FDEP: Friend or foe?

Why has no one been held accountable for state parks fiasco?

Here’s a question for you: Did Florida DEP Secretary Shawn Hamilton know about the controversial, now (temporarily) shelved plan to develop Florida’s state parks?

Did he support the idea? Was he involved in the effort to push the plans through as quickly as possible? Where does the buck stop on this?

And why has there been no accountability?

By most accounts Gov. Ron DeSantis's office was the driving force behind this terrible plan. But the Florida DEP has long been disparaged by critics who say “DEP” ought to stand for “Don’t Expect Protection.”

And here, with this parks proposal, is proof of the department actually working against Floridians. At the governor's behest? Maybe. But someone needs to be held accountable, if Floridians are to have any faith in the agency.

For more on this story, visit our blog at VoteWater.org.

Deep Dive: Toxic algae is becoming more severe, frequent and widespread. Florida will feel the impact

Aside from some recent flare-ups and the near-constant algae in Lake Okeechobee, Florida waters have mostly been spared the massive, guacamole-like blue-green algae blooms that choked waterways in 2005, 2013, 2016 and 2018.

But research shows harmful algal blooms around the world are getting bigger and more frequent. And given the overabundance of nutrients in Florida's water, it's only a matter of time before we get slimed again. So this week we took a "Deep Dive" into the topic of algal blooms, what's causing the increase, how it can affect your health — and what we can do about the growing problem.

Dirty Money: Rick Scott got $1.6 million, much of it from Big Sugar

Senator and former Governor Rick Scott has never been too concerned about clean water, and our Dirty Money Project backs that up by showing that since 2018, he's taken at least $1.6 million from polluting sectors — including more than $1 million from Big Sugar!

And that's just the tip of the Dirty Money iceberg. Visit the project to see how much your south Florida elected officials got from polluting special interests!

VoteWater fights for clean water and political accountability. And we need your help.

When furtive plans to develop our state parks hit the headlines, VoteWater helped rally the opposition and make our voices heard.

Our “Dirty Money Project” tells you which special interests are buying political influence — and which politicians are being bought.

Our work is powered by your support. Please consider donating so we can dig deeper, hit harder, and turn Florida’s toxic tide once and for all.