The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission is asking for volunteers to help with sandspur seed pod removal on Big Carlos Beach on Thursday, August 5. Volunteers should show up at 7 a.m. at Big Carlos Beach and wear closed-toe shoes, long pants, and gardening gloves, and bring plenty of water to drink. A pair of sheers and some throw-away towels or fabric as a drag cloth might also be helpful to bring. Grocery bags to collect the spurs will be supplied.

Questions?
Contact Rebecca Schneider, SW Regional Species Conservation Biologist
Rebecca.Schneider@MyFWC.com

Hosted in partnership with Lee County Solid Waste, items such as leftover paints, cleaners, herbicides, pesticides, automotive fluids and pool chemicals will be collected for FREE from 8 a.m. to noon at Bay Oaks Recreational Campus, 2731 Oak Street. Drop off is an easy drive-through process available to all residents.

Visit the Lee County website for a list of acceptable items.

Dr. Toshi Urakawa’s research interests are nutrient cycles, environmental cleanup technology, and biodiversity. After completing a doctoral degree at the University of Tokyo, he continued research as a postdoctoral fellow at Northwestern University and the University of Washington. Early in his carreer, he was in the Japanese EPA and studied eutrophication. He has worked in marine and ecological sciences at FGCU since 2010 and is a chief editor of the International Journal of Microbiology. 

Donald Duke is a professor of environmental studies at Florida Gulf Coast University (FGCU). He has two bachelor's degrees from the University of Pennsylvania in in civil engineering and english and a master's and doctorate from Stanford University in civil and environmental engineering and resources planning. He has taught for 30 years, at UCLA, the University of South Florida and FGCU. He is involved with public policy for water resources and does research in pollutant prevention, transport, and watershed mitigation.

Dr. Richard Whitman is an internationally recognized expert on shoreline ecology and recreational water quality. He has written over 150 peer reviewed scientific and technical publications which have been cited in over 6200 professional publications. He earned a master's and a doctorate in toxicological and aquatic ecology. He has worked for NASA in spacecraft sanitation and was an associate professor of ecology at Indiana University (NW) before being appointed as a National Park Service Chief Scientist for Indiana Dunes National Park. Until retirement he worked for USGS as a station manager.

Rick Armstrong has been the laboratory manager for the Lee County Environmental Lab in Fort Myers since 2005.  After earning associate and bachelor degrees from the University of Florida, he began a science career as a research assistant with U.S. Sugar in Clewiston, Florida.  Later, he was a lab analyst with Lee County. He currently oversees 13 professionals engaged in the collection and testing of surface, ground, drinking, and waste waters throughout Lee County.

Michael Kratz is a FGCU Graduate Student pursuing his M.S. in Environmental Science. In 2020, he received his B.S. in Marine Science from FGCU and met his current Graduate Advisor, Dr. Hidetoshi Urakawa. Michael’s research focuses on Southwest Florida river water quality, using microbial and chemical source tracking methods to determine inputs of fecal indicator bacteria (FIB) into impaired waterways.

John Cassani whos professional career as an ecologist started here in Lee County in 1978 after receiving degrees in Biology and Fish and Wildlife. From 1978 to 2014 he worked as a resource manager for local government, managing waterways of Southwest Florida. He has authored both peer-reviewed scientific publications and popular media sources on resource management, history, water policy and conservation issues. John accepted the position of Calusa Waterkeeper in 2016. 

The Town of Fort Myers Beach is urging the public to send messages to the Army Corps of Engineers NOW to request modifications to the draft operating plan for releasing water from Lake Okeechobee. These releases flow into the Caloosahatchee River and the Gulf causing harmful algae blooms that kill fish and foliage and impact the public's s health as well as the Town’s economy.

During a Monday, July 26 meeting with the Corps, Fort Myers Beach Mayor Ray Murphy joined with mayors of other municipalities in Lee County to lobby for changes in the plan to have the releases “be less water in summer, more water in winter.” 

 “It’s incumbent upon everybody who lives down here or has any stake in it anywhere to be vocal about this situation to the Army Corps of Engineers and let them know that we don’t want all that water. We want water when we need it and we don’t want the water when we don’t need it,” Mayor Murphy said. "Our concern over here on the West Coast is that we're going to be taking the lion's share of the water on these releases when it happens." 

Watch Mayor Murphy speak with Jessica Alpern of FOX4 news about this topic

Please help protect Southwest Florida’s water quality by emailing the Army Corps of Engineers TODAY!

Visit the Captains for Clean Water website for more details

Community members interested in serving as volunteers to advise and support the work of Town government are encouraged to apply for current openings on two of the Town’s 10 advisory boards and committees.

The Town’s committees exist to advise Town Council about Bay Oaks Recreational Campus, Mooring Field, Mound House, Newton Beach Park, finances, marine resources, nuisance abatement, environmental and historic preservation, and public safety.

Openings:

• Audit Committee – monitors audits, reviews financial statements prior to the completion of the audit, reviews the results of any audit, evaluates proposed corrective action and insures that corrective action is carried out, evaluates auditor performance
• Historic Preservation Advisory Committee (HPAC) – assists the Local Planning Agency and the Historic Preservation Advisory Board with historic preservation matters

Click here for more information and to fill out the application. 

August is
national drinking water quality month

"Because having clean water is vital to our individual health, our collective agricultural needs, and the needs of our environment.”

National Water Quality Month website