My Masters thesis was on the restoration of the Kissimmee River and how this resource could be brought to life after years of man-made environmental degradation. Although much more complex, the St. Lucie River is in dire need of restoration and, as Floridians and Treasure Coast residents, we can all do our part.

My role as a State legislator will include advocating for storage, providing resources for dredging, insuring their is enforcement of existing regulations, and advocating for flow south of the lake. Senator Negron’s SB-10 project will be a top priority to finish as soon as possible. The public/private partnership for water storage north of Lake Okeechobee has started, but has not been finished. I will be advocating for finishing the projects and bringing them on-line as soon as possible. After seeing the results of the Manatee Pocket dredge work, I will be advocating for additional dredging within the St. Lucie River in order to “remove the ooze” that has plagued our area. I will also be advocating for the ultimate flow of water south of the lake. We should use the lands we have purchased with public money for this purpose. There must be a path to the south for our region’s water. In listening to recent ORCA reports, they found that septic tanks may only be 4 to 7% of the contributing factor. As such,I would suggest analyzing projects that give our region the “biggest bang for the buck” and push those funding requests first.

I am happy to speak further about this to all who are interested.
Long and short of it, it is complex, but if we ALL do our part, then we will be able to restore this complex system.