Environmental news

Native plant walks in Sanibel will resume to show how vegetation has recovered after Hurricane Ian.

We get a preview of the upcoming 2023 Southwest Florida Climate Summit, which is this Wednesday and Thursday, March 15 and 16, at the Collaboratory in downtown Fort Myers. It’s hosted and presented by the Coastal & Heartland National Estuary Partnership (CHNEP) and is open to everyone. WGCU Public Media is sponsoring the summit. The goal is to share knowledge, showcase climate action, engage leadership across sectors, and mobilize collaboration throughout the Central & Southwest Florida region. A variety of experts in different fields who will gather to share dialogue and ideas on how to expand Southwest Florida’s capacity to respond to climate challenges, and to build increased community resiliency.

We get a preview of the upcoming 2023 Southwest Florida Climate Summit, which is this Wednesday and Thursday, March 15 and 16, at the Collaboratory in downtown Fort Myers. It’s hosted and presented by the Coastal & Heartland National Estuary Partnership (CHNEP) and is open to everyone. WGCU Public Media is sponsoring the summit. The goal is to share knowledge, showcase climate action, engage leadership across sectors, and mobilize collaboration throughout the Central & Southwest Florida region. A variety of experts in different fields who will gather to share dialogue and ideas on how to expand Southwest Florida’s capacity to respond to climate challenges, and to build increased community resiliency.

While many large tracts of land in Southwest Florida have been forever lost to development over the past century or so, quite a bit of it has been preserved thanks to the dedicated efforts of countless people and organizations — and the local, state, and federal elected officials who environmental advocates could convince that wetlands were valuable for their own sake. For example, more than 70% of land in Collier County has been preserved as public land. Think Fakahatchee Strand State Park, Picayune Strand State Forest, Rookery Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve, Big Cypress National Preserve, Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary, and the Florida Panther National Wildlife Refuge, just to name a few. We explore some of this fascinating history with the co-authors of the new book, “Enjoyment of the Same: A History of Public Lands in Southwest Florida.”

While many large tracts of land in Southwest Florida have been forever lost to development over the past century or so, quite a bit of it has been preserved thanks to the dedicated efforts of countless people and organizations — and the local, state, and federal elected officials who environmental advocates could convince that wetlands were valuable for their own sake. For example, more than 70% of land in Collier County has been preserved as public land. Think Fakahatchee Strand State Park, Picayune Strand State Forest, Rookery Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve, Big Cypress National Preserve, Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary, and the Florida Panther National Wildlife Refuge, just to name a few. We explore some of this fascinating history with the co-authors of the new book, “Enjoyment of the Same: A History of Public Lands in Southwest Florida.”

A Sanibel beach parking permit or a $5/hour parking fee, is required to park at one of the beach access parking areas.

Despite laws precluding the artificial feeding of bald eagles, and the fact that the nest is in private property, some people remain adamant that the birds need help.

When developer Syd Kitson purchased the 91,000-acre Babcock Ranch in northeast Lee & southeast Charlotte counties in 2005 he said he was going to create a sustainable community and preserve most of the land. While many people were skeptical at the time, Kitson has gone on to build pretty much exactly what he said he would. About 67,000-acres became the Babcock Ranch Preserve, and more than half of the rest of the land has been preserved amidst the growing number of smart homes with high speed internet built to Florida Green Building Coalition standards. Mr. Kitson joined us on this show quite a few times during the early days of its development, long before groundbreaking and the first homes were built. We look back on the picture he painted back then, and how well it aligns with what's there today.

When developer Syd Kitson purchased the 91,000-acre Babcock Ranch in northeast Lee & southeast Charlotte counties in 2005 he said he was going to create a sustainable community and preserve most of the land. While many people were skeptical at the time, Kitson has gone on to build pretty much exactly what he said he would. About 67,000-acres became the Babcock Ranch Preserve, and more than half of the rest of the land has been preserved amidst the growing number of smart homes with high speed internet built to Florida Green Building Coalition standards. Mr. Kitson joined us on this show quite a few times during the early days of its development, long before groundbreaking and the first homes were built. We look back on the picture he painted back then, and how well it aligns with what's there today.

While water consumption in Fort Myers was at its highest in 2022 with an average 8.8 million gallons utilized each day, the 2023 peak season is proving to be even higher. Additionally, in the past week, the National Drought Mitigation Center has categorized the Fort Myers area as experiencing “moderate drought” and “abnormally dry” conditions.