Sludge Watch ==> Florida - no sludge spreading allowed in Lake Okeechobee watershed

[Maureen Reilly]

"The measure also includes new restrictions on polluted stormwater runoff 
from new developments, and on the dumping of sewage sludge into the Lake 
Okeechobee watershed, which environmentalists say is a major victory. "


http://www.tallahassee.com/legacy/special/blogs/2007/05/new-legislation-seen-as-big-boon-for.html

Tuesday, May 08, 2007
New legislation seen as big boon for Everglades
>From The Florida Times Union
TALLAHASSEE - Environmentalists are hailing a new bill to expand Everglades 
cleanup by extending the effort to the northern reaches of the ecosystem, 
where the water gets polluted in the first place.

A bill lawmakers sent last week to Gov. Charlie Crist doubles the amount of 
money going into Everglades cleanup, up to $200 million from the $100 
million the program has received yearly since state and federal officials 
pledged in 2000 to try to reverse decades of pollution-caused problems in 
the River of Grass.

With matching money from local governments and state funding for other 
related projects, the total spending will be close to $500 million, said 
Sen. Burt Saunders, R-Naples, who led the effort in the Senate.

The measure also includes new restrictions on polluted stormwater runoff 
from new developments, and on the dumping of sewage sludge into the Lake 
Okeechobee watershed, which environmentalists say is a major victory.

The legislation (SB 392) expands the notion of cleaning up the Everglades to 
restoration of Lake Okeechobee and the rivers that flow south into the lake 
- the water that eventually ends up in the Everglades. It sets out a plan 
for acquiring land and creating water treatment mechanisms north of the lake