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Currents
August 2019
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have been promised for three decades.”
Then, on January 10, his third day in office, he
signed a sweeping executive order calling for:
$2.5 billion for Everglades restoration over four
years the highest level of funding for Everglades
restoration in the state’s history, according to the
governor’s office.
the Department of Environmental Protection to
“adamantly oppose” offshore drilling and fracking in
Florida.
a blue-green algae task force
to reduce “the adverse impacts of
blue-green algae blooms now and
over the next five years.”
two new government offices,
one for “environmental accounta-
bility and transparency,” the other
for “resilience and coastal protec-
tion.”
a chief science officer “to coor-
dinate and prioritize” data and
research “to ensure alignment
with current and emerging envi-
ronmental concerns most press-
ing to Floridians.”
Notably, the executive order
never uses the terms “climate
change,” but in ordering the cre-
ation of an Office of Resilience
and Coastal Protection, it states
the office’s purpose is to “help
prepare Florida’s coastal commu-
nities and habitats for impacts
from sea level rise by providing
funding, technical assistance and
coordination
among
state,
regional and local entities.”
In the few months since issu-
ing the order, the governor has
already started to deliver. His
suggested $91.3 billion 2019-20
budget, released in late January,
called for $625 million for Ever-
glades restoration and clean
water projects (including support
of the blue-green algae task
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