PEER in Florida

PEER's environmental work is solely directed by the needs of its members. As a consequence, we have the distinct honor of serving resource professionals who daily cast profiles in courage in cubicles across the country.

Find out about Florida’s whistleblower law

Following are PEER news releases, white papers, surveys and other activities for Florida:


News Releases for Florida
September 23, 2009  LAKE OKEECHOBEE POLLUTION LEVELS SPIKE OUT OF CONTROL — Everglades Restoration Imperiled by Imploding South Florida Water Quality
September 17, 2009  BID TO SAVE VANISHING FLORIDA PANTHER HABITAT — Legal Petition Filed With Feds to Protect 3 Million Acres from Development
September 2, 2009  FLORIDA DROPS OUT OF CLIMATE CHANGE FIGHT — Gov. Crist Nixes Joining RGGI or Pursuing State Emission Curbs; Will Defer to Feds
August 31, 2009  FEDS OKAY TOURISTS SWIMMING WITH MANATEES — Fish & Wildlife Service Rejects PEER Petition to End “Swim-With” Permits
July 22, 2009  MANATEES’ FRAGILE FATE MIRRORS NATIONAL WILDLIFE PERIL — Senate Confirmation Hearing Today for Fish & Wildlife Service Director
July 15, 2009  MOVE TO END HARASSMENT OF FLORIDA MANATEES — Legal Filing to Outlaw Manatee “Swim-With” Dives by 100,000 Tourists Annually
July 9, 2009  FISH & WILDLIFE SERVICE IN FLORIDA: PORTRAIT OF A FAILED AGENCY — Obama Pick Piecemeals Florida Panther and Other Endangered Species to Extinction
June 3, 2009  CRIST ENVIRONMENTAL ENFORCEMENT INITIATIVE FIZZLES — Fewer Pollution Fines Assessed While More Uncollected in Across-the-Board Decline
April 27, 2009  BOCA RATON WATER CONTAMINATION TRIGGERS HEALTH SANCTIONS — One Whistleblower Restored as Extensive Probe of City Utility Operations Expands
March 25, 2009  LAKE OKEECHOBEE FLOW CUTOFF LOOMS — Lee County Decries Drinking Water Woes and Caloosahatchee Salinity
March 24, 2009  BOCA RATON TAP WATER VIOLATIONS TRIGGER HEALTH PROBE — Chronic Low Pressure Problems Risk Microbial Contamination and Boil Orders
January 19, 2009  FEDS INTERVENE TO SET FLORIDA WATER QUALITY STANDARDS — Rising Percentage of State Rivers, Lakes and Estuaries Impaired by Excess Nutrients
November 25, 2008   FLORIDA HAS GONE SOFT ON POLLUTERS — A Look at 20 Years of History Shows Move Away from Tough Enforcement
November 19, 2008  ENVIRONMENTAL VIOLATIONS AT TYNDALL AFB SUBJECT OF LAWSUIT — Force Withholding Internal Investigation Confirming Whistleblower Charges
November 18, 2008  SERIOUS CONTAMINATION OF U.S. SUGAR LANDS IGNORED FOR DECADES — Less than $17,000 in Florida State Pollution Penalty Assessments Over 20 Years
October 21, 2008  LAWSUITS MOUNT AGAINST FLORIDA ECO-INSPECTOR GENERAL — Whistleblowers Sue Agency and Individual Officials for “Political Hatchet Jobs”
August 14, 2008  STRING OF EPA LEGAL LOSSES ON EVERGLADES NO FLUKE — Latest Stinging Court Ruling Cites EPA Regional Office Clean Water Abdication
July 8, 2008  U.S. SUGAR BUYOUT MAY NOT HELP THE EVERGLADES — Corps Rejected Concept a Decade Ago Due to Insurmountable Hydrological Barriers
June 16, 2008  FLORIDA ENVIRONMENTAL ENFORCEMENT CONTINUES DOWNWARD SLIDE — Municipalities Now Account for Half of All Major Pollution Violations
February 20, 2008  EPA KISSES OFF FLORIDA’S WETLANDS — Developer Sway in EPA Breeds Algal Blooms and Aquifer Contamination
January 28, 2008  FLORIDA CLEAN WATER WHISTLEBLOWER LAWSUIT FILED — Ousted Lab Manager Cites Corruption by Top State Officials and Massive Data Loss
January 22, 2008  LAWSUIT TO FORCE FLORIDA MANATEE OVERSIGHT RECORD RELEASE — Boating Speed Limits, Warning Signs and Swim-With Harassment at Issue
November 14, 2007  CORPS SLAMS FLORIDA FOR VIOLATING WATER QUALITY STANDARDS — Army Corps Refuses to Share Costs of Deficient Everglades Clean Up Projects
August 14, 2007  TOUGH NEW FLORIDA POLLUTION PENALTIES NOT SO TOUGH AFTER ALL — State Does Not Use Current Enforcement Power; New Policy Riddled With Loopholes
July 26, 2007  FLORIDA’S STIFF NEW POLLUTION FINES SPURRED BY RED INK — DEP Too Poor to Pay for Prosecutions Needed to Collect Big Penalties
June 14, 2007  FLORIDA’S NEW MANATEE PLAN STILL FALLS FAR SHORT — Second Attempt to Justify Reduced Manatee Protections Has Gaping Holes
June 14, 2007  CONSERVATION GROUPS CALL ON PARK SERVICE TO PROTECT THE FLORIDA PANTHER — Park Service should not have opened more routes to off-road vehicles in Big Cypress National Preserve
June 11, 2007  CALL FOR FEDERAL TAKEOVER OF FLORIDA POLLUTION ENFORCEMENT — Petition Charges State Inaction on Toxic Dump Violates Federal Law
April 26, 2007  NEW FLORIDA ENVIRONMENT CHIEF HAS POOR ENFORCEMENT RECORD — Latest Numbers Show Fewer New Cases but More Fines than Historic Lows in 2005
April 9, 2007  MANATEE PROTECTIONS TO BE CUT UNDER BUSH PLAN — Down-Listing Comes Despite Record Number of Manatee Fatalities in 2006
March 28, 2007  PARK SERVICE BACKS OFF GULF ISLANDS ROAD PLAN — New Director Pledges Review of Alternatives and No Waiver of Management Policies
March 5, 2007  FLORIDA LAB MANAGER FILES WHISTLEBLOWER COMPLAINT — State Terminated Scientist After He Disclosed Problems to the Inspector General
February 7, 2007  FLORIDA WAIVES WATER POLLUTION REPORTING RULES — Industry Told Not to Bother Submitting Data Qualifiers on Pollution Reports
January 30, 2007  FLORIDA LAB MANAGER BLAMED FOR DATA SHOWING HIGH POLLUTION — State Wants to Dump Five Years of Samples from Everglades, Lake O and Estuaries
January 11, 2007  FLORIDA PLAN DIMS PROSPECTS FOR MANATEE SURVIVAL — State Lowers Protections Despite Record Deaths and Projected Population Decline
December 13, 2006   NEW PARK DIRECTOR FACES FIRST TEST ON GULF ISLANDS ROAD — Plan to Armor Road Requires Director to Set Aside Conservation Rules
November 14, 2006   TOP FLORIDA OFFICIAL ADMITS POLLUTION LINK TO ALGAE BLOOMS — Email to Governor Bush Contradicts Repeated Public Denials of Connection
October 17, 2006  HARMFUL ALGAE BLOOMS ON THE RISE IN FLORIDA WATERS — 15-Fold Increase Tied to Pollution
October 11, 2006  EVERGLADES AREA LEFT OFF FEDERAL AND STATE FLOODPLAIN MAPS — Outsourced FEMA Mapping Produces Odd and Inconsistent Results
October 4, 2006   POLLUTE OR PERISH: FLORIDA’S LAKE OKEECHOBEE DILEMMA — Rising Lake Levels Force Releases of Increasingly Dirty Waters to Stem Dike Break
September 28, 2006  FLORIDA’S NEW HURRICANE LAWS RIDDLED WITH LOOPHOLES — Local Governments Designating High-Hazard Areas for Development
September 21, 2006  FLORIDA COASTAL DEVELOPMENT MAGNIFIES HURRICANE IMPACT — Storm Surge Greater Where Wetlands, Dunes and Forests Have Been Removed
August 28, 2006  FLORIDA NOT GETTING THE MESSAGE ON HURRICANE EVACUATIONS — Lessons Learned from Earlier Florida Hurricanes Not Being Applied
August 23, 2006  CORPS-FEMA FEUD PUTS FLORIDIANS IN FLOOD PATH — Long-Running Dispute Leaves Housing and Critical Care Facilities on Floodplains
August 17, 2006  SOUTH FLORIDA WOEFULLY UNPREPARED FOR BIG HURRICANE — Inadequate Shelters and Transportation Could Create Katrina-Scale Tragedy
August 9, 2006  SEA LEVELS ALREADY RISING ALONG FLORIDA COAST — Planner Predicts Higher Hurricane Surges, Saltwater Intrusion, Loss of Vegetation
March 22, 2006  POLLUTION PENALTIES PLUMMET IN FLORIDA — Enforcement at Near Record Low Levels; “Pay-to-Pollute” is the Norm
March 1, 2006  STATE ANTI-POLLUTION ENFORCERS FEAR REPRISAL — Florida DEP “Climate Survey” Results Not So Sunny
February 15, 2006  CRIMINAL PROSECUTION OF STATE ENVIRONMENTAL OFFICIALS URGED — Sunshine Act Violations in Illegal Asbestos Dumping
January 11, 2006  ENVIRONMENTAL INSPECTOR GENERAL DESERVES A COURT MARTIAL — Florida’s Northwest Has Become a Pollution Free Fire Zone
November 28, 2005  FLORIDA WASTE FIRM USED ILLEGAL ALIENS ON AIR FORCE PROJECT — Open Dumping of Asbestos among Pollution Violations Cited in Federal Debarmen
November 16, 2005  INSPECTOR GENERAL DROPS PROBE OF STATE JOBS FOR CAMPAIGN CASH — Manager Says Governor’s Office Uses Contributions to Select Top Supervisors
October 19, 2005  ANATOMY OF INACTION: EPA PUNTS ON CITIZEN POLLUTION REPORTS — Georgia Operation Discharges Flow into Florida Waters
September 28, 2005  FEDS MOVE AGAINST “BAD ACTOR” FLORIDA ENVIRONMENTAL FIRMS — Big Wheel and Aztec Environmental, Inc. to be Barred from All Federal Contracts
August 11, 2005  FLORIDA’S ASBESTOS ENFORCEMENT PROGRAM IS A “SICK JOKE” — Open Season in Sunshine State for “Rip & Skip” Operators
August 2, 2005  BIOLOGIST SUES AGENCIES FOR WRONGFUL TERMINATION — Whistleblower Files Lawsuit Over 18-Mile Stretch Project In Florida Keys
June 29, 2005  JOINT STATEMENT OF ANDREW ELLER AND THE U.S. FISH & WILDLIFE SERVICE —

June 23, 2005  THE IMMACULATE SCANDAL: BIG CYPRESS OIL SCAMMERS GO SCOT-FREE — After Three Years, Interior Inspector General Finds No One Responsible
May 17, 2005  CALL FOR GRAND JURY ON ENVIRONMENTAL RACKETEERING IN FLORIDA — Probe Needed on Role of Campaign Cash in Obstructing Pollution Enforcement
May 3, 2005  ENVIRONMENTAL PROMOTION TIED TO CAMPAIGN CONTRIBUTIONS — Florida DEP Dropped Enforcement Actions After Handpicked Supervisor Promoted
April 28, 2005  STRONG WARNINGS ON SW FLORIDA DEVELOPMENT IGNORED — Fish &Wildlife Service Objections to Lee and Collier County Projects Muzzled
March 30, 2005  FLORIDA FWS BIOLOGISTS ORDERED TO APPROVE ALL DEVELOPMENT — Panther Called a “Zoo Species”— Protecting Wild Habitat Futile
March 21, 2005  AGENCY ADMITS PANTHER WHISTLEBLOWER WAS RIGHT — Fish & Wildlife Service Persists in Trying to Fire Vindicated Scientist
March 21, 2005  EVERGLADES RESTORATION STUCK IN THE MUD — Corps Memo Admits Delays, Cost Overruns and Uncertain Direction
March 3, 2005  FLORIDA’S ENVIRONMENT - MORE VIOLATION NOTICES BUT LESS RESULTS — Cleanups and Civil Fines Down in ’04; “Traffic Ticket” Mentality Decried
February 15, 2005  KEY LARGO OFFICE CLOSING IS RETALIATION AGAINST DEP BIOLOGIST — Environmental Concerns About 18-Mile Stretch Widening Were Suppressed
February 10, 2005  FISH & WILDLIFE SCIENCE POLLUTED BY FLORIDA POLITICS — Survey Validates Concerns Raised by Panther Whistleblower
November 8, 2004  FISH & WILDLIFE SERVICE FIRES PANTHER WHISTLEBLOWER — Agency Does Not Dispute Orders to Suppress Scientific Findings
October 11, 2004  OUTSPOKEN PANTHER SCIENTIST APPEARS WITH NOBEL PRIZEWINNER — Joint Appearance to Speak Out Against Political Pressure on Government Scientists
September 23, 2004  DEP TO CLOSE HURRICANE RESPONSE OPERATION — Hundreds Sign Petition to Save Key Largo Office
August 24, 2004  FEDERAL COURT VINDICATES PANTHER WHISTLEBLOWER — U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service Lacks Scientific Basis for
July 29, 2004  PANTHER SCIENTISTS PRESSURED TO APPROVE CONSTRUCTION PROJECTS — Scientific Fraud Charges Go to U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service Director
July 20, 2004  U.S. FISH & WILDLIFE SERVICE MOVES TO FIRE SCIENTIST WHO REPORTED FRAUD — Agency Acknowledges Flaws in Florida Panther Studies Affecting Major Developments
June 21, 2004  DEP ALTERED ENFORCEMENT ORDER FOR PANAMA CITY DISPOSAL COMPANY — Agency Broke Its Own Rules By Ignoring Violations
June 7, 2004  DEP GAVE PANAMA CITY DISPOSAL PERMIT TO SHELL OF COMPANY UNDER INDICTMENT — ompany's Directors Convicted of Fraud in Alabama; Assets Subject to Forfeiture
May 26, 2004  PANAMA CITY ASBESTOS VIOLATIONS IGNORED — Complaints of Airborne Asbestos, Illegal Dumping and Unlicensed Operations
May 17, 2004  BAY COUNTY LANDFILL POLLUTING GROUNDWATER — State Ignores Two Years of Inspection Reports Showing Violations
May 5, 2004  U.S. FISH & WILDLIFE INDOCTRINATION PROCLAIMS ITS — All Staff Required to Watch Video and
May 4, 2004  U.S. FISH & WILDLIFE BIOLOGIST CHARGES SCIENTIFIC FRAUD — Florida Panther Habitat and Population Data Skewed to Allow Development
March 8, 2004  CORPORATIONS CUT DEALS TO AVOID POLLUTION PENALTIES — Report Examines "Consent Orders" Negotiated With DEP
October 2, 2003  GROUPS PETITION EPA TO PROTECT WETLANDS IN SW FLORIDA — Western Everglades At Risk From Development
September 3, 2003  FLORIDA NOT COLLECTING FINES LEVIED AGAINST LARGEST POLLUTERS — DEP Failed to Collect $45 Million Over 15 Years
August 21, 2003  CUT UNDERWATER CABLE THREATENS CORAL REEFS — $2 Billion Annual Return to Florida from Reefs at Risk, Says New Report
August 12, 2003  ENFORCEMENT AGAINST FLORIDA POLLUTERS PLUMMETS — Largest Violators Escape Punishment
June 16, 2003  UNDERWATER CABLE PLAN THREATENS CORAL REEFS AND RISKS CABLE DAMAGE — Governor Bush Set to Approve Controversial Cable Corridors Despite Findings
February 27, 2003  CORAL REEF TASK FORCE ADRIFT UNDER BUSH — Task Force Into Task Avoidance, Critics Say
February 10, 2003  PROPOSED COASTAL “GAPS” MAY HAVE CORAL REEFS — Group Asks for Surveys Before Laying Cables
December 4, 2002  UNDERWATER CABLES DESTROYING BROWARD COUNTY REEFS — Governor Bush Set to Approve More Cable Corridors This Week
August 23, 2001  ANCIENT REEF THREATENED BY DREDGE PROJECT — Reef Protection Report Released to Document and Save Northernmost Coral Reef
June 11, 2001  JEB BUSH TO OK CABLE CROSSINGS IN CORAL REEF ZONES — Overriding Staff Objections, Bush Sides with Cable Companies
April 19, 2001  BUSINESSMAN THREATENED FOR GROWTH MANAGEMENT SUPPORT — Ex-Mayor Hand-Delivers Boycott flyer
February 7, 2001  ENVIRONMENTAL CORRUPTION ALLEGED IN BAY COUNTY, FLORIDA — Group Asks for State Intervention
July 25, 2000  GOVERNOR REJECTS CALL FOR INDEPENDENT PROSECUTOR — Employee Group Decries Conflict of Interest
June 15, 2000  CALL FOR SPECIAL ENVIRONMENTAL PROSECUTOR IN PANAMA CITY — Local
May 23, 2000  SOARING NUMBER OF FIBER OPTIC CABLES GET FREE RIDE IN FLORIDA — PEER Petition Asks Governor & Cabinet to Assess Fees and Environmental Harm
April 27, 2000  DEP EMPLOYEES TARGETED BY DEVELOPER LAWSUITS — Bush Backtrack on Shielding Employees from Harassing Suits
March 10, 2000  JEB BUSH'S SECRET PLAN FOR MORE DEVELOPMENT IN FLORIDA — E-Governor Does Not Want to Leave E-Records
February 29, 2000  FLORIDA HOME BUILDERS ASSOCIATION SPY ON AUDUBON E-MAIL — Top DCA official linked to "list lurker" scheme
February 10, 2000  GROWTH BILLS ON FAST TRACK IN 2000 — Behind the Scenes Deal with Gov. Bush for Support of Developer Bill This Session
February 1, 2000  BUSH CONDUCTS SHAM SURVEY ON DEVELOPMENT — Governor Creates Illusion of Public Support for Relaxing Growth Limits
September 29, 1999  OIL & GAS WHITEWASH — Investigation Confirms Mismanagement but DEP Secretary Claims Vindication
White Papers for Florida
Florida Asbestos — The Systematic Dismantling of the Asbestos Program in Florida (April 2005)
Although the Inspector General of Florida fears asbestos as an EPA-recognized human carcinogen, the state Department of Environmental Protection (FDEP) has not adequately committed itself to asbestos regulation. By reducing the enforcement arm of their Asbestos Program, FDEP has made the group ineffective as an oversight mechanism. more >>
To the Highest Bidder — Bay County Florida for Sale (January 2005)
Private individuals and corporations are trying repeatedly to influence Bay Country officials, with the local residents and environment paying the price. more >>
Improving Florida's DEP — Employees Speak Out (January 2005)
Similar to the Virginia pamphlet, this document lays out FDEP employees' suggestions for how to improve the agency and, as a result, better protect the environment. The overwhelming opinion is the need to "go back to basics," especially enforcement of its regulations. more >>
FDEP Ignores Asbestos — Other Violations at Construction and Debris Site Adjacent to Bay County's Steelfield Landfill (May 2004)
FDEP received complaints involving the illegal dumping of materials, including oil and asbestos, at the facility, but has not formally enforced its own regulations. The problems of groundwater violations, as discussed in The Big Wheel Construction and Debris Landfill in Bay County - A Tale of FDEP Enforcement, continue and are compounded by the discovery of asbestos onsite. more >>
The Big Wheel Construction and Debris Landfill in Bay County — A Tale of FDEP Enforcement (January 2004)
With the example of a construction and debris landfill in Bay County, Florida PEER determined that the policy of avoiding legal action has not made the Florida Department of Environmental Protection (FDEP) swifter and stricter. In this example, the company responsible for the landfill does not comply with FDEP standards for permits and water quality. Not pressing hard for compliance, FDEP lengthens the process and endangers nearby drinking water. more >>
Permit Irregularities, Federal Convictions, Political Connections, and FDEP Senior Management — The Troubling History of the Big Wheel C and D Disposal Facility (January 2004)
This PEER White Paper continues the study of FDEP's lack of enforcement in the facility's continued non-compliance with environmental standards. This portion of the study discusses the permit issued by FDEP and the background of the company that owns the facility. more >>
Crude Behavior — Mismanagement of the Onshore Oil Program by the Florida Geological Survey of the State DEP (August 1999)
Details a sorry record of systematic non-enforcement of key environmental and public safety regulations, contamination of Florida's aquifers, hundreds of unplugged oil wells and open pits, and loss of royalty revenue owing to the state treasury. The Florida Geological Survey (FGS) has heretofore been a sleepy, obscure bureau which has historically viewed its job as serving the oil industry rather than the public. more >>
Dereliction of Duty — A Profile of the Northwest District of the Florida Department of Environmental Protection (August 1997)
To please industry, the Florida Department of Environmental Protection fails to protect the environment and public health by violating safeguards and evading public oversight. A district office that has dismantled environmental permitting/enforcement programs is profiled. more >>
Paving Paradise — An Insider Account of How Florida's Wetland Protections Were "ERPanized" (July 1997)
Florida's Department of Environmental Protection has not only failed to protect the state's diminishing wetlands, but has deliberately aided in their illegal destruction. In the process, DEP's wetland staff has been demoralized and rendered powerless by political manipulation of environmental regulation within the agency. more >>
Surveys for Florida
1999  Florida Dept. of Environmental Protection Survey
1997  Florida Dept. of Environmental Protection Survey
Other PEER Activities for Florida
PEER Campaign: EPA and Human Testing
PEER Campaign: Scientific Integrity

See what the PEER chapter in Florida is doing