This conversation originally aired on June 11, 2024
Back in the 1990s, as the southwest Florida population grew, it started to become apparent that our waterways and water bodies were being impacted — and impaired — by nutrient pollution.
In the late 2000s several local governments in Southwest Florida began implementing ordinances that prohibited the application of lawn fertilizer during the rainy season. Lee County’s ordinance, which was passed in 2008, just took effect again. As of June 1, it is prohibited to apply lawn fertilizer containing nitrogen or phosphorus anywhere in unincorporated Lee County until the beginning of November. You can find further details here.
Most municipalities in southwest Florida have similar ordinances, including Cape Coral, the City of Fort Myers and Fort Myers Beach, and the City of Naples. Charlotte, Sarasota, and Manatee counties have similar rainy season bans. Collier county does not have an ordinance, but does provide guidelines for best practices.
Overall, more than 100 cities and counties across the state have passed strong local protections aimed at reducing nutrient pollution from the misapplication of lawn fertilizers - with the goal of reducing the amount of nutrients that wind up in area waters, and therefore reducing the possibility of harmful algae blooms like the severe ones we experienced in 2018 and 2019.
We get an overview of Lee County’s ordinance, and the importance of complying with these rules to benefit our ecosystems.
Guests:
Lisa Kreiger, is operations manager of the Lee County Department of Natural Resources
Dr. Mike Parsons, Director of Florida Gulf Coast University’s Vester Field Station and a professor of Marine Science at FGCU; and a member of the State of Florida’s Blue Green Algae Task Force
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