Mast-led effort seeks ample funding request from Biden for Everglades restoration project

U.S. Rep. Brian Mast (R-FL) last week led 12 of his Florida colleagues in calling on President Joe Biden to include at least $725 million in his fiscal year 2023 funding request that would be used to restore the south Florida ecosystem.

The lawmakers seek federal funding for the Everglades Agricultural Area (EAA) Reservoir, one of the state’s most important Everglades restoration projects, according to a Feb. 4 letter they sent to Biden.

“Unfortunately, last year, your request of $350 million for the Comprehensive Everglades Restoration Plan (CERP) fell short of what is needed to complete Everglades restoration on schedule,” wrote Rep. Mast and his colleagues. 

And while it was suggested that funding from the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act could help make up the difference, the members wrote that they were “greatly disappointed” by the bill’s exclusion of funding for the EAA Reservoir, according to their letter.

“This project is the most critical component of CERP because it will allow more water to be sent south into the Everglades and drastically reduce toxic discharges to Florida’s east and west coasts,” they wrote. 

In fact, lacking appropriated funds from the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act now means that the EAA Reservoir’s completion date has been pushed back from 2028 to 2030. And without more fiscal year 2023 funding, the lawmakers think that the completion date “will certainly slip farther behind schedule.”

“Your FY23 budget request is, therefore, an opportunity to right this wrong by requesting robust overall funding for Everglades restoration, including sufficient funding to restore the EAA reservoir to its original completion date,” Rep. Mast and the members wrote.