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Lake Okeechobee Recovery Operations After Action Report — Our letter to the Army Corps of Engineers

On January 14, 2026, Friends of the Everglades submitted a formal letter to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers regarding Recovery Operations, which involved discharges to the St. Lucie and Caloosahatchee estuaries beginning in December 2024 and ending March 29, 2025.  Friends of the Everglades asked that the “after action report” gauge the effectiveness of Recovery Operation include an analysis of whether water levels in Lake Okeechobee could have been sufficiently reduced without harmful discharges; and that the report include impacts on seagrass, oysters, water quality, fish and other wildlife. Friends also asked for a detailed analysis of whether and how submerged aquatic vegetation benefitted from the drawdown of the lake.

2026-01-20T16:23:41-05:00January 20th, 2026|All Posts, Caloosahatchee Estuary, Friends of the Everglades Statements, Lake Okeechobee, LOSOM, St. Lucie Estuary|
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WATCH NOW — Live 2026 Florida legislative session preview

https://youtube.com/live/K7P2IeqFbHo?feature=share _______________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Today's livestream with Executive Director Eve Samples and Policy Director Gil Smart was a crash course in what to expect during Florida’s annual 60-day legislative session that begins Tuesday, January 13.  The biggest takeaway? There’s no shortage of bad bills being proposed, but with vigilance and accountability, we can meet this moment head-on. Make preparations to stand with us this session: ✅ Bookmark our Legislative Accountability hub to sign up for action alerts, stay updated on bills and review our legislative priorities ✅ Read our concise pre-session report to get up to speed on what’s coming down the pike ✅ Educate your network by sharing today’s live conversation with friends Stay engaged, stay informed and thanks to [...]

2026-01-12T15:28:50-05:00January 12th, 2026|Florida Legislative Tracker, Florida Legislature, Friends of the Everglades LIVE|
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Friends of the Everglades 2026 Florida Legislature: Pre-session report

Look around you. Does it appear Florida is developing too slowly? Key Legislators in Tallahassee seem to think so, and have introduced more than a dozen bills ahead of the 2026 Legislative session that could permanently change the way Florida grows by making it quicker and easier to obtain permits — perhaps at the expense of environmental oversight — limiting local governments’ ability to enforce its own rules, and cutting the public out of the approval process. On a positive note, efforts are underway to amend last year’s Senate Bill 180, which effectively made it impossible for local communities around Florida to update or amend their growth-regulation rules. But at the same time, other legislative proposals would let development [...]

2026-01-09T11:26:30-05:00January 12th, 2026|Florida Legislative Tracker, Florida Legislature|
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Florida misled the court — We’re setting the record straight

"Alligator Alcatraz' remains open — but our case against it is very much alive and moving forward.  This week, Friends of the Everglades and the Center for Biological Diversity filed a new brief with the appeals court, responding to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and the State of Florida’s attempt to overturn a district court order in this case. Our new filing argues that the court should restore an earlier injunction to halt activity at “Alligator Alcatraz", which was built at the Dade-Collier Training and Transition Airport (TNT). Our brief explains: To build the facility, Florida applied approximately 800,000 square feet (roughly 20 acres) of new pavement over compacted grassy areas, erected miles of new fencing, installed high-wattage [...]

2026-01-09T08:45:18-05:00January 9th, 2026|Alligator Alcatraz|
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Offshore drilling threatens the Everglades — Our letter to federal leaders

On December 15, 2025, Friends of the Everglades submitted a formal letter to the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management opposing plans to open the Eastern Gulf of America to offshore oil and gas leasing. The letter outlines the serious risks drilling poses to Everglades restoration, coastal ecosystems and the millions of Floridians who depend on them — and urged federal leaders to protect this one-of-a-kind place before irreversible harm is done.

2025-12-16T10:44:26-05:00December 16th, 2025|All Posts, Everglades Restoration, Friends of the Everglades Statements|
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📸 2025 in the Everglades — Photos of Stunning Beauty Worth Protecting

A year of Everglades beauty worth protecting Dear Friend, What a journey this year has been.  In 2025, our work began with the launch of our science-backed Everglades restoration campaign, Rescue the River of Grass. In January, this work took me on a two-day trip through the Everglades Agricultural Area (EAA), into Everglades National Park, then down to the Florida Keys as I documented areas important to the movement. These were quiet days in nature as I captured the ecosystem bursting with life — and the voices of allies who boldly endorsed this effort that calls on the state to use voter-approved funds to [...]

2025-12-09T15:00:29-05:00December 10th, 2025|Everglades Zen|
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The River of Grass is counting on you this Giving Tuesday — and Patagonia’s picking up the fees!

The Everglades is one of the world’s unique wild places. Its wetlands breathe life into Florida’s landscape — home to panthers, wading birds and waters that flow like liquid gold. The health of this ecosystem tells the story of our own environmental future. But the River of Grass is under constant threat. That’s where you come in. This Giving Tuesday, your support directly fuels advocacy, restoration and legal action to protect the Everglades. And there’s never been a better moment to give: Because it believes in our work, Patagonia is covering 100% of the transaction fees on donations made through our Patagonia Action Works profile, meaning your full gift goes straight to safeguarding this iconic wilderness. Together, we can [...]

2025-11-26T15:30:15-05:00December 2nd, 2025|All Posts|
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Beyond the EAA Reservoir: Florida must plan the next phase of Everglades restoration

https://www.youtube.com/live/HVlOhhhnqIM?si=emUmXWJ91uiKwQsM&t=2052 WATCH as Friends of the Everglades policy director Gil Smart voices concerns about declaring premature victory regarding the completion of CERP at the South Florida Water Management District Governing Board meeting November 13, 2025. In recent comments to the SFWMD Governing Board, Friends of the Everglades policy director Gil Smart cautioned that completing the EAA Reservoir won’t mark the end of Everglades restoration. Decades of scientific consensus show that roughly a million additional acre-feet of water storage is still needed south of Lake Okeechobee to truly protect the St. Lucie and Caloosahatchee estuaries and deliver enough clean water to the Everglades and Florida Bay. In his comments, Smart urged governing board members to begin planning now for the [...]

2025-11-18T11:40:10-05:00November 18th, 2025|All Posts, EAA Reservoir, Rescue the River of Grass|
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Friends of the Everglades 2025 Impact Report

This was a historic year for Friends of the Everglades. We stood in the national spotlight as we waged a formidable battle against the reckless detention center known as “Alligator Alcatraz” that threatened the very land that inspired our founding fifty-six years ago.  We were well-equipped to respond to meet that moment with strength. In recent years, we’ve revitalized the organization that Marjory Stoneman Douglas founded — sharpening our focus, deepening our scientific expertise, forging alliances, expanding our reach and bolstering our voice as a trusted source on issues across the Greater Everglades ecosystem.  The battle in Big Cypress is our origin story. In 1969, developers tried to build the largest jetport in the world on this stretch of [...]

2025-11-13T12:06:31-05:00November 14th, 2025|All Posts, Impact Report|
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