by Calusa Waterkeeper | Apr 24, 2019 | Press
Originally published in Florida Politics by Drew Wilson on April 24, 2019 In the past few weeks, several sites in the Fort Myers area have experienced beach closures and health warnings due to an outbreak of fecal bacteria, a sign of human nutrient pollution from...
by Calusa Waterkeeper | Apr 24, 2019 | Press
Originally published in The Pine Island Eagle by Meghan Bradbury on April 24, 2019 In an effort to reconnect the community to the waterways, Calusa Waterkeeper, a nonprofit clean water advocacy group, has kicked off the inaugural The Big Calusa, a recreational,...
by Calusa Waterkeeper | Apr 23, 2019 | Press
ABC-7.com WZVN News for Fort Myers, Cape Coral & Naples, Florida Originally published by ABC7 News on April 22, 2019 A local organization wants to keep the Earth Day clean-ups going. Calusa Waterkeeper, a nonprofit organization dedicated to protecting some of the...
by Calusa Waterkeeper | Apr 22, 2019 | Press
Originally published by WJCT News on April 22, 2019 First celebrated in 1970, Earth Day marks the anniversary of the beginning of the modern environmental movement in 1970, when on April 22 an estimated 20-million Americans demonstrated for a healthy, sustainable...
by Calusa Waterkeeper | Apr 22, 2019 | Press
Originally published by Jaclyn Lopez of the Center for Biological Diversity on April 22, 2019 Five conservation groups urged the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers today to expedite efforts to curb releases of toxic, nutrient-rich waters from Lake Okeechobee that help drive...
by Calusa Waterkeeper | Apr 10, 2019 | Harmful Algal Blooms, Policy, Press, Water Testing
As seen in a News-Press OpEd submitted by John Cassani, Calusa Waterkeeper, April 10, 2019 So far, the Florida legislative session has not adequately addressed the nutrient pollution time bomb that leads to harmful algal blooms (HABs). Great sums of public dollars...
by Calusa Waterkeeper | Apr 10, 2019 | Press
Originally published in the Florida Weekly on April 10, 2019 A nonprofit clean water advocacy group, Calusa Waterkeeper, has created The Big Calusa, a week-long festival and cleanup. “All year long, we at Calusa Waterkeeper find ourselves talking about the...
by Calusa Waterkeeper | Apr 10, 2019 | Cape Coral Spreader Canals, Featured, Press
Originally published in The News-Press by Chad Gillis on April 10, 2019 A water control structure in southwest Cape Coral will be the focus of a hearing this week as some environmental and civic groups aim to keep the City of Cape Coral from completely removing the...
by Calusa Waterkeeper | Apr 7, 2019 | Featured, Press
Originally published in The News-Press by Amy Bennett williams on April 7, 2019 With toxic algae fouling Southwest Florida’s inland waterways and coastline last year, state health officials faced a flood of worried questions as people turned to them for crisis...
by Calusa Waterkeeper | Apr 5, 2019 | Press
Originally published in The News-Press by Chad Gillis on April 5, 2019 Some bills aimed at cleaning up pollution from old and leaky septic tanks are making their way through subcommittees in Tallahassee while others are floundering. Several proposed laws target septic...
by Calusa Waterkeeper | Apr 4, 2019 | Press
Originally published in The News-Press by Chad Gillis on April 4, 2019 Water quality scientists and environmental groups are worried the seeds could be planted for another crippling bloom, as cyanobacteria is still being found in the Everglades system. Besides being...
by Calusa Waterkeeper | Apr 4, 2019 | Press
Originally published in the North Fort Myers Neighbor on April 4, 2019 With water quality at the forefront of the issues to which Gov. Ron DeSantis has pledged remedy, actions this week continue to follow promises made along the campaign trail. On Monday, DeSantis...
by Calusa Waterkeeper | Apr 3, 2019 | Press
Originally published in Gulfshore Business on April 3, 2019 Calusa Waterkeeper has created The Big Calusa, a family-friendly, recreational, educational and cultural week-long festival and clean-up to reconnect the community in a positive way with local waterways. The...
by Calusa Waterkeeper | Apr 1, 2019 | Press
Originally published in The News-Press by Amy Bennett williams on April 1, 2019 U.S. Rep. Francis Rooney, R-Naples, is pressing the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to share what it knows about the short- and long-term health effects of the toxic algae that...
by KC Schulberg | Apr 1, 2019 | Featured, Press
Calusa Waterkeeper shines positive light on region’s top asset with a week-long celebration and clean-up of our waterways Southwest Florida’s water is worth fighting for — and celebrating. So, leading non-profit clean water advocacy group, Calusa Waterkeeper, has...
by Calusa Waterkeeper | Mar 29, 2019 | Press
Originally published by WINK News on March 29, 2019 Thursday night, President Donald Trump landed in Florida ahead of his highly anticipated visit to Lake Okeechobee and the Herbert Hoover Dike. Trump toured both the dike and the lake by helicopter Friday, where he...
by Calusa Waterkeeper | Mar 27, 2019 | Press
As reported by Amy Bennett Williams of The News-Press on Mar 27, 2019. Chainsaws growling, workers have started taking big bites out of the tangle of exotic plants that have all but choked off Mullock Creek in south Lee County. With headwaters just east of U.S. 41...
by Calusa Waterkeeper | Mar 16, 2019 | Press
Originally published in The News-Press by Chad Gillis on March 16, 2019 Two algae blooms that strangled the Southwest Florida coast most of last year have subsided and may not return for a few months. Toxic red tide and blue-green algae outbreaks last year killed...
by Calusa Waterkeeper | Mar 8, 2019 | Featured, Lake Okeechobee, Litigation, Press
As reported by Amy Bennett Williams of the News-Press on Mar 8, 2019. During the course of the hearing, the petitioners provided empirical evidence that the district’s level will not meet the needs of the river and estuary, said Calusa Waterkeeper John Cassani. Though...
by Calusa Waterkeeper | Mar 6, 2019 | Featured, Planning, Policy, Press
Originally posted by Julia Widmann of the Waterkeeper Alliance on Mar 6, 2019. Regional entity Waterkeepers Florida came together early February for an in-person board meeting to set goals for the 2019 Florida legislative session. They gathered at the 25th Annual...
by Calusa Waterkeeper | Mar 2, 2019 | Featured, Press
Originally published in The News-Press by Amy Bennett Williams on March 2, 2019. The nonprofit will use the funds from the Southwest Florida Community Foundation to engage with healthcare frontline workers and decision-makers about the effects of the harmful algae...
by Calusa Waterkeeper | Feb 28, 2019 | Harmful Algal Blooms, Lake Okeechobee, Press
Originally published in The News-Press by Chad Gillis on February 28, 2019 Lake Okeechobee releases started again last week, and the results are a mixed bag for the Caloosahatchee River and its delicate estuary. The volume of water is not concerning to many local...
by Calusa Waterkeeper | Feb 19, 2019 | Planning, Press
Originally published in The News-Press by Bill Smith on February 19, 2019 A site on Hancock Creek in North Fort Myers could become a Lee County public boat ramp, replacing a ramp in downtown Fort Myers that has closed to make way for development. County officials are...
by Calusa Waterkeeper | Feb 19, 2019 | Planning, Press
Originally published in The News-Press by Sarah Jarvis on February 19, 2019. Lee County approved an agreement with Cape Coral on Tuesday in an attempt to help restore water flow into Matlacha Pass and the Caloosahatchee River. The agreement establishes the...
by Calusa Waterkeeper | Feb 15, 2019 | Events, Press
Red Tide Impacts on Biodiversity in the Gulf March 14, 2019 | 8 am to 5 pm Florida Gulf Coast University The Biodiversity Conference is an opportunity for researchers and community leaders around the state of Florida to share their findings, and have in-depth...
by Calusa Waterkeeper | Feb 12, 2019 | Lake Okeechobee, Policy, Press
Public Comment Still Needed on Lake Okeechobee As reported by FOX4 News on February 12, 2019 John Cassani with Calusa Waterkeepers spoke to the League of Women Voters’ Environmental Committee at the Cape Coral Public Library. He spoke about water quality issues in our...
by Calusa Waterkeeper | Feb 6, 2019 | Press
Originally published in Florida Weekly on February 6, 2019 Programs designed to improve the quality of life for Southwest Floridians got a shot in the arm with grants awarded them by the Southwest Florida Community Foundation. The foundation gave $596,923 to 21 local...
by Calusa Waterkeeper | Feb 1, 2019 | Featured, Lake Okeechobee, Policy, Press
As seen in a News-Press OpEd submitted by John Cassani, Calusa Waterkeeper, February 1, 2019 Southwest Florida residents will be the first to weigh in on the Army Corps of Engineers’ (Corps) public scoping process for the new Lake Okeechobee System Operating Manual...
by Calusa Waterkeeper | Jan 23, 2019 | Bacteria Monitoring, Planning, Press
Originally published in The News-Press by Chad Gillis on January 23, 2019 The City of Fort Myers will soon move forward with a dredging project in Billy’s Creek that’s expected to ease flooding but may not improve water quality in the ailing Caloosahatchee...
by Calusa Waterkeeper | Jan 10, 2019 | C43 Reservoir, Lake Okeechobee, Policy, Press
First published in The News-Press by Thyrie Bland and Amy Bennett Williams on January 10, 2019 Newly-elected Governor Proposes Multi-billion Dollar Plan for Water Quality Protection It’s news millions of Floridians have been waiting eight years to hear: Their governor...
