Audubon Florida applauds Representative Patrick Murphy’s (FL, 18th Congressional District) and Representative Tom Rooney’s (FL, 17th Congressional District) effort to push Kissimmee River restoration to completion. The Congressmen sent a joint letter to Assistant Secretary of the Army Jo-Ellen Darcy requesting an explanation of the delays in finishing Kissimmee Restoration and the timeline to work through these issues. See the letter: http://bit.ly/MeM7uP.

“Audubon appreciates Rep. Rooney and Rep. Murphy’s leadership on completing restoration of the Kissimmee River. These two legislators understand that protecting Florida’s environment is above partisan politics,” said Eric Draper, Audubon Florida Executive Director. “Now it’s time to finish the job of restoring this vital Northern Everglades ecosystem.”

Kissimmee River Restoration was authorized in 1992 and restores over 40 miles of the river’s floodplain. Once complete, the project has the potential to store up to 100,000 acre feet of water throughout the watershed. The project is currently 85% complete but it is stalled by questions related to the cost-share relationship between the federal and state government.

Last week, Audubon and our allies sent a letter to the federal and state restoration partners requesting the agencies resolve these issues to complete this key restoration effort as soon as possible. To see Audubon’s letter, please visit: http://bit.ly/MeM1mU.