A new day for the environment

On the campaign trail, Gov. Ron DeSantis said many of the right things about Florida’s environmental challenges — particularly the threats from toxic algae blooms and red tide creeping up Florida’s coastline. He promised water would be his top priority once he got into office.

Turns out he meant it. That’s great news for Florida.

Within two days of taking the oath of office, DeSantis fired off a series of orders, reorganizations and communications (including one politely worded invitation for the entire governing board of the South Florida Water Management District to get lost) that make it clear: He means business when it comes to Florida’s water quality.

We can’t think of a better place for the governor to start. The signs of ecological distress — the mats of stinking brown algae, the beaches littered with dead fish, the red tide that causes respiratory distress and other health impacts in humans, the once-pure springs that are dwindling in volume and increasingly polluted — are not just a threat to Florida’s natural beauty. They are a time bomb, threatening the state’s tourism economy and drinking water supply.

DeSantis issued an order Thursday outlining dozens of environmental initiatives, including:

• The creation of a new office aimed at “environmental accountability and transparency,” and a new chief science officer position within the Department of Environmental Protection. The governor seems to be signaling that hard science, not politics, will drive much of his environmental decision-making.

• A second office focused on coastal protection. Counting inlets and bays, Florida has nearly 8,500 miles of coastline — the largest shore-to-total-area ratio in the United States. Managing the impacts of rising seas will be a massive challenge, and state government has barely gotten started.

• A special focus on the Everglades, including $2.5 billion in funding. Trouble in the iconic “River of Grass” and Lake Okeechobee can imperil the state’s water supply up the coast, yet restoration projects have been dragged out over decades. DeSantis’ order calls for swift action on several fronts, including the design and construction of reservoirs to hold polluted water and studies of threats like blue-green algae.

DeSantis also called for DEP to establish a “septic conversion and remediation grant program” that would work with local governments. The governor should lean hard on lawmakers to fund this program, which could benefit springs and coastal systems across the state.

The governor is sending clear signals that he’s fed up with the politically driven pandering to special interests that have stymied preservation and rehabilitation efforts throughout Florida. That was made abundantly clear in his call for the entire board of the South Florida Water Management District to resign — following board members’ sneaky decision to renew sugar companies’ leases on land slated to be converted into one of the reservoirs on Lake Okeechobee.

DeSantis will need help to implement this grand plan for Florida’s future. That’s where the state’s residents can help, making it clear to their elected representatives that the time for stalling and game-playing is up.