Funding for Regional Water Quality Projects will Help Farmers, Wildlife, and the Northern Everglades

 The Office of Agriculture Water Policy has allocated $25 million for regional water quality improvement projects. Supported by Commissioner Wilton Simpson, the Agricultural Regional Projects Program addresses nonpoint pollution in areas with heavy agricultural use. This funding allows applicants to apply for projects that promote nutrient management in selected Basin Management Action Plan areas, including the Lake Okeechobee watershed.

Five million of the $25 million is required to be spent in the Lake Okeechobee watershed. This allows landowners and agencies to provide nutrient reduction projects, thus improving the water quality and quantity downstream. Because phosphorus and nitrogen move off the landscape through stormwater flows to Lake Okeechobee, nutrient levels there are magnified. These high nutrient levels cause harmful algal blooms, which can then cause both loss of submerged aquatic vegetation and fish kills.

Audubon commends the Office of Agriculture Water Policy for this commitment to advancing the restoration of the Everglades headwaters. We are working with landowners to support their applications and find more suitable land in the Okeechobee basin through our Wetland Evaluation Tool.

This article original appeared in the Fall 2025 State of the Everglades report. Read the full report here.