Basin Management Action Plans and Total Maximum Daily Loads – the process by which the state of Florida is approaching cleaning up our polluted waters- is not working. Why?
“Until the public is able to understand how all of this stuff works, we’re never going to have accountability,” said Jacqui Thurlow-Lippisch, SFWMD Governing Board member 2019-2023. ~Article TCPalm “Florida’s BMAPs are Failing”
Literacy. It is the key to all things. Being able to read and understand allows one to SEE for oneself what works and what is broken. The Florida BMAP public process is broken. BMAP reports on “improving waterways” are painfully complicated and pollution is increasing not lessening. When the state legislature does not meet its goals dependent on the Department of Environmental Protection, the South Florida Water Management District and the Florida Department of Agriculture, politicians simply push deadlines into the future because BMAPs read like a foreign language and thus accountability by the public is impossible.
Now that will change.
Todd Thurlow, Eye on Lake O, has created “Water Data Maps” that are readable and easily show pollution levels so we can SEE the nitrogen and phosphorus killing our waterways and where it is coming from. We don’t need 15 years. We don’t need 30 years. We can see it today, for action today! Please explore the website and I will be writing more on this in the near future.
Go to: WATER DATA MAPS
Links to State of Florida’s Statewide Annual Reports
Thank you very much for this valuable service. If only the responsible governmental agencies and property owners shared your level of civic duty and transparency! I look forward to updates from the two of you. I hope some officials can act on this information.
JTL and Todd are true Florida heroes
To have this interactive tool created for common folk to see what they’re playing eyes is exactly what we needed after all of this time.
It seems half of the battle has been fighting for clean water, to fully convince the public.
Standing on bridges didn’t work in protest , nor did rallies or speaking with our elected officials, yet the fight for clean water in Florida is a life long fight so it seems and such tools can only help us activists use such a tool to spread awareness.
Thank you sincerely for your work .
John G Heim
The SWFL Clean Water Movement
Go Jacqui ! You are better as an activist than serving on a board.
Wonderful work! You are doing more to illuminate this grievous problem than any state agency. Let’s hope politicians and the Army Corp pay attention! The sugar fields south of the lake and the Kissimmee river basin are huge polluters!
Incredible job! Thank you Todd for making this clear and easily understood map. However long it takes to address the water problem in Florida, I believe this tool has the potential for undeniable, science based information.