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VoteWater Executive Director Gil Smart speaks at a Stuart rally against

development in Florida's state parks.

How to win an environmental fight

Florida Sportsman Senior Editor (and VoteWater Board President) Blair Wickstrom takes a look at recent successful environmental battles in Florida and asks — what worked, and can we replicate it?

“The issue needs to be local and personal,” writes Wickstrom of the State Parks Preservation Act, “Kill the Drill,” and the campaign to stop the Guana Preserve land swap. “You need an organizer. You need the expertise of established non-profit groups with extensive institutional knowledge. You need public support. And finally, if you’ve got the first four, you’ve got a chance with the fifth, bringing aboard local lawmakers.”

“Make no mistake: Wins for nature don’t just happen,” Wickstrom writes.

But they CAN happen with an effective game plan — which is good to keep in mind as we battle the Southland rock mine and “Alligator Alcatraz.” 

Check out Wickstrom’s column for the story.

Alligator Alcatraz update:

It ain't over 'til it's over

As you may have seen, a three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit granted the state and federal government’s request to stay a preliminary injunction issued by a lower court. That means, for now, operations at the Everglades detention center can continue.

The groups behind the lawsuit — Friends of the Everglades, the Center for Biological Diversity and the Miccosukee Tribe of Indians of Florida — have vowed to fight on.

This case is going to be a long haul, and while the Appeals Court’s decision was disappointing — it's not the end. There are still opportunities for you to help the cause.

For a look at the case, and how you can help, click the button below.

Answer: NO - and congrats to the Keys

Speaking of how to win one — we saw another example of it in the Keys this week, and congrats to the victors there!

Monroe County Commissioners were poised to vote on a Comprehensive Plan Amendment that would have effectively ceded authority to expand U.S. 1 to four lanes (!!) to the Florida Department of Transportation.

The idea that the road's “level of service” needed to be improved — and that might help with storm evacuations as well. But the county’s own Planning Commission voted 3-1 against it, and local conservation groups, HOAs and others rightly hated it.

Citizens peppered commissioners with calls and emails and posted about it on social media, and the sentiment was clear: Widening the road will permit more development, and the community doesn’t want more development.

And what do you know — the commissioners listened and agreed, with several citing community opposition. “Even business owners in my district asked me not to approve this,” said commissioner Michelle Lincoln. The proposal failed.

It’s a win — and a big one. Said one resident: “We have a very, very fragile environment, a very, very limited infrastructure… (and) all decisions should be based on what is right to make our environment strong and our lifestyle better.”

So congratulations and amen. And wouldn’t it be something if ALL Florida elected officials made their decisions on that basis?

DeSantis and the Everglades:

What will be his legacy?

We asked the question a few months back in an open letter to Gov. DeSantis: Is he putting his Everglades legacy at risk?

Now ace investigative reporter Jason Garcia is on the case, writing in his latest Substack essay that the governor may wind up being remembered less for the billions he’s helped steer toward Everglades restoration and more for his embrace of “Alligator Alcatraz,” and the tacit support his office has provided the Southland rock mine project.

The Governor, he notes, “still proudly touts his record on Everglades restoration and the nearly $8 billion his administration has invested in reviving the iconic swamp,” Garcia writes. “But DeSantis is now polluting even that piece of his legacy.”

Bottom line: You can’t save the Everglades and undermine it at the same time. For more on the story, check out our latest blog post at VoteWater.org.

Protect our water, power the fight

Clean water is essential — and your support helps protect it. VoteWater fights polluters, pushes for stronger protections, and elects clean-water leaders. Give today to power the movement for Florida’s future.

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