Everglades and United States Sugar Deal

This article illustrates why it is so difficult to preserve and restore fragile places such as the Everglades.

Business and politics first, mother nature second.

Standing amid the marshes at the Loxahatchee National Wildlife Refuge in June 2008, Mr. Crist said, “I can envision no better gift to the Everglades, the people of Florida and the people of America — as well as our planet — than to place in public ownership this missing link that represents the key to true restoration.”

Nearly two years later, the governor’s ambitious plan to reclaim the river of grass, as the famed wetlands are known, is instead on track to rescue the fortunes of United States Sugar.

Efforts to restore the Everglades have picked up urgency in the last decade: the sprawling subtropical wetland, the only ecosystem of its kind, is dying for lack of clean water. Many environmentalists remain convinced that Mr. Crist’s deal with United States Sugar, even in its downsized form, offers the Everglades its best hope.

But documents and interviews suggest that the price tag and terms of the deal could set back Everglades restoration for years, or even decades.

www.nytimes.com...

I am not a big time environmentalist but do believe that we are responsible for taking care of the land that we live on. The Everglades is a big part of our history and deserves to be treated with care. I value it just like I do the Neches River in Texas.

A while back, some big shots from Dallas filed a lawsuit when a part of the Neches River was made into a National Wildlife Refuge. Seems that the folks from Dallas were making future plans for a dam on the Neches River. Fortunately, they lost the case when the Supreme Court refused to take up the issue.

The Neches River is proud of its unadulterated status.

"The Neches is the only river left in the State of Texas that is unfettered and looked like it did in most cases like it did when Davy Crockett swam his horses across it," said Richard Donovan, Director of Texas Conservation Alliance.

About five years ago that abundance of nature along the Neches incited the U.S. Fish and Wildlife service to create a national wildlife refuge along the northern banks of the river.

"I like to think of the refuge as a giant incubator. Wildlife will nest and den and feed and raise their young," said Donovan.

But there was trouble from the start when the suit was filed against the refuge.

"The refuge was going to be in a particular place where they thought maybe 50 years from now… they may want to build a dam there," said Donovan.

www.ktre.com...

Python Season

I never knew it.

Monday was the first day of Florida’s hunting season for Burmese pythons, as the state attempts to enlist experienced hunters in fighting the huge, non-native snakes. Since the mid-1990s, Burmese pythons have infested the South Florida wilderness, consuming mammals, birds and other wildlife and competing with top predators such as alligators.

Kill them, don't eat them.

Although python meat is edible, the state advises against eating it because pythons from the Everglades are likely to contain high levels of mercury

coastalfloridarealestate.wordpress.com...


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