Stuart, Martin County - Today, Martin County Commissioners Sarah Heard and Ed Ciampi, Sewall's Point Town Commissioner Tom Bausch, and City of Stuart Commissioner Jeffrey Krauskropf, joined representatives of Clean Water Action, Indian Riverkeepers, Ocean Research and Conservation Association, Sierra Club and students from RiverKidz under the Stuart Causeway bridge on the St. Lucie River, where clean water is essential to the local economy and environment.

LOCATION: Boca Raton, FL                     CLOSING DATE: January 19, 2011 or until filled

Clean Water Action (CWA) and Clean Water Fund (CWF) seek a part-time organizer to join our Florida team to build strong community support for our energy campaign.

The federal Environmental Protection Agency has proposed delaying the implementation of a set of Florida-specific water quality standards for 90 days, allowing for the approval of a set of replacement rules drafted by the state.

Though the rules were mandated following a lawsuit brought by environmental firm Earthjustice on behalf of a coalition of environmental groups, the EPA has allowed the Florida Department of Environmental Protection to develop and implement its own set of rules.

Three residents of rural Southwest Miami-Dade and three leading environmental groups have sued the county to stop an expansion of rock mining on agricultural land outside the urban development boundary that the plaintiffs say was approved in violation of state law.

The suit, filed in December in Miami-Dade Circuit Court, is the latest sally in long-running conflicts among homeowners and environmentalists on one side and companies that use blasting to extract limestone rock used in construction from a vast network of open mines on the western end of the county.

fracking: what you need to know

Recent news coverage has drawn atten-tion to “fracking” and its many impacts. As a national leader on this issue active in more than a dozen states, Clean Water Action has developed special expertise on the risks and concerns associated with fracking.

So what exactly is fracking? It is a method of extracting under-ground natural gas and oil. Water mixed with sand and chemicals is injected into the ground at high pressure to fracture the rock around wells drilled for this purpose. The process releases the gas or oil, which is then pumped out. Fracking for oil and gas has been used for many years, but new technology now supports wells that reach as far as a mile underground. While drilling at this depth may allow companies to reach new deposits of oil and gas, it also greatly increases the risk of local water supply con-tamination in the process. Fracking presents a host of dangerous environmental and public health threats, including:

polluters’ political pressure threatens florida’s water quality and economic health

Pollution from Florida’s sewage and wastewater plants and from agriculture is causing overloads of nutrient pollutants such as nitrogen and phosphorus. The pollution causes dangerous algae blooms in estuaries, lakes, streams and canals throughout the state. These blooms kill fish, close swimming and fishing areas, and harm Florida’s tourism economy. They can also cause serious illness in people and animals exposed to the water and its fumes.

Florida’s Legislative Session usually starts in January and ends in March. Because of this year’s redistricting — a process that re-draws political district boundaries every ten years based on census data — the session may extend beyond the typical 60 days.

The Legislature’s actions in 2011 have already jeopardized the health and vitality of Florida’s communities. State lawmakers voted to slash budgets and otherwise weaken critical agencies such as the Department of Community Affairs, Department of Environmental Protection and Water Management Districts.

Clean Water Action’s new POWER campaign “is about real people in communities across Florida sending a message to local, state, and federal lawmakers,” says Clean Water Action State Director Kathy Aterno.

“We want elected officials to represent our health and well-being regardless of partisan affiliation or political aspirations. It is about stepping up and taking back our basic rights. It is about being heard and seen during critical moments in the decision-making process on issues we care deeply about; issues that impact our water quality, environment, children, homes, jobs, education, and communities.”