Collier County Waterkeeper

The Supreme Court is dismantling the environmental protections Richard Nixon gave us.

You read that right.

And our governor thinks you don’t need to know when germs make your trip to the beach risky for your kids.

Our latest in the Naples Florida Weekly.

Environmental progress starting to die thanks to poor decisions - Naples Florida Weekly We don’t hear much about acid rain anymore. You can thank the government for that. Scientists knew that burning “dirty” coal and oil to generate the electricity we demand fouled the air and water. They helped develop regulations to limit the damage. Their thanks were to be derided as “tree-h...

https://www.facebook.com/share/yCbxgfrhape1cTMM/?mibextid=WC7FNe

Petitions | Florida's Right to Clean Water We need about 900k signed petitions, verified by the State of Florida, to qualify for the 2024 ballot. Read the full text, ask any questions you may have and download your petition here! Then print out, fill out and mail out your petition today.

We all love those beautiful pictures that celebrate the waters that define our home.

But the work to protect and preserve them largely takes place in settings like this, a conference room at Collier County’s Heritage Bay Government Center.

This is where a public meeting for the Corkscrew Watershed Initiative is happening today. Local government officials are coming together with staff members from the South Florida Water Management District, stakeholders, and interested members of the public to begin a four-year planning effort to protect an area feeling the impact of development around its edges.

The study area involves Collier, Lee, and Hendry counties. The affected systems include Corkscrew Swamp with its remaining virgin cypress trees, the Estero and Imperial River watersheds that provide fresh water to Estero Bay, and the Gordon River watershed and Naples Bay.

The planning process should lead to identifying, planning, and putting into motion projects that will allow environmental protection to co-exist with development pressure. That means dealing with flooding while maintaining the dry-season and wet-season hydrological regimes necessary to protect native plants and wildlife.

A story that needs to be told. Here it is told well.

If all you’re hearing is “ Send the water south,” you’re not hearing the real story.

https://www.facebook.com/share/RiY8wv6vCZTENaH9/?mibextid=WC7FNe

An Everglades Scientist on Trial in Ron DeSantis’s Kingdom A powerful nonprofit, closely allied with the Florida governor, sued one of its former scientists for stealing trade secrets. What was it really after?

https://winknews.com/2024/06/07/drone-maps-swfl-coastline/?fbclid=IwZXh0bgNhZW0CMTEAAR24CrQC8wZgR044sS-QlrZ1pG7VL3ycLRtn4cv0Uoz2F0Q3ZMoOOmcd948_aem_AUD-N1U34JyNi0F2s5jWyvTwrG5-ANsx3e1HSsantXJOTCfIwKspHD654fJJ3ObgAS33GK0jfB4ZDGNybOOm90SE

FGCU utilizes drone to map the Southwest Florida coastline Entering the "very active" hurricane season, FGCU professors have begun mapping the coastline with the help of a drone.

https://floridaphoenix.com/2024/05/30/sea-level-rise-makes-florida-beach-renourishment-projects-more-frequent-and-expensive/?fbclid=IwZXh0bgNhZW0CMTEAAR3sGfKmffh4W6WqcM_54J0kITs0AZhrfaZlSGaG7k3hAhcxm0RtPelUgy0_aem_ZmFrZWR1bW15MTZieXRlcw

Sea level rise makes Florida 'beach renourishment' projects more frequent and expensive • Florida Phoenix When my kids were little, they loved visiting the beach. They’d splash around, build sandcastles, and collect seashells. But one afternoon, one of my boys let out a scream that brought me on the run. He’d picked up an impressive lightning whelk shell to add to his collection, but that turned out...

A painless way to protect Collier County’s water.