Believe it or not, this month we’re celebrating seven years as an organization! And as we think back on that short time, we’re blown away at how far the fight for clean water has come.
There’s a renewed focus and sense of unity among the great majority of those involved, at a level we’ve never seen before in this decades-long effort. From advocacy organizations to state agencies to federal entities, the goal is clear: prioritize restoring and protecting Florida’s waters, the lifeblood of the state.
And because more and more people like you are getting involved, we’re seeing progress at a record pace! Policymakers are forced to make things happen when tens of thousands of like-minded, passionate clean-water warriors get vocal about the future of our treasured waters.
Now, the fight is far from over, and there is still plenty of opposition to progress, but it’s inspiring to see where we are now, remember where we started, and imagine what the future will look like.
So, to commemorate our seven-year anniversary, we’re going back all month long to look at some of the biggest moments so far, including seven of the most memorable clean-water successes YOU all helped to achieve.
Here’s the list, but stay tuned this month for a bonus, mystery victory that is still to come!
1. Florida Senate Bill 10 passes into law (2017)
Senate Bill 10 authorized the state’s portion of funding for a critical Everglades restoration project: The EAA Reservoir.
This step to fund the project at the state level was huge in kickstarting progress for what would become the cornerstone project of Everglades restoration, one that would provide the most bang for our buck in reducing harmful coastal discharges by storing, cleaning, and sending more water south from Lake Okeechobee to the Everglades.
Just a year after we had formed our organization, we were fighting tooth and nail for this legislation to pass, meeting with state policymakers and orchestrating a NowOrNeverglades Sportfishing Day in Tallahassee, where brands, captains, and sportsmen and women rallied in support of SB 10. It was a good day when the bill passed, but it was just the beginning for the EAA Reservoir, there was still a lot of work to do.
2. WRDA 2018 federally authorizes The EAA Reservoir (2018)
The Water Resources Development Act of 2018 (WRDA: a biennial federal legislation that covers a range of water provisions) authorized the EAA Reservoir at the federal level.
Specifically, WRDA authorized the project under the Integrated Delivery Schedule, a rolling schedule that plots out Comprehensive Everglades Restoration Plan projects. That was important because it officially designated the EAA Reservoir as a planned project under Everglades restoration, and it could now receive funding at the federal level.
Securing this victory was a collective effort by our supporters, partner organizations, brands, industry leaders and businesses who all took action to make their voices heard, including 30,000 clean-water warriors who used our call-to-action tool to message their elected representatives in Washington.
3. Exposure of corruption within the former SFWMD board (2018)
In November of 2018, the former board of the South Florida Water Management District tried to sneak through an agenda item that would significantly delay Everglades restoration. Under the influence of special interests, they added a voting item to their monthly public board meeting agenda at 9:00 pm the night before the meeting.
It called to extend the lease on the land designated for the future EAA Reservoir to Florida Crystals, a privately owned corporation that farms sugarcane south of Lake O. This was simply another delay tactic to prevent Everglades restoration progress.
We, alongside others, protested this recommendation at the SFWMD meeting, only to be shunned by the board members who ultimately approved the extension. Then, after widespread public backlash to this decision, the SFMWD pulled a media stunt at the EAA Reservoir “construction site,” pretending to show construction progress. This created further public outrage, and the house of cards began to fall.
Eventually, the entire board was asked to resign and was replaced with new appointees who have been a beacon of hope for the future of our water management.
4. Executive Order 19-12 (2019)
Shortly after Governor Ron DeSantis took office in 2019, he issued a sweeping decree for Florida’s environment. Titled, Achieving More Now For Florida’s Environment, the order called for $2.5 Billion for Everglades restoration, establishment of the Blue-Green Algae Task Force, and expedited work on key restoration projects and Lake Okeechobee operations—among other provisions.
It was a momentum shift in the politics around Florida’s water quality, and it kickstarted historic funding for Everglades restoration and the long list of other much-needed water-improvement projects.
5. LOSOM (2019-2022)
The effort to rewrite the playbook for how water is managed in Lake Okeechobee was a collaborative, 3-year process by the Army Corps of Engineers. The resulting new plan, the Lake Okeechobee System Operating Manual (LOSOM), will dictate how the lake is operated for the next 10 years, determining where, when, and how much water is released.
Involvement in the development process was key for a favorable outcome and an improvement beyond the status-quo operations that all too often lead to toxic discharges. Thankfully, throughout that process, we had over 30,000 supporters participate and advocate for a new plan that would be better than the last.
In the end, it’s estimated that the plan selected will reduce harmful discharges to both coasts by about 37% and significantly increase the amount of water moving south to the Everglades. The new plan will be implemented later this year.
6. Senate Bill 2508 Veto (2022)
The fight of all fights, SB 2508 was a blindsiding, political ploy by special interests to keep control of Florida’s water, threatening the progress we had made on Everglades restoration up to that point. When the bill was filed during the 2022 Florida State Legislative Session, it had red flags all over it.
Governor DeSantis even denounced the bill early on, saying, “SB 2508 is being rammed through the budget process, short-circuiting public engagement and leaving affected agencies in the dark.” Thankfully, our community rallied, showing up like never before to fight the bad bill.
Over the course of 55 days, we logged two trips to Tallahassee (one day of testimony, one rally at the Capitol), 43,730 petition signatures, 155,746 emails to legislators, and 1,448 calls to legislators.
Due to those efforts, the bill was amended twice during legislative session before finally receiving a historic veto from the Governor. It was a landmark moment for clean water and sent a clear message about the importance of water quality.
7. Executive Order 23-06 (2023)
To continue historic momentum for Florida’s environment and water quality, Governor DeSantis issued Executive Order 23-06, titled Achieving Even More Now for Florida’s Environment. The order included $3.5 Billion over four years for Everglades restoration as well as significant investments in the Indian River Lagoon.
Signed on the 4-year anniversary of the governor’s first-term pledge for Florida’s environment—Executive Order 19-12, which committed $2.5 Billion to the Everglades back in 2019—this new directive built upon record funding and major progress for Sunshine-State waters.
Believe it or not, this month we’re celebrating seven years as an organization! And as we think back on that short time, we’re blown away at how far the fight for clean water has come.
There’s a renewed focus and sense of unity among the great majority of those involved, at a level we’ve never seen before in this decades-long effort. From advocacy organizations to state agencies to federal entities, the goal is clear: prioritize restoring and protecting Florida’s waters, the lifeblood of the state.
And because more and more people like you are getting involved, we’re seeing progress at a record pace! Policymakers are forced to make things happen when tens of thousands of like-minded, passionate clean-water warriors get vocal about the future of our treasured waters.
Now, the fight is far from over, and there is still plenty of opposition to progress, but it’s inspiring to see where we are now, remember where we started, and imagine what the future will look like.
So, to commemorate our seven-year anniversary, we’re going back all month long to look at some of the biggest moments so far, including seven of the most memorable clean-water successes YOU all helped to achieve.
Here’s the list, but stay tuned this month for a bonus, mystery victory that is still to come!
1. Florida Senate Bill 10 passes into law (2017)
Senate Bill 10 authorized the state’s portion of funding for a critical Everglades restoration project: The EAA Reservoir.
This step to fund the project at the state level was huge in kickstarting progress for what would become the cornerstone project of Everglades restoration, one that would provide the most bang for our buck in reducing harmful coastal discharges by storing, cleaning, and sending more water south from Lake Okeechobee to the Everglades.
Just a year after we had formed our organization, we were fighting tooth and nail for this legislation to pass, meeting with state policymakers and orchestrating a NowOrNeverglades Sportfishing Day in Tallahassee, where brands, captains, and sportsmen and women rallied in support of SB 10. It was a good day when the bill passed, but it was just the beginning for the EAA Reservoir, there was still a lot of work to do.
2. WRDA 2018 federally authorizes The EAA Reservoir (2018)
The Water Resources Development Act of 2018 (WRDA: a biennial federal legislation that covers a range of water provisions) authorized the EAA Reservoir at the federal level.
Specifically, WRDA authorized the project under the Integrated Delivery Schedule, a rolling schedule that plots out Comprehensive Everglades Restoration Plan projects. That was important because it officially designated the EAA Reservoir as a planned project under Everglades restoration, and it could now receive funding at the federal level.
Securing this victory was a collective effort by our supporters, partner organizations, brands, industry leaders and businesses who all took action to make their voices heard, including 30,000 clean-water warriors who used our call-to-action tool to message their elected representatives in Washington.
3. Exposure of corruption within the former SFWMD board (2018)
In November of 2018, the former board of the South Florida Water Management District tried to sneak through an agenda item that would significantly delay Everglades restoration. Under the influence of special interests, they added a voting item to their monthly public board meeting agenda at 9:00 pm the night before the meeting.
It called to extend the lease on the land designated for the future EAA Reservoir to Florida Crystals, a privately owned corporation that farms sugarcane south of Lake O. This was simply another delay tactic to prevent Everglades restoration progress.
We, alongside others, protested this recommendation at the SFWMD meeting, only to be shunned by the board members who ultimately approved the extension. Then, after widespread public backlash to this decision, the SFMWD pulled a media stunt at the EAA Reservoir “construction site,” pretending to show construction progress. This created further public outrage, and the house of cards began to fall.
Eventually, the entire board was asked to resign and was replaced with new appointees who have been a beacon of hope for the future of our water management.
4. Executive Order 19-12 (2019)
Shortly after Governor Ron DeSantis took office in 2019, he issued a sweeping decree for Florida’s environment. Titled, Achieving More Now For Florida’s Environment, the order called for $2.5 Billion for Everglades restoration, establishment of the Blue-Green Algae Task Force, and expedited work on key restoration projects and Lake Okeechobee operations—among other provisions.
It was a momentum shift in the politics around Florida’s water quality, and it kickstarted historic funding for Everglades restoration and the long list of other much-needed water-improvement projects.
5. LOSOM (2019-2022)
The effort to rewrite the playbook for how water is managed in Lake Okeechobee was a collaborative, 3-year process by the Army Corps of Engineers. The resulting new plan, the Lake Okeechobee System Operating Manual (LOSOM), will dictate how the lake is operated for the next 10 years, determining where, when, and how much water is released.
Involvement in the development process was key for a favorable outcome and an improvement beyond the status-quo operations that all too often lead to toxic discharges. Thankfully, throughout that process, we had over 30,000 supporters participate and advocate for a new plan that would be better than the last.
In the end, it’s estimated that the plan selected will reduce harmful discharges to both coasts by about 37% and significantly increase the amount of water moving south to the Everglades. The new plan will be implemented later this year.
6. Senate Bill 2508 Veto (2022)
The fight of all fights, SB 2508 was a blindsiding, political ploy by special interests to keep control of Florida’s water, threatening the progress we had made on Everglades restoration up to that point. When the bill was filed during the 2022 Florida State Legislative Session, it had red flags all over it.
Governor DeSantis even denounced the bill early on, saying, “SB 2508 is being rammed through the budget process, short-circuiting public engagement and leaving affected agencies in the dark.” Thankfully, our community rallied, showing up like never before to fight the bad bill.
Over the course of 55 days, we logged two trips to Tallahassee (one day of testimony, one rally at the Capitol), 43,730 petition signatures, 155,746 emails to legislators, and 1,448 calls to legislators.
Due to those efforts, the bill was amended twice during legislative session before finally receiving a historic veto from the Governor. It was a landmark moment for clean water and sent a clear message about the importance of water quality.
7. Executive Order 23-06 (2023)
To continue historic momentum for Florida’s environment and water quality, Governor DeSantis issued Executive Order 23-06, titled Achieving Even More Now for Florida’s Environment. The order included $3.5 Billion over four years for Everglades restoration as well as significant investments in the Indian River Lagoon.
Signed on the 4-year anniversary of the governor’s first-term pledge for Florida’s environment—Executive Order 19-12, which committed $2.5 Billion to the Everglades back in 2019—this new directive built upon record funding and major progress for Sunshine-State waters.