Blog - Page 40 of 63 - Friends of the Everglades

Your moment of Everglades zen: A rare encounter

Spotted in the Everglades: A critically endangered smalltooth sawfish A friend of the Everglades recently took a boat trip from Flamingo to the Shark River basin where he shared a chance encounter with an extremely special Everglades species. In the video below, you'll see the protruding double dorsal fins and tail of a smalltooth sawfish as it patrols the shallow shoreline of Shark River. The species gets it name from its most distinct feature, detailed in the drawing above — a long, flat snout lined with teeth that looks like a saw and is known as a rostrum. These saws are extremely sensitive to currents given off by [...]

Allie Preston2022-04-12T09:50:59-04:00April 5th, 2022|All Posts, Everglades Zen, Wildlife Habitat|

Veto request caps 2022 Legislative Session

The Florida Legislature has ended its 2022 session. But we’re not done yet. One of the worst bills to emerge from Tallahassee this year was approved by the Legislature but has not yet been signed into law by Gov. DeSantis. Senate Bill 2508 was a toxic stew of bad ideas that sought to undermine responsible water management on Lake Okeechobee, fast-track wetlands destruction and expand the Rural and Family Lands Protection Program to rival, and perhaps compete with, Florida’s signature environmental land-acquisition program, Florida Forever. Introduced surreptitiously as a “budget conforming bill,” SB 2508 had only one legislative hearing — but generated such a massive wave of opposition that legislators amended it, then further altered it during budget negotiations, stripping [...]

Allie Preston2022-04-13T16:10:06-04:00March 31st, 2022|All Posts, Florida Legislature, SB 2508|

Calls for DeSantis to Veto SB 2508 Strengthen

Friends of the Everglades has joined Sanibel Captiva Conservation Foundation, the Conservancy of Southwest Florida, and Calusa Waterkeeper in sending a letter to Gov. DeSantis strongly urging him to veto SB 2508. DeSantis previously blasted the nefarious nature of this bill and the way it was introduced for "short circuiting public engagement and leaving affected agencies in the dark." Though amended to remove some of the most harmful provisions, SB 2508 still poses risks to Florida’s fragile environment and threatens to undermine years of work to develop the new Lake Okeechobee System Operating Manual (LOSOM) that could help relieve communities from toxic discharges and harmful algae blooms. Moreover, provisions that would allow the Rural and Family Lands Protection Program to [...]

Allie Preston2022-04-13T16:10:16-04:00March 30th, 2022|Action Alerts, All Posts, Friends of the Everglades Statements, SB 2508|

VIDEO: Protecting two national parks requires making the right call in Homestead

Our longtime board member Alan Farago summed it up earlier today: "We’re in a fight to protect and preserve what we have and not to just let the goal posts change whenever it's politically convenient." During today's Clean Water Conversation, we tackled development pressure in Homestead — an area that is uniquely situated between Biscayne National Park and Everglades National Park and includes some of the last remaining expanses of green space in Miami-Dade County. This pressure is not new. Two decades ago, Friends of the Everglades strongly opposed expanded aviation at the Homestead Air Reserve Base, leading to an eventual rejection of commercial aviation by the Air Force. Now, we're working to combat new plans for more air traffic [...]

Allie Preston2022-03-30T15:45:43-04:00March 30th, 2022|Clean Water Conversations, Homestead Air Reserve Base|

DeSantis Should Veto SB 2508

Allie Preston2022-04-13T16:10:26-04:00March 28th, 2022|Action Alerts, All Posts, Florida Legislature, LOSOM, SB 2508|

Everglades in the News: Maggy Hurchalla special edition

It’s hard to imagine that it’s already been a month since the passing of our friend, mentor, and environmental hero, Maggy Hurchalla. As a staff, this loss has felt particularly close to heart for many reasons, not least of which is our compassion for her granddaughter Kym who serves as our Development Coordinator. Maggy was a frequent participant in Friends of the Everglades activities. She sat on our Science and Policy Committee, offering insight and advice to all manner of environmental issues that helped us deepen our understanding of the fights facing Florida’s natural spaces. She was a repeat special guest during our annual Stories from the Sawgrass event, delighting viewers with poetry recitations and first-hand accounts of wild adventures [...]

Allie Preston2022-03-28T16:06:57-04:00March 22nd, 2022|All Posts, Friends of the Everglades Statements|

Your opposition helped fend off the worst of SB 2508

We wounded the beast. But Senate Bill 2508 is still an ugly monster of a bill. And now it’s headed to Gov. Ron DeSantis’ desk. On Thursday, March 10, the Florida Senate and House resolved a budget impasse triggered in part by the controversial SB 2508, agreeing to slight revisions in the bill language. The changes are a marginal improvement over the previous version, and they do little to redeem this sneak-attack legislation — which Senate leaders rammed through the Legislature with little public input. The bill still poses risks to Florida’s fragile environment. The original bill — which was proposed in early February and had but one legislative hearing — was a hodgepodge of bad ideas that would have [...]

Allie Preston2022-04-13T16:10:40-04:00March 11th, 2022|Florida Legislature, SB 2508|

Everglades Illustrated: SB 2508 is still a danger to Florida’s environment

The fight to kill Senate Bill 2508 isn't over. We outlined the reasons that this bill is still a danger to Florida's environment in a recent Clean Water Conversation. The long-story-short explanation is listed in the graphic above. You can find more information about why we still have major concerns by clicking here. Though amended to remove some of the most damaging provisions, there is no reason to let our guard down, and we need your help rallying others to help us kill this bill for good. If you haven't already, use the button below to send a message to Senate President Wilton Simpson, Senator Ben Albritton, Representative Chris Sprowls, and Representative Josie Tomkow today. If you've already done so, [...]

Allie Preston2022-04-13T16:10:58-04:00March 8th, 2022|Action Alerts, All Posts, Everglades Illustrated, Florida Legislature, SB 2508|

SB 2508 is still a threat. Tell legislative leaders to oppose it.

The surprise attack that is SB 2508 emerged late on a Friday afternoon during Florida's annual 60-day legislative session, prompting a fast and furious reaction from the environmental community to push back. In response to that impressive effort, the Florida Senate amended the bill on February 17, stripping some of its most egregious provisions. But major concerns remain. Even amended, SB 2508 remains a mixed bag of bad proposals that undermine Florida's environmental protections and protect powerful industries — most notably Big Sugar. If enacted by the Legislature, this bill could have detrimental impacts on Florida's environment, economy, and public health. It would: Enshrine outdated water-shortage rules into state law, preserving the status quo that benefits Big Sugar at the [...]

Allie Preston2022-04-13T16:11:07-04:00March 3rd, 2022|Action Alerts, Florida Legislature, SB 2508|

Your moment of Everglades zen: Wild Observations with Deborah Mitchell

We know the bad-news reel gets old. It's good to stop and remember what we're working so hard to protect. Here's your dose of Everglades zen. Wild Observations This past weekend we walked with conservation artist Deborah Mitchell through six enchanting destination-exhibition sites hidden within the Everglades National Park trails. Deborah's art combines scientific research with artistic interpretation to map an ecological and cultural study of observations occurring in our wild places. Through her work, she aims to inspire restoration of ecosystems, combat climate change, address habitat loss and reduce invasive species. These photos capture a few of the moments we encountered with a small group of Marjory's Circle members — as we took part in a visual and sensory experience exploring [...]

Allie Preston2023-02-17T11:41:55-05:00March 1st, 2022|All Posts, Everglades National Park, Everglades Zen, Marjory's Circle|