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The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers plans to spend $1 billion to restore and preserve South Florida’s Everglades. According to the White House, this represents the single largest investment in the Everglades in history.
The funds will be used to increase the ecosystem’s resilience against climate change by storing surface water runoff and minimizing seepage losses during dry periods, address long-standing environmental justice issues, and help coastal communities. Florida Representative Lois Frankel said in a statement, “The Everglades is a beautiful and delicate ecosystem that serves as drinking water for more than eight million Floridians and home to hundreds of endangered plant and animal species. This new funding will significantly boost efforts to make sure that this unique and vibrant environment is kept alive and thriving for future generations.”
The Everglades project is just one of several environmentally minded projects the Army Corps will pursue using funds made available by the recently passed infrastructure law. Although record-breaking, the $1 billion for Everglades restoration is significantly less than the estimated $23.2 billion total cost to implement the Comprehensive Everglades Restoration Plan.
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Safety and economic benefits aside, wildlife crossings provide significant environmental benefits. Roads create a formidable barrier to wildlife moving to locate water, food, mates, and shelter, as well as migration. Oregon mule deer populations have been steadily declining for decades. Protecting their migratory corridors is essential to their health and resilience, particularly as a changing climate may require these populations to travel outside their traditional corridors."
