March 13, 2014 — Delivering help for the Everglades and relief for polluted coastal waterways requires squeezing $100 million a year of public money out of the Florida Legislature, South Florida officials said Thursday.
Cost concerns remain a huge hurdle for the Central Everglades plan — which could get more Lake Okeechobee water flowing south to the Everglades instead of draining it out to sea and hurting coastal fishing grounds.
Florida officials are trying to persuade Congress to split the nearly $2 billion total cost of the new Everglades project, but must first show how the state would pay for its share.
On Thursday, the South Florida Water Management District — which leads Everglades restoration — disclosed that it anticipates needing $100 million a year for about 20 years from the state's Save Our Everglades Trust Fund to pay for the Central Everglades plan and other ongoing restoration efforts.
But the Everglades Trust Fund isn't as trustworthy a funding source as it sounds, with state lawmakers ultimately deciding how much of that money flows to Florida's famed River of Grass.
The Everglades trust fund money directed to the water management district has been cut back during lean budget years, yo-yoing from $176 million in 2008 to $27 million in 2013. This year it was about $67 million. That raises questions about whether the money for the Central Everglades project will be there when needed.
Next month, the water management district's nine-member board will be asked to support moving the project forward, despite the cost concerns.
Read the full story at the South Florida Sun Sentinel