Florida Springs News Archive

Your Florida Springs news archive. We used to collect new articles for the public up until the year 2000. There was little interest so we stopped. Below is what we collected.

Environmental Protection

Florida manatee deaths could reach record high
Jul 15, 2019 - Wildlife officials say toxic Red Tide and chilly temperatures contributed to the sea cow deaths in 2018, but so far in 2019 the biggest threat to manatees are boats.
First responders rescue manatee stranded in St. Augustine
Jul 14, 2019 - The female manatee, which measured nine feet and weighed an estimated 1,000 pounds, got stuck during low tide in a shallow, muddy area of the Matanzas River off Ocean Avenue and east of San Marco Avenue.
Single-use plastics no longer allowed in Weeki Wachee River
Jan 9, 2019 - Starting January 1, people launching into the river from the park's dock can only bring reusable containers or bottles with them. Several signs reading "only non-disposable items allowed on the river" have been posted throughout the parking lot and park entrance.
Manatees making annual migration to warmer waters
Dec 20, 2018 - Manatees are on the move. Winter weather seems to drive nearly everything to Florida, from human winter residents to migratory birds. Even manatees migrate this time of year as water temperatures begin to fall.
Finding Florida paradise in a year of red tide and green slime
Dec 18, 2018 - Florida's natural wonders have been in the news this year for all the wrong reasons: toxic tides, green slimes and rotting marine life.
Senator Linda Stewart files bill to ban fracking in Florida
Dec 18, 2018 - Senator Stewart's legislation, which has been filed for the upcoming legislative session, would not only ban fracking in future wells, but would prohibit the extraction process in wells already permitted for drilling or operation.
Trump wetlands rule rollback makes about 6 million acres in Florida unprotected
Dec 13, 2018 - The EPA's own figures show the rollback of Obama-era regulations will leave 51 percent of the nation's wetlands unprotected. Florida has 12 million acres of wetlands, more than all but one other state
SRWMD And FWC Are Working To Restore Bell Springs
Dec 11, 2018 - The Suwannee River Water Management District (District) and the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) are partnering to restore the natural spring run and ecology of Bell Springs in Columbia County.
 Manatees in peril as toxic red tide tests Florida's resources for rescued animals
Nov 19, 2018 - Resources to save manatee and other sea life nearing limit a year after toxic red tide bloom outbreak
Bob Knight: Too polluted to drink
Nov 7, 2018 - For too many families, North Florida's once pristine groundwater may be unsafe to drink. One nasty pollutant is nitrate, a principal ingredient in synthetic agricultural and urban fertilizers, and in animal manure and human waste.
Florida's Environmental Concerns Prompt New Institute
Oct 22, 2018 - The Thompson Institute for Earth Systems at the University of Florida says it wants to make sure people are in the know about the latest environmental risks and developments in the state.
Florida is at historic crossroads; its leaders must act decisively
Oct 19, 2018 - The crisis extends well beyond our coastlines. Aging sewage systems and septic tanks threaten vulnerable inland waters; nutrients from treated sewage, or biosolids, spread on agricultural lands find their way into nearby lakes and tributaries and befoul them.
Editorial: Clean energy is becoming cost effective
Oct 6, 2018 - That's far more than the subsidies provided for renewable energy like solar and wind; in terms of tax breaks, fossil fuel subsidies outpace renewable subsidies by 7 to 1. It all comes down to politics.
Red tide reported moving into area
Oct 3, 2018 - The FWC releases statewide red tide reports on Wednesdays and Fridays between 4 p.m. and 5 p.m. But this week prior to Wednesday's report, some people in Destin and South Walton were saying they didn't need the official report to know there is a problem.
Red Tide bloom now touching all three of Florida's coasts
Oct 1, 2018 - The bloom has now touched all three of the state's coasts, according to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission. This appears to be only the second time that has happened since the state began officially tracking the blooms.
Wildlife Recovery...Not So Simple
Sep 27, 2018 - The red tide is a naturally occurring phenomenon worldwide and the bloom in our area has been around since last October. It is still here but hopes are that it will subside as cooler weather, and cooler water, arrives.
Editorial: Scott must answer for environmental malpractice
Sep 16, 2018 - With a horrific red tide killing marine life and tourism on Florida's southwest coast, and with toxic green algae bringing misery to the Treasure Coast and Fort Myers area on a now-annual basis, it's understandable that Gov. Rick Scott would want to run away from his environmental record.
Editorial: Time for action on water supply
Sep 12, 2018 - It's September in an election year in Florida, and suddenly everybody cares about water.
Crew Cleanup for Manatee Season
Sep 11, 2018 - As we near manatee season, divers collected several bags of trash to make the area safer for the sea cows. The bags of debris that line the intracoastal pose a problem with the sea cows migrating here starting in November.
Florida springs plans on hold until 2019
Sep 1, 2018 - Plans for cleaning up springs systems in Volusia County and the rest of Florida have been pushed back until after the first of the year. The action plans, ordered by a state Legislature mandate in 2016, were supposed to be final by July 1 this year
Election offers hope for environmental protection
Aug 21, 2018 - Florida's natural environment is at an all-time low. Daily images of dead fish, turtles, manatees and even whale sharks, with a green-slime-icing for emphasis, leave no doubt that the political status quo has failed Florida and its animal and human inhabitants.
Realtor Tallahassee Corner: Our springs and septic
Aug 17, 2018 - Big changes are happening with septic tanks in Florida and I felt it was important to bring you into the conversation early, so you were well informed. Now that some time has passed, I wanted to come back to you with an update on where things stand.
Florida Springs and Freshwater Aquifer Are at Risk
Aug 9, 2018 - Florida springs and aquifer at risk warns top environmentalist. This year the environment is emerging as a top issue in both the primary and the general election.
Barnett shares hope, urges activism for water resource protection
Aug 8, 2018 - The water that connects us "needs us now," author Cynthia Barnett told the crowd gathered at South Walton High School on July 25.
John Moran's
Aug 3, 2018 - Stuart and environs is a glistening jewel born of water. It may well top the list of Florida cities in shoreline per capita. There's simply water everywhere.
Bob Knight: Our quality of life is supported by springs
Jul 18, 2018 - Visit the new Gilchrist Blue Springs State Park and, if you can get in, you will see what your neighbors do to tolerate the summer heat. They spend the day in the springs.
Leaky septic tanks fuel algae blooms.
Jul 18, 2018 - With toxic algae blooms now erupting all over Florida ' from the St. Johns River to Lake Okeechobee as well as on both coasts ' scientists are pointing a finger at one likely fuel source: pollution from leaking septic tanks.
I love Florida, but we must target source of water pollution
Jul 17, 2018 - The Great Toxic Slime Outbreak of 2018 has befouled the Caloosahatcheer, the river of my childhood. I needed to see for myself, so I grabbed my cameras and headed south to Fort Myers and Cape Coral. A heartbreaking sight awaited.
The Truth About 'Reef Safe' Sunscreen
Jul 10, 2018 - Last week, Hawaii became the first U.S. state to ban the sale of sunscreens containing two common chemicals, oxybenzone and octinoxate, which many researchers worldwide have deemed potentially harmful to aquatic life.
District and UF complete collaborative three-year investigation into Florida springs’ health
Jan 8, 2018 - Scientists and engineers with the St. Johns River Water Management District and the University of Florida have completed a collaborative multi-year science investigation into the health of priority spring systems.
Bills benefit conservation, pre-empt local tree ordinances
Dec 29, 2017 - When state lawmakers met during the 2017 legislative session, one of the biggest issues was a bill backed by Senate President Joe Negron to revamp how water flows in parts of South Florida.
Robert Knight: A mixed year for the health of Florida’s springs
Dec 22, 2017 - The past year has been a mixed blessing for Florida's springs. Mother Nature started the year with an extended drought that nearly depleted the flow in many intermediate-sized springs and promoted an explosion of filamentous algae in many larger ones.
Environmental lawsuit over ‘Amendment 1’ funding set for trial
Oct 2, 2017 - A Tallahassee judge has set a trial week in a lawsuit over the state's environmental funding under a constitutional amendment passed almost three years ago. The amendment, which needed a minimum of 60 percent to pass, got a landslide of nearly 75 percent, or more than 4.2 million "yes" votes.
Waterways in peril: Silver and Rainbow rivers
Oct 2, 2017 - A deadline is looming for the Florida Department of Environmental Protection to finalize cleanup plans for the Silver and Rainbow rivers but an agency official and environmentalists alike say the plans will not be enough.
Opinion: How long until disaster forces us to clean up Florida springs?
Sep 22, 2017 - There are $50 million in this year's state budget for springs. But how far will that get us? And by the time disaster really strikes and the spring looks like pea soup and the home values drop and tube renters lose their business, it will cost much more to restore Rainbow Springs, if we even can.
Robert Knight: Seeing healthy springs is believing
Sep 9, 2017 - Florida's water management districts are also guilty of unwise policies by permitting excessive groundwater withdrawals while publicly owned springs are drying up.
Robert Knight: Florida’s springs are living things
Aug 11, 2017 - Florida's springs have all the qualities of living creatures. They are contiguous systems composed of plants and animals, working together in an organized fashion, and capable of reproduction, growth, response to stimuli and long-term stability.
$7.8 million released to curb Wakulla Springs pollution
Aug 10, 2017 - Wakulla Springs defenders cheered Monday's announcement that Gov. Rick Scott, the Department of Environmental Protection and water management districts have decided how to divvy up $50 million in springs' protection money.
Pulp mills get major water permits with no deliberation
Aug 10, 2017 - Two Florida pulp mills just got major water permits approved by the St. Johns River Water Management District governing board-- with no deliberation whatsoever, reports the Orlando Sentinel.
Rainbow Springs In The Late Afternoon Is At Great Risk
Aug 8, 2017 - Rainbow Springs feeds the Rainbow River and is a beautiful waterway in Dunnellon, Florida. I recently visited the spring after an afternoon on the river with friends. When Takoda and I got there, the park was clearing out and soon we had it all to ourselves.
Stop Dumping Offshore Fracking Waste Into Gulf of Mexico
Jul 13, 2017 - A Trump administration proposal to continue allowing oil companies to dump unlimited amounts of offshore fracking chemicals into the Gulf of Mexico violates federal law and threatens imperiled marine wildlife, the Center for Biological Diversity warned this week.
What’s in Florida’s water? Court lets challenge to water standards go forward
Jul 11, 2017 - Nearly a year after a state regulatory commission approved controversial new water-quality standards, an appeals court Tuesday ruled that a pulp-and-paper industry group should be able to challenge the measures.
Regional swimming hole plunges into new era
Jul 5, 2017 - HIGH SPRINGS ' With its cool water and large jumping platform, Gilchrist Blue Springs has provided a fun relief from the summer heat for generations. But for the first time in nearly 50 years the park is going through a change.
Recapping a disappointing 2017 Florida legislative session
May 30, 2017 - Despite good work by our local delegation, the session was a failure by almost every measure. We give it the benefit of the doubt and award it a grade of D.
Editorial: Plundering Florida's precious springs
May 29, 2017 - In the same meeting where it imposed tighter water restrictions on Tampa Bay residents due to drought, the Southwest Florida Water Management District board voted to allow developers to further plunder a critical water source
Ailing Florida springs could be tapped further to fuel development
May 23, 2017 - BROOKSVILLE ' Efforts by state officials to set a minimum flow for its iconic springs have stirred up a wave of public opposition. Opponents contend the state is willing to destroy its springs in order to justify continuing to provide water for new development.
Move over, California: Florida has the USA's worst drought
May 8, 2017 - When it comes to weather, Florida is usually known for humidity and hurricanes. But now, drought is making news in the Sunshine State. Sixty-six percent of the state is now in a drought, the highest percentage of any U.S. state.
Editorial: Don’t Make FPL Customers Pay For Fracking
Apr 28, 2017 - This is nothing but a massive handout to a powerful monopoly at the expense of consumers who should not have to pay for this. If fracking is that promising, the utility's shareholders should shoulder the financial responsibility.
Senate advances bill to let FPL charge customers for fracking
Apr 26, 2017 - Florida Power & Light's quest to have customers pay for natural gas fracking projects in other states overcame a key hurdle Tuesday as the Senate Rules Committee passed the controversial measure and overlooked opposition from residential and commercial customers.
Small-businesses rally for statewide fracking ban
Apr 20, 2017 - With just over two weeks left in Florida's regular Legislative Session, a group of over 100 members of the business community released a statement Wednesday indicating support for a statewide fracking ban.
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This website is not affiliated with any local, state or federal entity. We publicly support the Springs of Florida, the Florida Aquifer all Florida water ways. We want to share what we find and make it easier for others to find Florida Springs related information.