Plants at Least 10 Years Off
A residential customer who uses 1,000 kilowatt hours of electricity a month will pay about $5.5 extra a year, but the cost is part of a broader controversy over a law that allows utility companies to charge customers for power-plant construction that hasn’t even begun yet, and may never be completed.
Despite 1,000-Acre Trim, Environmentalists Warn of Too Much State Land for Sale
The trim still leaves 4,250 acres at 48 state-held sites, such as parks, trails and management areas, that remain under consideration for sale by the Florida Department of Environmental Protection even though the lands fit criteria for protection.