I supported the fund-raiser because I can see with my own
eyes the damage that is occurring. Before the 2004 hurricanes, I would see
multitudes of birds--ibises, herons, egrets, storks, sanderlings, and squadrons
of pelicans flying in formation.
Pelicans were also common on the beach, looking solemnly down their long
fishing beaks at people surf-casting.
I have no data but only my own observation that after the
hurricanes, the number of birds of all kinds diminished sharply.
And then, last
summer, to prevent a disastrous break of the dike holding in Lake Okeechobee,
the Army Corps of Engineers released billions of gallons of horribly polluted
fresh water into the Lagoon. The Lagoon is actually a salt-freshwater estuary,
a very special place that when healthy supports 700 species of fish and, in
general, more diversity of life than any other estuary in North America.
“Massive biological kills” resulted, according to the Indian
RiverKeeper, and a level of toxicity in the water so high that people were
warned not to even touch it.
A similar dump of polluted lake water occurred in 2001, but
nothing was done to prevent a repeat, despite numerous studies of the situation and recommendations
to fix it. And another dump of polluted lake water will occur again the next
time there is heavy rain or, more catastrophically, a hurricane that hits the
Lake area.
I met the keeper of the Indian River last night, Marty Baum.
Yes, there is one, an energetic and forceful man who accepts living on a
$24,000/year salary because of his love of the Lagoon.
He is part of a
dedicated group of River Keepers joined in the Waterkeeper Alliance who stand
guard over our precious rivers, often frustrated and helpless in the face of
politicians, developers and wealthy business owners who can’t see that harming
the rivers is harming all of us.
But last night, the activists gathered to raise money for
the River Keeper shouted their intentions: They are not going away!
They vowed to hold politicians running for office this year
to a litmus test:
Will they support enforcement of a Florida law that says
polluters must pay for their pollution?
That concept was actually voted into law by Florida’s
residents in the 1990’s, but a court ruled that the language contained no
mechanism for enforcement; Florida’s legislature would have to create that.
Did the legislature act? No, not in this state where most
politicians genuflect before wealthy sugar barons and developers.
The activists also vowed to campaign against a proposed new
state law that would prevent municipalities like Stuart from making any rules
about the environment.
Stuart is one of the few Florida municipalities that has
worked hard to retain the natural beauty of this state by limiting the height
of residential buildings to four stories, for example. No towering condominium
buildings here.
Now the city is being sued by the likes of King Ranch, which
raises sugar can in the Everglades and not cattle. It is another of Florida’s
sugar cane companies whose websites tout their environmental consciousness. No mention of the lawsuit there.
To overcome these powerful interests will take nothing less
than the passion I saw last night, and thousands more people willing to take a stand.
As for me, no, I am not going away!
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