Water Quality

An explosion used to blast a canal that will lead to the Everglades super-reservoir, which will be part of the 17,000-acre complex of manmade wetlands to treat nutrient pollution from water released from Lake Okeechobee before it's released to the south, restoring a portion of the original flow through the River of Grass

Appeals court rules against sugar industry in quest to secure water meant for Everglades restoration

Tom Bayles

An appeals court rules the sugar industry could not take water meant for the Everglades when the EAA is completed in about a decade

This is what it's all about for those who care about excellent water quality in a coastal bay or lagoon on Florida's Gulf Coast: Thick, lush seagrass meadows provide critical habitat for fish, crabs, shrimp, manatees, and sea turtles while also stabilizing shorelines and improving water clarity

Environment

Sarasota Bay’s sea grass population soars; setting benchmark for other marine reclamation efforts

Tom Bayles

Sarasota Bay managers have managed a rare win in sea grass health and recovery in lagoons and bay around the state.

The Caloosahatchee River is at the center of the focus on water quality in Southwest Florida for Calusa Waterkeeper, from Boca Grande south to Bonita Springs and 1,000 miles around.

Environment

Calusa Waterkeeper meets to discuss future, area's water status

Tom Bayles

Calusa Waterkeeper meets to discuss its future, gather donations, and listen to experts like Mike Parsons from FGCU's The Water School

The high-volume discharges of water from Lake Okeechobee down the Caloosahatchee River that have been a mainstay for months to lower the depth of the lake before hurricane season will come to an end this weekend

Environment

Army Corps to stop sending polluted Lake Okeechobee water down Caloosahatchee River

Tom Bayles

The Army Corps has been sending Lake O water down the Caloosahatchee River for months to lower the depth in the lake, which harms the estuary.

Reclaimed water plants that provide highly treated wastewater to homes and businesses throughout the state will be receiving some of the water quality improvement grants announced by Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis this week

Environment

DeSantis sending $25 million to region for Caloosahatchee River watershed improvements

Tom Bayles

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis has earmarked $25 million for water-quality improvements to the Caloosahatchee River watershed

The burnt-orange water on the left is a full-blown red tide bloom that currently extends for dozens of miles from Sanibel Island toward Naples, which is only a section of the bloom from Tampa Bay to Key West

Environment

Swath of red tide forms along Southwest Florida coast from Tampa Bay to Key West

Tom Bayles

A swath of red tide stretching for more than 200 miles has formed from Tampa Bay to Key West and the bloom started near Tampa Bay shortly after Hurricane Milton in October.

Government & Politics

Comprehensive water source study, community wildfire plan get OK from Lee Co. commissioners

WGCU Staff

The Lee Board of County Commissioners Tuesday voted to award a $1.8 million contract for a a Regional Alternative Source Water Study in east Lee County and Lehigh Acres and a $174,334 proposal to develop a countywide wildfire protection plan.In other action, the Lee Board of County Commissioners also voted Tuesday to approve an agreement with Collaboratory to allow the county to address a series of objectives included in the $19.3 million Community Change Grant through the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to tackle environmental challenges related to disaster preparedness.

Lake Avalon, the popular freshwater sports lake in Collier County, has been closed since mid-November, when health officials discovered a strain of blue-green algae lurking in the water that can be very harmful to people. The cyanobacteria really shouldn't be present in such relative abundance in January, as blue-green algae thrives in waters heated by the warmest sun of the year during the summer and fall.

Environment

Water Quality Report: Red tide and blue-green algae at the same time; what happens if they touch?

Tom Bayles

A type of harmful blue-green algae is so great in Lake Avalon that it remains closed to water sports enthusiasts for the third month. Meanwhile, red tides 15 miles wide are blooming in the Gulf of Mexico. In Southwest Florida, blue-green algae like the summer and fall, while red tide's time is the cooler winter and spring — but both harmful algae have taken hold in places throughout the region.

Environment

Billions of gallons of water being released from Lake Okeechobee to lower depth 4 feet

Tom Bayles

LOSOM was a hard-fought win for environmentalists was those key components the nonprofits believed would reduce the need for emergency discharges that have previously caused ecological damage

Environment

Lee County survey to gauge residents' awareness of fertilizer’s harm to local environment

Tom Bayles

Lee County officials are surveying residents to see if they know that fertilizing residential lawns may cause potential water quality problems, this is on first day after ban ended