Environment

The drama involving Harriet the eagle at the Bayshore Road nest in North Fort Myers has caused some to become upset and make suggestions about placing food at the nesting tree and other recommendations, some of which go against federal laws governing protected species and can result in a fine of $100,000 ($200,000 for organizations), imprisonment for one year, or both,.

While Harriett is away, for whatever the reason, the male, M15, has been taking care of the two eaglets born weeks ago, E21 and E22. He has been feeding them and defended the nest from a larger, female eagle who tried to intrude.

For the 5th year, Cape Coral Friends of Wildlife held their Ground Owl Day at Pelican Baseball Complex in Cape Coral. A short ceremony celebrated the ground owl seeing its shadow and adding 6 more weeks of winter to Southwest Florida.

Passionate defenders of Cape Coral’s burrowing owls are livid now that tractors are clearing debris from Hurricane Ian out of the city’s canals and possibly crushing dozens of owl and gopher tortoise burrows.

Florida’s climate hit a new record in 2022. According to NOAA, last year marked the 5th hottest year the state’s recorded history. An unusually warm January followed in the new year, with most weather stations in Florida trending three or four degrees above normal in the past month.

Tonight's public meeting is about the Southeast Advanced Water Reclamation Facility (SEAWRF) Project, a Lee County Utilities project that will be built in the southeast part of the county off Alico Road.

Four months after Hurricane Ian made landfall in Southwest Florida state health officials are once again warning beachgoers to stay out of the water, but this time their alert says stay off the sand, too. Shards of debris have been washed onto beaches and lawns, and there is a spike in the number of cases of the very dangerous "flesh-eating bacteria."

The Florida Department of Health in Lee County has issued health alerts for the presence of a red tide bloom. An alert level of red tide was found near Buck Key (Blind Pass) and Gasparilla Island State Park (Boca Grande Pass) and a caution level of red tide was found near Lighthouse Beach (Sanibel) and Lynn Hall Park (Fort Myers Beach).

The Herbert Hoover Dike project overseen by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers was completed three years ahead of schedule and at a savings of $300 million over the original cost estimate, officials said at a ribbon-cutting ceremony on the lake’s shore in Clewiston.

Southwest Florida is a hotspot for new construction. In Fort Myers alone there are more than 89 development projects, according to the City of Fort Myers development report. Before development happens, companies have to remove gopher tortoises to relocation sites to comply with Florida law – and Lee County is running out of room.