Author name: bruce

Environmental groups have launched a petition drive to put a constitutional amendment on the ballot in 2012 that would ban oil drilling in Florida’s nearshore waters. The Florida Wildlife Federation announced the petition drive in an e-mail to supporters on Friday. The amendment is needed because the House in 2009 voted to pass a bill […]

The man put in charge of a $20 billion fund to help those hurt by the Gulf of Mexico oil spill said Monday that distance from the oil spill won’t be a factor in deciding whether to pay damages to Florida business owners and residents. Although oil has washed ashore only in six Florida Panhandle

DEP’s Mike Sole speaks to reporters on June 1 as Gov. Charlie Crist, right, looks on. Former Florida Department of Environmental Protection Secretary Michael Sole is going to work for Florida Power & Light Co., according to a Miami Herald report. Sole will be vice president of state governmental affairs and will be paid $350,000

State University System Chancellor Frank Brogan said Friday he is becoming “more comfortable” with the possible role that Florida’s public and private universities will play in oil spill research funded by BP following an announcement by the company this week. The company said in May that it was providing $500 million for research into the

Two Georgia senators have introduced bills in Congress to overturn a federal judge’s ruling in 2009 that was favorable to Florida in the states’ lengthy battle over water. Alabama, Florida and Georgia have been fighting in federal court since 1990 over water from the Apalachicola-Chattahoochee-Flint river system. Alabama and Georgia want water for future growth

Federal officials are beginning to leave alone some beaches that still have oil in sand below the surface because further cleanup could cause more environmental harm, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration said Wednesday. The explosion and sinking of the Deepwater Horizon oil rig in April led to oil washing ashore on beaches along the

View Larger Map The Florida Cabinet on Tuesday delayed action on a proposed transfer of 29,412 acres in Big Cypress National Preserve to the federal government after state Agriculture Commissioner Charles H. Bronson raised concerns about management of the land. Big Cypress National Preserve is part of the Everglades and covers 729,000 acres in southwest

The Attorney General’s Office says it will appeal a judge’s ruling on a controversial 2009 growth management law that may have created uncertainty and confusion among local governments and developers. Chief Circuit Judge Charles Francis on Aug. 26 struck down the changes contained in SB 360, which removed a requirement in state law that developers

A windmill and billboard promoting solar energy were displayed outside the Capitol earlier this year on Earth Day. House Republican leaders on Thursday said a special session could be held in November — possibly during the Legislature’s organizational session — to approve using federal economic stimulus money for state energy rebate programs. Gov. Charlie Crist

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service says it will review the “endangered” status of wood storks because of a petition filed by the Florida Home Builders Association. FHBA says the storks’ 26-year-old classification is outdated, but an Audubon of Florida representative says the 12-month review raises concerns and that the future of the species should