FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Jan. 22, 2014
CONTACT: 850.717.9282, media@eog.myflorida.com
GOVERNOR RICK SCOTT ANNOUNCES $130 MILLION INVESTMENT IN SOUTH FLORIDA'S EVERGLADES
KISSIMMEE, Fla. – Today, Florida Governor Rick Scott announced a $130 million
investment to continue work on restoring the Everglades and South Florida’s
ecosystem as part of the “It’s Your Money Tax Cut Budget.”
Governor Scott said, “This $130 million
investment from the ‘It’s Your Money Tax Cut Budget’ will fund critical
projects that will improve water quality for families and businesses that rely
on these natural treasures. These dollars will go towards improving water
quality, mitigating impacts of Lake Okeechobee’s discharges on our estuaries,
and diverting more fresh water south to help restore the
Everglades.”
Less than a year after Governor Scott
announced an unprecedented $880 million long-term Everglades restoration plan,
the $130 million investment for the Everglades and South Florida’s ecosystem
include $40 million to speed up completion of the C-44 Stormwater Treatment Area for Martin and St. Lucie counties. In
addition, this $130 million investment includes $30 million for a three-year
installment for the Tamiami Trail project, which will provide necessary water
to Everglades National Park, $32 million in recurring funding as part of the Governor’s Everglades Water
Quality Restoration Plan and funds to complete the Kissimmee River
restoration project, which will store and clean water heading into Lake
Okeechobee.
This major investment comes as many
Everglades and South Florida restoration projects have already been permitted
and construction initiated to improve water quality and quantity. In recent
months, the South Florida Water Management District has begun work on
large-scale reservoirs designed to store and ship water to stormwater treatment
areas before cleaning and sending it south to Everglades National Park and
Florida Bay. At the same time, the Department of Environmental Protection
continues to work with local stakeholders on restoration plans for the St.
Lucie and Caloosahatchee Rivers, Indian River Lagoon and Lake Okeechobee.
“Governor Scott solidified his reputation
as the Everglades Governor with his announcement today,” said DEP Secretary
Herschel T. Vinyard Jr. “His dogged pursuit to improve the water quality in
America’s Everglades is encouraging for all of us and his emphasis on restoring
the Everglades remains unmatched. Governor Scott’s plan to store water north of
Lake Okeechobee in the Kissimmee River Basin and divert water south of the lake
shows families living along the St. Lucie and Caloosahatchee Rivers that he has
heard their voices.”
During the Cabinet meeting, Governor Rick
Scott also highlighted the lack of federal commitment resulting from recent
actions by the Obama Administration in Washington.
Governor Scott said, “While on the state
level we’re working hard to protect and restore our natural treasures, we
recently received some disappointing news from Washington. The Obama Administration
decided the Everglades didn’t need all the funding Congress offered. It is my
hope that the Obama Administration will not reduce critical funding for Florida
projects in the future.”
In Omnibus discussions, Congress initially
agreed to provide more than $80 million for the Everglades. The Obama
Administration, through the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, however, indicated
they could not spend it all and requested $46 million. As a result, the
Everglades lost tens of millions of dollars in federal funding this year.
This is the lowest amount the federal government has appropriated for
Everglades Restoration projects in the last 10 years.
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