Florida forever

Land and conservation easements worth $318 million and designed to protect more than 85,000 acres of Florida’s most important wildlife habitats and rural ranchlands were approved for purchase by the state Cabinet Tuesday.Many of the proposed easements are part of the Florida Wildlife Corridor.The purchased conservation lands cover 134 square miles, or 2.5 times the size of the City of Miami, and constitute the largest increment of conservation land and easement purchases ever proposed on a single Cabinet agenda. House and Senate leaders in the Florida Legislature included strategic appropriations for conservation land acquisitions and easements in Florida's budget—an important investment in Florida's economy, ecology, and quality of life.

Florida panthers will be losing more than 10 square miles of Western Everglades in which they currently roam if the builders get their way. Beloved endangered cougars are gaining ground thanks to preservation efforts that are costing taxpayers.

Agriculture Commissioner Wilton Simpson is seeking $300 million for a program designed to keep swaths of rural land from commercial and residential development, triple the amount vetoed by Gov. Ron DeSantis this year.

Several environmental groups and lawmakers gathered in four cities across the state Friday to ask for full funding from Tallahassee for Florida's main...

The results of Florida’s 2018 Legislative Session, which ended earlier this month, were a mixed bag when it comes to priorities for the state’s…

Neglected for nearly a decade, the Florida Forever conservation program would get $100.8 million in a proposed $88.7 billion budget that lawmakers are...

Over the last three years, Florida Forever has not been the titan of land preservation it once was. The conservation program has seen significant...

Since 2001 Florida has protected more than 2.4 million acres of land through the Florida Forever program. And in 2014 75% of voters said they want tax…

This week, Governor Rick Scott announced tax cuts he'd like to have in place for next year. But he also recently said he wants to spend almost $2 billion…

Governor Rick Scott visited Audubon’s Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary in Collier County Oct. 23 to announce a proposed $1.7 billion investment in Florida’s…