In the heart of Big Cypress National Preserve — where Florida panthers roam and the stars once shone undisturbed — a mass detention center is being built at breakneck speed, to the detriment of the Everglades.
We’re fighting hard to stop it.
Friends of the Everglades and our partners at the Center for Biological Diversity filed a lawsuit in federal court on June 27, seeking an injunction to stop construction of the ominously branded “Alligator Alcatraz” so that environmental impacts can be examined as the law requires. Photos of the site show harm is already occurring to this critical ecosystem, facts we documented in our July 3 response to the defendants, which include the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and the Florida Division of Emergency Management.
The government is trying to have it both ways: On one hand, federal officials have publicly touted their partnership with the state and confirmed that FEMA funds will pay for the detention camp. On the other hand, the federal government is claiming in court that the state is acting alone, dodging responsibility for assessing the environmental impact. Making matters worse, the state dismisses the impacts of the detention center, even as previously unimproved sections of the site have been filled and paved, roads have been added and expanded, and glaring light pollution now spills across the night sky, threatening endangered species and shattering the character of one of our country’s most fragile landscapes.
This facility has been built with no public input, no environmental review and no regard for the laws meant to protect our beloved natural spaces. That’s why we took this fight to court.
Creation of our national parks was one of America’s best ideas — and this project in the heart of the Everglades is one of its worst.
We know this may be a long road. But it is a battle that can be won with your continued support, vigilance and voice. Together, we can still stop this destruction and demand accountability from those who should be stewards — not exploiters — of America’s Everglades.
We’re grateful to thousands of people in Florida and across the country who have stepped up to support our legal effort to stop this assault on the Everglades. Our work has been spotlighted in The New York Times, USA TODAY, Politico, and many other news outlets across the globe.
This is our origin story. Marjory Stoneman Douglas founded Friends of the Everglades in 1969 to protect this very spot from harmful development. She succeeded.
Marjory’s work to oppose the so-called Everglades Jetport was a catalyst for the 1970 adoption of the National Environmental Policy Act and the 1974 creation of the Big Cypress National Preserve. A half-century later, we’re reengaged in the fight and honored to do so.
