We are witnessing the death of our entire ecosystem.

First to die were the fish: smaller fish first then medium sized and all the way up to 250 lb Goliath Groupers. (Endangered)

Then went the endangered sea turtles: first the newly hatched babies and now the adults.

Then the sharks began to die: from harmless nurse sharks all the way up to whale sharks. (1st ever recorded whale shark to die from this.)

Then the manatees started dying: another of our endangered species. (With the body count nearing the thousand's.)

Now the dolphins are washing up on shore and the birds have disappeared.

The convergence of four unique harmful blooms, including the deadly Cyanobacteria resulting from unfiltered toxic water being released en masse into the ocean from Lake Okeechobee, are killing Florida’s endangered coastal marine life, including large mammals, faster than the bulldozers can haul away the endless mountains of dead carcasses lining the beaches that reappear daily for hundreds of miles. We demand that Governor Rick Scott take immediate and drastic action to ensure this #ToxicTide never happens again. 

Sign and share today to tell Governor Scott to join 22 other states in creating an action plan to tackle harmful blooms.

We are witnessing the collapse of our entire ecosystem and we will not sit idly by and do nothing, so today we stand together and fight back to #SaveFL! We fight back for our fish. We fight back for our manatees. We fight back for our dolphins. We fight back for our turtles. We fight back for our families. We fight back for our way of health and our way of life. Today we say ‘No More Death’ and we fight back to #SaveFL from the #ToxicTide!

Many reports claim that this is merely a naturally occurring Red Tide, that it’s not a serious public safety issue and that it has nothing to do with human pollution – this is false. The government and some media outlets are trying to sweep this under the rug and lull you into a false sense of safety. 

In reality, we are under attack from four unique blooms, two of which are toxic: Red Tide, Cyanobacteria, Brown Seaweed and Red Seaweed. These combine to create the perfect recipe for the toxic soup that is decimating our marine life, sending people to the hospital, causing permanent neurological and immunological damage to many of our most vulnerable loved ones, and causing human death in some instances. 

Conditions are so dangerous and critical that Governor Rick Scott issued a State of Emergency to attempt to “combat” the toxic blooms. However, declaring a State of Emergency does nothing to address the root issues of agricultural runoff from Florida’s Big Sugar industry, Radioactive Phosphorus Mining, lack of oversight for septic-tank use, fertilizer use by resorts and golf courses, and the warming waters of climate change (a term Governor Rick Scott banned government employees and agencies from using) contributing to this life-threatening situation.

That is why Governor Scott needs to follow the lead of 22 other states, like New York and Michigan, by creating an immediate action plan to address the destruction of our environment and mitigate the causes of toxic blooms in Florida’s priority waterbodies. 

The State of Emergency temporarily halted the release of water from Lake Okeechobee, but that only lasted until people changed the channel. The toxic water releases began again to the tune of 1 billion gallons a day refueling the #ToxicTide as it continues to spread throughout the Gulf of Mexico and along the coast, creating a massive Dead Zone that will likely take the better part of this century to heal. 

On Sanibel Island beach alone, as of 8/12/18 they have collected over 276 TONS of dead marine life in just under two weeks. This is one of hundreds of such beaches.

For the future health of Florida’s marine life and residents, sign and share today to tell Governor Scott to act now to establish an action plan for harmful toxic blooms.

WE WILL NOT BACK DOWN!

 Please fight back by signing and spread the message far and wide so the world can see what’s happening and then join us on social media for a front row seat to the legal showdown. @FLNaturekeepers across all platforms.