Through our Advocacy, Education, and Outreach programs, we engage our supporters to advance science-based solutions that solve Florida’s water mismanagement and safeguard our way of life for future generations.
These programs directly support our 3 key areas of focus and encompass a variety of opportunities for supporters to make a difference in the fight for Florida’s water quality.
Our historic success stories:
On February 4, 2022 the Florida Senate filed Senate Bill 2508, a dangerous piece of legislation that posed a major threat to Everglades restoration and clean-water progress. The bill would have undone years of progress and reverted water management back to an industry-serving system that prioritized water supply for special interests at the expense of everyone else. That would have guaranteed more harmful discharges to the coasts, more toxic algae, less water to the Everglades, and incalculable economic and environmental losses that harm all Floridians.
Thankfully, however, our supporters GOT LOUD, and there was an outpouring of public opposition to SB 2508—including that of Governor Ron DeSantis, who slammed the bill. Ultimately, the bill was vetoed in a landmark moment for clean water that sent a clear message about the importance of water quality. It was also a reminder of the power we have as individuals to influence change, because the precedent-setting moment would have never happened without every single person that did their part to oppose the bill—no matter how big or small.
The Lake Okeechobee System Operating Manual (LOSOM) is the manual with which the Army Corps of Engineers will manage Lake O’s water levels over the next 10 years. That’s a big deal for our coastal communities that receive toxic discharges that lead to ecological collapse. Throughout the three-year planning process, Captains stayed inserted in the conversations and development meetings to ensure the new manual would be balanced for all stakeholders, especially the estuaries, who had received the brunt of adversity for decades.
And that’s exactly what happened. The support from our call to action campaigns secured a favorable outcome that will reduce damaging discharges to the east and west coasts of Florida and send more water south to the Everglades.
A critical piece of our mission is generating awareness and education around the issues impacting Florida’s water quality. We are pulling the curtain back on the status quo and shining a light on special interest favoritism that has lead to exacerbated red tide blooms, increased blue green algae blooms, sea grass die offs and overall ecological collapse.
Issues you should be aware of:
Current lake operations and limited infrastructure have cursed our coastal estuaries for decades, all-too-often leading to high-volume discharges that send nutrient-rich lake water carrying toxic blue-green algae to the east and west coasts of Florida. These discharges can fuel other harmful algal blooms, like red tide, and cause salinity imbalances that kill essential habitat, like seagrasses and oysters.
The ‘Send It South’ campaign raises awareness on the need to send more water south from Lake Okeechobee to the Everglades and Florida Bay. Not doing so endangers these resources due to ecological imbalance from not receiving enough fresh water. The solution is to support improved operations, such as LOSOM, and new Everglades restoration infrastructure, like the EAA Reservoir.
A critical piece of our mission is generating awareness and education around the issues impacting Florida’s water quality. We are pulling the curtain back on the status quo and shining a light on special interest favoritism that has lead to exacerbated red tide blooms, increased blue green algae blooms, sea grass die offs and overall ecological collapse.
Issues you should be aware of:
Current lake operations and limited infrastructure have cursed our coastal estuaries for decades, all-too-often leading to high-volume discharges that send nutrient-rich lake water carrying toxic blue-green algae to the east and west coasts of Florida. These discharges can fuel other harmful algal blooms, like red tide, and cause salinity imbalances that kill essential habitat, like seagrasses and oysters.
The ‘Send It South’ campaign raises awareness on the need to send more water south from Lake Okeechobee to the Everglades and Florida Bay. Not doing so endangers these resources due to ecological imbalance from not receiving enough fresh water. The solution is to support improved operations, such as LOSOM, and new Everglades restoration infrastructure, like the EAA Reservoir.
Our outreach programs encompass a variety of resources and relationships that enable us to put the ‘why’ and ‘how’ to the problems impacting our waters. Speaking engagements, discussions with key stakeholders, relationships with science partners, and engagement of the outdoor industry are a few of the initiatives that enable us to be effective.
Outreach programs:
Captains For Clean Water Impact Tours offer a field-trip style education program designed to cultivate leaders in the clean-water fight by increasing understanding of water-quality issues and generating engagement toward solutions. These unique experiences are tailored to get a firsthand look at the estuaries affected by water management and Everglades restoration.
True to our grassroots beginnings, speaking engagements allow us to engage with the community and discuss the issues that impact our waters firsthand. We believe a boots-on-the-ground approach is critical to facilitating a deep understanding of our complex issues—and is also what makes Captains unique and successful.