Restoration of The Everglades - Everglades As A Priority

Everglades As A Priority

Environmental protection became a national priority in the 1970s. Time magazine declared it the Issue of the Year in January 1971, reporting that it was rated as Americans' "most serious problem confronting their community—well ahead of crime, drugs and poor schools". When South Florida experienced a severe drought from 1970 to 1975, with Miami receiving only 33 inches (840 mm) of rain in 1971—22 inches (560 mm) less than average. media attention focused on the Everglades. With the assistance of governor's aide Nathaniel Reed and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service biologist Arthur R. Marshall, politicians began to take action. Governor Reubin Askew implemented the Land Conservation Act in 1972, allowing the state to use voter-approved bonds of $240 million to purchase land considered to be environmentally unique and irreplaceable. Since then, Florida has purchased more land for public use than any other state. In 1972 President Richard Nixon declared the Big Cypress Swamp—the intended location for the Miami jetport in 1969—to be federally protected. Big Cypress National Preserve was established in 1974, and Fakahatchee Strand State Preserve was created the same year.

In 1976, Everglades National Park was declared an International Biosphere Reserve by UNESCO, which also listed the park as a World Heritage Site in 1979. The Ramsar Convention designated the Everglades a Wetland of International Importance in 1987. Only three locations on earth which have appeared on all three lists: Everglades National Park, Lake Ichkeul in Tunisia, and Srebarna Lake in Bulgaria.