Originally published in The News-Press by Chad Gillis on July 16, 2020 An environmental network in Florida says Gov. Ron DeSantis and the Florida Department of Health are not doing their jobs when it comes to informing the public about the health risks of toxic algae...
Originally published in The News-Press by Chad Gillis on July 13, 2020 Environmental groups across the state are challenging the bill recently signed into law by Gov. Ron DeSantis that is supposed to help clean up Florida’s ailing waterways. Proponents of Senate...
Originally published in The News-Press by Amy Bennett Williams on July 10, 2020 Over the past several months, the agency that protects Florida’s environment has juggled several major pollution incidents in Fort Myers, plus a few smaller ones. The troubles have come...
Originally published in The News-Press by Chad Gillis on July 9, 2020 Recent satellite imagery shows a shrinking blue-green algae bloom on Lake Okeechobee, but it’s still too early in the summer to know whether or not a major bloom will manifest this year....
Lack of Oxygen Killing Fish, with Heat Making Matters Worse Originally published in The News-Press by Amy Bennett Williams on July 3, 2020 Eels gulping air. Floating mats of bubbly crud. Milky brown tides. As it did a few months ago, foul water again surrounds...
Water Quality a Concern in Matlacha Pass as Eels Surface Originally published by WINK News on July 2, 2020 Concerns are rising over the water quality of Matlacha Pass after cloudy-looking water was spotted, bringing eels and other sea life to the surface for air. The...
Originally published in The News-Press by Chad Gillis on June 25, 2020 A group of local scientists are mapping out critical marine habitats in the Caloosahatchee River in hopes that tape grass will flourish here again. The Sanibel-Captiva Conservation Foundation and...
Saharan Dust may Impact Southwest Florida Coastal Waters Originally published by WINK News on June 23, 2020 A gigantic dust column from Africa’s Sahara Desert has traveled thousands of miles and will eventually settle over the U.S. The dust is so thick it can be seen...
Saharan Dust could Ramp Up Red Tide off our Coast Originally published by NBC-2 News on June 22, 2020 Southwest Florida’s coastline has steered clear from red tide and blue-green algae so far this year. Plus, for the most part, the Caloosahatchee River is nice...
Originally published in The News-Press by Chad Gillis on June 19, 2020 A blue-green algae bloom has taken over more than half of Lake Okeechobee, the liquid heart of the historic Everglades. Satellite photos show the 720-square-mile lake as being mostly covered with a...
Originally published in Cape Coral Daily Breeze by Meghan Bradbury on June 12, 2020 While Calusa Waterkeeper is celebrating its silver anniversary, the organization says it has a long way to go to fulfill its mission of protecting and restoring the Caloosahatchee...
Current Administration may be Planning for Offshore Drilling After the Election Originally published by FOX4 News on June 11, 2020 This year marks a decade after the disastrous BP Oil Spill. Now, multiple sources say the president’s administration is preparing to push...
Originally published in The News-Press by Karl Schneider and Amy Bennett Williams on June 11, 2020 Early summer in Southwest Florida means spiking water pollution. Starting in late May, subtropical rains sweep a winter’s worth of discards into area waterways. Near the...
Calusa Waterkeeper Tests for Source of Billy’s Creek Contamination Originally published by WINK News on June 10, 2020 Fecal bacteria contamination in Billy’s Creek has been a concern for years, and a local group, Calusa Waterkeeper, is working to fix the problem. They...
‘Staggering’ Amount of Fecal Bacteria Found in Billy’s Creek in Fort Myers Originally published by NBC-2 News on June 10, 2020 “What’s in the water? That’s the question members of Calusa Waterkeeper set out to answer Wednesday...
Runoff from Construction Sites Enter Caloosahatchee River Originally published by WINK News on June 4, 2020 Construction runoff has been getting into the Caloosahatchee River recently and residents and professionals alike have noticed murky patches. John Cassani, with...
Originally published in Florida Weekly on June 3, 2020 Water. From the grand rivers, coastal sounds and bays throughout the region, to the creeks and canals that meander through our neighborhoods, to the glistening Gulf of Mexico, water is in so many ways a crucial...
Originally published in The News-Press by Chad Gillis on June 3, 2020 More than a dozen states and several environmental groups are hoping a California judge will soon stop a move to open half the nation’s wetlands and streams to potential development and...
Originally published in The News-Press by Amy Bennett Williams on May 30, 2020 On any given day, Calusa Waterkeeper members might be flying over the Caloosahatchee scanning for algae, sampling its urban tributary creeks for fecal bacteria, crunching water quality...
Experts Watching Area of Lake Okeechobee for Blue-Green Algae Originally published by WINK News on May 25, 2020 Right now, there’s an area in Lake Okeechobee that experts are watching. What we wanted to know is if they think it’s something to be concerned about. The...
Everglades Restoration Project may be Delayed Originally published by NBC-2 News on May 18, 2020 “Delay is a recurring theme of Everglades restoration,” said Calusa Waterkeeper John Cassani. A delay may be on the way after the US Army Corps of Engineers...
Originally published in The News-Press by Chad Gillis on May 18, 2020 Researchers are studying how toxic algae works its way through the human body and they continue to set their sights on Southwest Florida. Their goal is to one day be able to predict blooms in the...
Originally published in The News-Press by Amy Bennett Williams on May 8, 2020 For more than a month, the Caloosahatchee has been in trouble, after the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers cut flows to the river from Lake Okeechobee in April, following the driest March on...
Blue Green Algae Spotted Along SWFL Beaches Originally published by FOX4 News on May 5, 2020 A form of blue-green algae is appearing along Southwest Florida beaches. While it’s not red-tide, some researches have concerns. This week, patches of Trichodesmium blooms...
Originally published in The News-Press by Amy Bennett Williams on April 30, 2020 With the height of algae season still months away, warm weather water woes are already starting to make their presence felt in Southwest Florida. From sludgy scum hugging Matlacha pilings...
Originally published in The News-Press by Amy Bennett Williams on April 28, 2020 It’s the marine equivalent of a Florida panther encounter: something so extraordinarily rare that even some biologists who study the smalltooth sawfish have never seen one in the wild....
Originally published in The News-Press by Chad Gillis on April 22, 2020 A Southwest Florida city has turned to a reservoir in Charlotte County for irrigation water as drought conditions continue to plague the region. The city of Cape Coral is expected to start pumping...
Originally published in The Islander News by George White on April 23, 2020 Miami Waterkeeper was among the supporters of Florida’s waters participating in an interactive Earth Day Salute Wednesday broadcast on Zoom and Facebook Live. April 22 was the 50th anniversary...
Originally published in The News-Press by Amy Bennett Williams on April 20, 2020 Florida’s Department of Environmental Protection is investigating the city of Fort Myers a month after a massive spill sent more than 180,000 gallons of raw sewage down a neighborhood...
Originally published in The News-Press by Chad Gillis on April 16, 2020 Lawyers are still battling over a suit filed by environmental groups over the management of Lake Okeechobee, but a decision could come as soon as this summer. Several environmental groups filed a...
