Florida has an annual 60-day legislative session that’s a fast-moving tempest for even the most seasoned politicos. Fortunately, the freshman state senator representing St. Lucie County is among the most seasoned politicos in the state.
Sen. Gayle Harrell stepped from the House side of the Florida Capitol to the Senate this session after winning her 2018 election. She’s replacing Sen. Joe Negron, who was the Senate President until the last legislative session. He was term-limited out of that office. Harrell served in the Florida House for 16 years since 2000.
As she gears up for the legislative session that starts on March 5, Harrell said she believes the election of Gov. Ron DeSantis may be a sea change happening for Florida waterways such as the Indian River Lagoon.
“The governor has been very active in the arena,” Harrell told St. Lucie Voice in an exclusive interview. “For us on the Treasure Coast, it is welcomed to have a governor as focused as we are on the Indian River Lagoon.”
Shortly after taking the oath of office in January, DeSantis asked all nine members of the South Florida Water Management District board to resign. All did or had terms ending, so come mid-March all the members who had been appointed by former Gov. Rick Scott will be gone – something applauded by groups such as the Everglades Foundation. Those board members are being replaced by new appointees including Jacqui Thurlow-Lippish, a well-known Indian River Lagoon advocate who lives in Sewall’s Point.
Additionally, DeSantis has signed an executive order seeking to spend $2.5 billion on water issues over the course of his 2019-2023 term. He asked political ally President Donald Trump for $200 million a year in federal funds toward that aim. DeSantis has also pleased many water-quality advocates and environmentalists with the creation of a blue-green algae task force, creating an office for environmental accountability and a state position of chief science officer.
Harrell said all signs point to Gov. DeSantis recognizing that if one drops a coin in a Florida waterway, the ripples will cross the entire state. OK, not literally, but figuratively.
“I think the governor is really going to take a comprehensive view of our water issues,” Harrell said. “I would anticipate there’s going to be a strategic look at how we do things across the state.”
She noted that a lot of the infamous nutrient-pollution loads discharged from Lake Okeechobee into the St. Lucie River and subsequently Indian River Lagoon come from Central Florida.
“I want to get additional storage north of the lake,” Harrell said.
Put a finger on an Orlando map at Sand Lake Road and South John Young Parkway. That’s pretty much where the now almost annual blue-green algae blooms on the Treasure Coast begin. More accurately, the about 100 miles and 140 years of development between south Orlando and Lake Okeechobee are where the problems begin. That finger on the Orlando map will cover Shingle Creek. Most who know a lot about these sorts of things say that’s where the headwaters of the Everglades begin – way up in Orlando with Shingle Creek.
Harrell said that’s why she’s encouraged by Gov. DeSantis’ moves on water quality. As a state senator, she is focused on the 25th District, St. Lucie south to parts of Palm Beach counties. Because of that, for example, she has introduced a bill to ensure about $50 million a year from the Land Acquisition Trust Fund for projects related to the Indian River Lagoon Comprehensive Conservation and Management Plan. But, the other 39 state senators are looking out for their necks of the woods, too.
As a governor, Harrell said, DeSantis is responsible to look out for the state’s waterways from the Panhandle to the Keys. Harrell said one way or the other, it looks to her like the St. Lucie River and Indian River Lagoon have their best chances in a long time to get good help.
Still, she urged some patience. “We’re at the very beginning of a new administration, so we have to feel our way,” Harrell said.
The funding request is SB 368, which is available to see at www.flsenate.gov. In addition to seeing the bill text, people can track the bill’s progress through committees and other actions at the state senate’s website. The senator’s district office is at 215 SW Federal Highway, Suite 203, Stuart. The district phone number is 772-221-4019.
Next week in St. Lucie Voice Sen. Gayle Harrell speaks about the Ardie R. Copas State Veterans’ Nursing Home, efforts to stop human trafficking and treat opioid addictions, and with improving cardiac care.