Federal Government Seeks Review in Florida Section 404 Case | Florida Specifier
The U.S. Department of Justice has petitioned the full D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals to rehear litigation challenging the EPA’s 2020 approval of Florida’s assumption of Clean Water Act Section 404 dredge-and-fill permitting authority. The Aug. 7 filing argues the panel’s March 2026 decision conflicts with precedent, imposes an unworkable Endangered Species Act consultation standard, and would make it prohibitively difficult for any state to assume Section 404 authority.
11th Circuit Refuses to Scrap ‘Radioactive’ Road in Florida | Courthouse News Service
A unanimous 11th Circuit panel rejected a petition from the Center for Biological Diversity challenging the EPA’s approval of a one-mile Florida test road built from phosphogypsum, a radioactive byproduct of fertilizer manufacturing. The judges found the agency’s three-year risk assessment was well-reasoned and adequately explained, concluding the road built by Mosaic Fertilizer near Tampa poses an acceptably low, closely monitored risk to both workers and the general public despite the material’s radioactivity.
Forever Chemicals Light a Fire Under Lakewood Ranch’s Rep. Bill Conerly | Your Observer
Florida Rep. Bill Conerly, who represents Lakewood Ranch, is pushing to curb public exposure to PFAS, or forever chemicals, after sponsoring House Bill 1019, which banned PFAS-based firefighting foam and now requires large wastewater facilities to test treated effluent for the compounds. Manatee County’s latest samples show PFOA and PFOS levels below EPA guidance, though Suncoast Waterkeeper warns testing only a handful of known PFAS compounds understates the chemicals’ true risk to drinking water.
Officials Extend Halt to Port Everglades Dredging Following Lawsuit | South Florida Sun Sentinel $
Officials have extended a halt on dredging for Broward’s Sand Bypass Project off Port Everglades after Army Corps surveys found the work may be approaching or exceeding its allowable damage limit for threatened staghorn coral, prompting reconsultation with federal wildlife regulators. The pause comes a week after environmentalists, including the Center for Biological Diversity and Miami Waterkeeper, filed a federal lawsuit to stop the project, which was already 94% complete and had been paused for coral spawning season through October.
Atlantic Beach and US Army Corps of Engineers Eradicate Invasive Beach Vitex | Action News Jax
The City of Atlantic Beach partnered with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Jacksonville District in 2024 to contain and eradicate beach vitex, an invasive plant discovered during a beach renourishment project that was crowding out native dune vegetation. Officials say catching the isolated population during its early growth phase prevented the need for long-term management, protecting sea turtle nesting habitat and preserving the dunes’ natural ability to buffer the city against storm erosion.
A WUFT investigation found Florida’s Resilient Florida program has awarded coastal counties nearly 20 times more implementation funding than inland counties since its 2021 launch, even though inland projects, like a $3.2 million road repair in the Panhandle town of Esto, have been ruled ineligible for lacking “critical asset” status. Legislators and researchers say inland flood risk is rising right alongside coastal risk, but the program’s shrinking state budget is leaving far more inland applicants unfunded than their coastal counterparts.
New Frontier: FSU Wins Federal Grants for AI, Quantum Research | Tallahassee Democrat $
Florida State University has been selected to lead four major federal projects within the U.S. Department of Energy’s Genesis Mission, a national effort to build the world’s most powerful scientific computing platform. The grants will support FSU’s artificial intelligence and quantum computing research.
US Strikes $1.2bn Deal to Pay German Firm to Halt Offshore Wind Projects | BBC
German energy company RWE agreed to abandon its U.S. offshore wind projects, including leases off the California and Louisiana coasts and in the New York Bight, after reaching a $1.2 billion payout deal with the Trump administration’s Department of the Interior. RWE plans to redirect the funds toward conventional gas projects, including $900 million for a liquefied natural gas export terminal in Louisiana, as part of a broader $17 billion U.S. investment planned over the next six years.
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and South Florida Water Management District have completed a 2,560-acre stormwater treatment area as part of the Comprehensive Everglades Restoration Plan, capable of storing 4,750 acre-feet of water to protect the St. Lucie Estuary and southern Indian River Lagoon. The facility uses wetland plants to filter excess nutrients from agricultural and urban runoff before it reaches coastal waters, with vegetation now entering a “grow-in” period as construction continues on a supporting pump station.
The Florida Legislature Should Ensure Utility Payments Aren’t Used for Parades | Florida Specifier
Former DEP Secretary Herschel T. Vinyard and Kevin Bjorkman argue that some Florida local governments divert utility ratepayer revenue into their General Funds to cover unrelated municipal expenses, then seek state grants for the water infrastructure projects those transfers left unfunded. They call on the Legislature to make such localities ineligible for state water and wastewater appropriations, noting Florida needs roughly $30.37 billion in water system investment over the next two decades.
