Finally, a solution.
In 1950, there were 2.8 million people in Florida. In 2022, there are 22 million. With this explosion of new residents comes an array of certain human impacts — the clear-cutting of water filters and nutrient cyclers; the diversion and hastening of water flows; the removal or degradation of habitats for important species; the alteration or destruction of ecosystems; the (legal) pollution of our waters from all kinds of sources; the futility of politics; the exhaustion of having to fight such issues when nothing seems to stick — and it seems things are somehow getting worse.
Well, here’s the next chapter of this story, the climactic point of critical decision making for our beautiful state, hopefully signaling a “happily ever after” for all Floridians. It is in its truest sense, our #WatershedMoment.
A group of folks came together, inspired by the legal possibility and grounds to enact rights-based laws in Florida. They established the Florida Rights of Nature Network and eventually realized that a constitutional amendment would be needed to clarify our actual priorities and a civil action to enforce our right to clean and healthy waters. Please visit their website for more information, backstory and contact info: fronn.org, especially if you’d like to join the grassroots movement.
The Right to Clean and Healthy Waters is a stopgap, declaring that “no more harm” will be allowed to our waters. We as Floridians will decide whether our waters being clean and healthy are more important or less important to our state government than the profits that polluters earn by polluting and degrading our waters.
This campaign’s mission is to take this to Florida’s voters; to educate them, to collect their petitions, and to ensure their voice is heard. Whether or to what extent we’re able to achieve this mission depends on you, the People, the businesses, the nonprofits, the local governments able to publicly declare and tangibly provide support.
It’ll be a marathon adventure, but we hope you’ll join us in this all-important cause.
From the Florida Right to Clean Water.