Environment

In South Florida, where the Everglades meet the bays, environmental challenges abound. Sea level rise threatens homes and real estate. Invasive species imperil native plants and animals. Pesticides reduce the risk of mosquito-borne diseases, but at what cost? WLRN's award-winning environment reporting strives to capture the color and complexity of human interaction with one of the most biodiverse areas of the planet.

After Election Environmentalists Organize

WFSU | By Regan McCarthy

Published November 15, 2016 at 5:56 PM EST

The president elect of the United States is known as a climate change denier and that has some environmental activists saying now is the time to organize.

After the presidential election, Kim Ross with Rethink Energy Florida says some people unhappy with the results are looking for an outlet.

"We’re seeing people realize, ‘oh hey wait a minute, we can’t just sit back and rely on our elected leaders to do something. We actually need to take action,” Ross says.

Ross is encouraging activists to channel that energy into opposition to oil and natural gas pipelines, including the Sabal Trail pipeline in South Georgia. Ross says leaks in the pipeline could lead to a spill that could contaminate Florida drinking water. But she says more importantly, the pipeline supports a type of energy use that’s associated with global warming.

“We have a legacy to leave for our children around climate change and the more we support the development of infrastructure that allows for fossil fuel extraction, the more we’re going to be dependent on it as a nation and the hard it’s going to be to get off of when really we should be leaving everything in the ground and investing in renewable energy,” Ross says.

Ross and her organization are calling on President Barack Obama to use the remainder of his time in office to stop pipeline construction and increase the focus on renewable energy sources.