In many ways, I’ve made Gainesville my new home.
From the sweaty Saturdays spent screaming at the top of my lungs in Ben Hill Griffin Stadium to the lazy Monday evenings spent nestled in my favorite coffee shop doing homework, these last four years have molded me into a true Gainesvillian who is proud to admit that The Swamp is more than just a college town.
But people rarely forget where they came from, and over the past few summer months it’s been hard to ignore the place I once called home.
The Treasure Coast has recently declared a state of emergency due to the toxic algae blooms surrounding the area.
Water-front businesses are closing, realtors can’t sell property to potential owners or vacationers because it smells like rotting animals, people are at risk of respiratory issues and long-term neurological diseases. Anything that lives in the Indian River Lagoon, or the beaches and waterways around it, might as well make sure their last will and testaments are up to date. And the youths must find a new place to day drink, because the beaches are closing.
So, how the hell did this all come to be? How did the ocean water in the area turn from sparkly blue to the color of the kale smoothies my roommate forces herself to drink?
The toxic algae causing all the ruckus is called cyanobacteria and it really likes freshwater. The Indian River Lagoon is an estuary where salt water from the Atlantic Ocean mixes with freshwater from the land. The salt water in the lagoon usually stops algae from reproducing like rabbits. But when the Army Corps of Engineers decided to dump freshwater from Lake Okeechobee into the lagoon, things went south.
Why are they dumping fresh water from Lake Okeechobee into the lagoon? Because the water has to go somewhere due to the threat of potential flooding in nearby communities. Here’s where government corruption sticks in its crooked nose.
Instead of the fresh water being sent to the lagoon, citizens of the Treasure Coast want the fresh water sent to lands farmed by some of the nation’s largest sugar producers. Of course, the producers of the sugar don’t want that, so Florida signed a deal eight years ago saying it was going to buy some of the sugar lands. In 2014, the voters approved an amendment that set aside money for the land, but Governor Rick Scott hasn’t follow up on his end of the deal and isn’t really enforcing this plan.
It’s really hard to narrow down a single solution to this horrible problem, but bringing more voices to the forefront might help. If the people of the Treasure Coast are the only ones who see this as an issue, we are doomed before we even begin. This is an issue all Floridans need to consider. Damage to environment causes ripple effects. In other words, you can’t royally fu** up one portion of the ecosystem and expect to not to have consequences for other portions. Thinking that something happening to a lagoon three hours away doesn’t harm you is the kind of mentality that perpetuates environmental degradation.
The Treasure Coast oceans were where I spent my childhood exploring nature and falling in love with Florida, so the destruction is particularly painful for me, but the issue should matter to every Floridian and self-proclaimed Earth lover out there.
So, speak up. Write to the big decisions makers way up top. Hell, write to President Obama. (I think he still has a few patches of black hairs just waiting to be turned gray.)
Help turn the sickening green sludge of Treasure Coast back into one of Florida’s most treasured waterways.
If this article fueled your thirst for democracy, here’s an electronic letter that you can send to our governor and the other big dogs.
