http://www.physorg.com/news97867137.html
A bill
lawmakers sent last week to Gov. Charlie Crist
doubles the amount of money going into
With matching money from local governments and state funding for other related
projects, the total spending will be close to $500 million, said state Sen.
Burt Saunders, who led the effort in the Senate.
The measure also includes new restrictions on polluted stormwater
runoff from new developments, and on the dumping of sewage sludge into the
The legislation expands the notion of cleaning up the
"The water pollution problems actually start in the suburbs of
The move to expand the cleanup and curb pollution was rare in its consensus,
involving the farm community as well as environmentalists.
Mary Ann Gosa, a lobbyist for the Florida Farm
Bureau, said the effort was a more comprehensive approach to cleaning up the
ecosystem, rather than the piecemeal approach that officials have had in the
past. And it drew accolades from environmentalists like few other legislative
initiatives in recent years.