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What’s at Stake: America’s Everglades is home to over 70 endangered species including the
Everglades Snail Kite, seen here feeding on the top of the water surface for apple snails.
Photo by Mac Stone.

What’s the matter here?
More importantly, what can we do about it?
CERP outlined a funding mechanism almost as complicated as
the projects themselves, but it suffices to say that construction costs
were to be borne equally by both the federal and state governments.
At various times and for varying reasons, either the federal
government or the state of Florida (and sometimes both) failed
to ante up.
The result has been that America’s Everglades — the location of
a World Heritage Site, home to more than 70 endangered species
and water source for 8 million people — is now on life support.
Things now seem to be changing.
Saving Paradise fishing in three of the last six summers finally awakened Florida to
States of Emergency that closed beaches and restricted

the consequences of inaction. Massive public reaction to job killing
cycles of red tide and blue-green algae forced action by policymakers
by Eric Eikenberg - CEO, The Everglades Foundation in both Tallahassee and Washington. As of this writing, at least, they
continue to respond favorably.
t was the last legislation that President Bill Clinton signed into What’s needed is a reliable and sustained funding stream of
law, the largest environmental restoration project in the history at least $400 million a year — $200 million apiece from the
Iof the planet: a massive, multibillion-dollar rescue mission to State of Florida and from the federal government. That’s no small
save America’s Everglades. task — but you can help.
The sweeping bill envisioned 68 separate public works projects, If you’re a Florida resident, your legislators need to hear from
all with the goal of restoring the historic southward flow of fresh you. Even if you live and vote elsewhere, your home state
water from Lake Okeechobee to the Everglades and ultimately to Senators and federal Representatives need to hear from you.
Florida Bay. So far, more than 60,000 Americans from every State in the
The ambitious goals of the Comprehensive Everglades Union have contacted their lawmakers urging them to support
Restoration Project united Democrats and Republicans alike. full funding for Everglades restoration.
Environmentalists and sugar industry lobbyists joined to support the To join us, text the word “WATER” to 56886. Follow the
bill, which had been years in the making. It followed extensive study prompts and enter your information to email your Senators,
by academic scientists as well as experts at the federal, state and local Representative and the President.
levels, including the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, and reflected The Everglades is counting on you.
the views of stakeholders from across the region.
It has now been almost 20 years since President Clinton signed
“CERP,” as it came to be known, but not one of its 68 projects has
yet been brought to a conclusion.

The goal of Everglades restoration projects under CERP is to restore, as much as possible,
the historic southward flow of fresh water from Lake Okeechobee into the Everglades and, from
there, to Florida Bay.

President Bill Clinton signed the Comprehensive Everglades Restoration Plan into law on
December 11, 2000. Since then, not a single one of the 68 restoration projects outlined in the Eric Eikenberg is CEO of The Everglades Foundation, the
legislation has been brought to completion.
leading science-based organization working to restore America’s Everglades.
58 Life in Naples | January 2020