Environmentalist Knowledge of Everglades Law. Benjamin C. Garelick Teresa E. Thornton, Ph.D. Oxbridge Academy, West Palm Beach

Transcription

1 Environmentalist Knowledge of Everglades Law Benjamin C. Garelick Teresa E. Thornton, Ph.D. Oxbridge Academy, West Palm Beach

2 Purpose Kissimmee River, Okeechobee Watershed contaminated by agriculture Sugar, cattle, citrus Florida government creates laws, BMPs to reduce pollution To impact these regulations, stakeholders must understand them How knowledgeable are self-reported environmentalists? (Miller, 2010) 1

3 Models of Environmentalism Early model of environmentalism from the 1970s (Kollmuss and Agyeman, 2002) Still used by NGOs 2

4 Models of Environmentalism Modern model of environmentalism (Kollmuss and Agyeman, 2002) Knowledge leads to environmentalism 3

5 Interest, Knowledge, and Action Theory 1: Action does NOT equal interest, knowledge University science majors were neither more knowledgeable nor more interested in specific environmental issues (McClinchie, 2014) Theory 2: Action, knowledge, interest align Survey of drivers: correlation between pro-environmental attitudes and knowledge of the environmental effects of car usage Concerned and knowledgeable drove fewer miles (Flamm, 2006) 4

6 How do these theories relate to the Everglades watershed? (Miller, 2010) 5

7 Best Management Practices (BMPs) Agriculture guidelines reduce the amount of fertilizers, pesticides, animal waste, and other pollutants entering our water resources Not necessarily mandatory (Morgan, n.d.) Increased efficiency, reduce cost Will help satisfy WMD permitting requirements 6

8 BMPs for Runoff Caused by storm water and irrigation Caries sediment and fertilizers into waterbodies Prevention: Leveling fields reduces slope and prevents erosion Herbaceous cover crops Raised berms prevent runoff from entering canals Vegetation on the edge of canals Field ditches (heavier sediments) 7

9 BMPs for Removing Contaminants from Canals Previous BMPs are not expected to be fully prevent runoff Canal sumps and traps Deepening or widening canal, upstream of the pump Slows water, traps sediments 8

10 BMPs for Removing Aquatic Weeds from Canals Aquatic weeds are the largest source of Phosphorus contamination (Stuck, Izuno, Campbell, Bottcher, Rice, 2001) Weed retention booms block flow of weeds Leave water unrestricted Removal: Mechanical harvester (expensive) Chemical herbicide (most common, state recommended) Biocontrol Agents (experimental) 9

11 BMPs for Cattle Feces Cattle Operations require additional regulations Cows excrete 60-85% of the phosphorus they ingest Rancher should try to avoid concentrated accumulation of waste Likely to leach into groundwater because of the sandy Spodosol soil Covers half of the Okeechobee Watershed 10

12 BMPs for Cattle and Waterbodies Fences are used to keep cows away from water bodies Reduces P loading by 10% (Shukla, Graham, Hodges, and Knowles 2014) Waste accumulation is inevitable in High Intensity Areas 200 feet from water bodies Runoff blocked by berms 11

13 Cattle BMPs Cattle overgrazing causes erosion Regulated with fences Bury dead cattle 200 feet away from waterbodies 12

14 BMPs for Citrus Orchards Farmers are required to construct conservation buffer Grove borders (strips of permanent vegetation) prevent erosion Riparian buffers (forested or herbaceous areas near streams) reduces the amount of sediment in surface water sheet flow Filter strips and grassed waterways (areas of permanent vegetation) remove sediments from water before it enters surface waters 13

15 Senate Bill 552 First Bill passed in 2016 legislative session Phase One: Two storm water treatment areas (STAs) will be created Phase Two: Allows for creation of additional STAs in the Okeechobee Watershed Reduce estuary discharge with voluntary water storage and quality improvements on private land Investigate the Upper Kissimmee Chain of Lakes and Lake Istokpoga as sources of phosphorus contribution Short term measures or new BMPs 14

16 Survey Overview Distributed the survey to members of environmental organizations Forwarded along lists 226 Respondents Questions were skippable, to prevent respondents from exiting Skipped may indicate ignorance, apathy, confusion, etc. Couper (2008) recommends allowing respondents to skip questions 15

17 Results: Environmentalism I am an environmentalist : 96.65% agree or strongly agree (92.9% responded, n = 210/226) I act in ways that protect the environment 10.49% respondents didn t know what a BMP was (71.7% responded, n = 162/226) More knowledgeable about the effects of agriculture than the BMPs that regulate it Agronomic, cattle, citrus 16

18 Results: Agriculture BMPs Which of the following measures are taken to prevent fertilizer and sediment runoff? (69.4% responded, n = 157/ 226) 17

19 Results: Agriculture BMPs Which of the following measures are taken to remove contaminants, sediments, and aquatic weeds from the water? (63.7% responded, n = 144/ 226) 18

20 Results: Cattle BMPs Which of the following water quality concerns come with farming cattle? (70.8% responded, n= 160 / 226) 19

21 Results: Citrus BMPs Citrus groves that border on wetlands or streams require a conservation buffer. Which of the following qualify as conservation buffers? (63.7% responded, n = 144 /226) 20

22 Results: Senate Bill % (70.8% responded, n = 160/226): Phosphorus is greatest Lake Okeechobee concern 75.19% (58.8% responded, n = 133/226) didn t know the Bill would create two new STAs 60.62% (70.8% responded, 160/226) unaware that Lake Okeechobee is discharged into estuaries Canals 58.75% 68.42% (70.8% responded, n = 133/ 226) unaware that Bill proposes discharge into voluntary water storage on private property Publicly funded retention ponds 60.9% 21

23 Conclusion Concerning gaps in self-reported environmentalists knowledge BMPS: no strong correlation between perceived knowledge and actual knowledge Senate Bill 552 showed correlation Future research: National regulations, CERP Cause of environmentalism 22

24 Thank You Questions? Benjamin C. Garelick 23