Friends of the Everglades is inviting Treasure Coast residents to a public town hall next month to discuss Everglades restoration, clean water and ways residents can become involved in advocacy efforts.
The Rescue the River of Grass Town Hall will feature Eve Samples, executive director of Friends of the Everglades, and Mark Perry of the Florida Oceanographic Society. The event will be held Aug. 12 at 6 p.m. at the Florida Oceanographic Coastal Center, 890 N.E. Ocean Blvd. in Stuart.
Samples said the discussion will focus on the role land acquisition south of Lake Okeechobee could play in reducing harmful discharges to the St. Lucie and Caloosahatchee rivers.
"We need to acquire more land south of Lake Okeechobee with state money that's existing to store and clean water so that it's not sent east to the St. Lucie River during high lake years and also west to the Caloosahatchee River, which is an effort led by the public that cares about clean water, to push state lawmakers to allocate existing state funds to do just that. So we're excited to get together and have a conversation, revisit some of the tough water years, including back in 2016 when we had toxic algae and in 2018, and to look at what can be done to ensure that never happens again," she said.
The organization also hopes the event will help residents better understand how they can participate in future policy discussions and legislative decisions.
"We want to give people tools to understand how they can be part of the solution. The citizens of Florida who overwhelmingly care about clean water really have a say in how this state land acquisition money is spent. In fact, Florida voters approved it. Seventy-five percent of Florida voters approved this pot of money back in 2014 on the heels of another bad water year. So we have a say in how it's spent and we're raising our voices. Almost 40,000 people have already signed the Rescue the River of Grass petition. So our next phase is meeting in person with people to talk about this, to advance it ahead of the next legislative session in Tallahassee," she said.
Samples said the town hall is intended for anyone interested in the future of Florida's waterways, regardless of their background or experience with environmental issues.
"If you care about clean water on the Treasure Coast, we encourage you to come out. Space is limited, so be sure to RSVP quickly. You're welcome to join us. We're looking for people from all walks of life because bottom line is clean water impacts us all. In this age of social media, it's one thing to click something online, sign a petition. It's another thing to drive conversations in our communities with our friends and neighbors. So we're looking to give people the useful information they need to have that happen in their communities," she said.
The event is free and open to the public. Attendees will receive refreshments and a raffle ticket.
Advance registration is required because seating is limited.