Situation Report

An ongoing red tide is killing wildlife throughout Florida’s southwest coast and has left beaches littered with dead fish, sea turtles, manatees and a whale shark. Additional footage courtesy of Southwest Florida TV via Facebook.

bradenton.com - by Mark Young - August 24, 2018

The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission is reporting an outbreak of Trichodesmium, sometimes called a brown tide, in waters offshore of Manatee County.

It is a separate species but similar to the well documented Karenia brevis, a photosynthetic organism responsible for the persistent red tide hitting Manatee and other nearby counties along 130 miles of coastline. Concerns are now being raised that if the two blooms merge, it could essentially deepen an ongoing red tide.

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ALSO SEE RELATED ARTICLE HERE - WHAT IS A BROWN TIDE? SCIENTISTS FEAR FLORIDA RED TIDE COULD MERGE WITH NEW OUTBREAK TO CREATE SUPER BLOOM

Caroline Lewis - Jorge Castillo—The CLEO Institute

time.com - July 26, 2018

People across South Florida are awakening to the danger of climate change, and Caroline Lewis is a big reason why. The former high school principal has spent the last eight years educating the region’s vulnerable communities about its effects from the helm of the CLEO Institute, a nonprofit she founded. At the heart of CLEO’s work is Lewis’ training of local leaders in the science and policy of global warming, so they can spread the word in their communities. CLEO also helped found the Miami Climate Alliance, which has planned marches and helped shape local environmental policy.

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miamiherald.com - by Alex Harris - July 24, 2018

The letter might have already come in the mail. “Your building is at high risk for flooding,” it declares in bold. There are ominous charts warning that if you don’t take action, your flood insurance premium could rise up to 18 percent each year.

The bottom line: your flood insurance premium is going up again — and under a policy change the Federal Emergency Management Agency is considering, it could skyrocket even more in coming years.

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ALSO SEE RELATED ARTICLES WITHIN THE LINKS BELOW . . .

CLICK HERE - Risk Rating and Policy Forms Redesign (15 page .PDF document)

CLICK HERE - Federal Flood Insurance Average Premium to Rise 8%

CLICK HERE - FEMA - Flood Insurance Reform - Rates and Refunds

Stalled cars and rescue vehicles on a flooded section of Interstate 610 in Houston on Aug. 27.  ALYSSA SCHUKAR

CLICK HERE - BiPartisan Budget Act of 2018 (Public Law 115-123) - Long Term Disaster Recovery Investment Plan - Construction Account - As of July 5, 2018 (2 page .PDF file)

bizjournals.com - by Olivia Pulsinelli - July 6, 2018

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers announced July 5 how it will allocate billions of dollars for more flood-mitigation efforts. 

Of the allocations announced July 5, the largest portion is more than $13.9 billion for the construction of nearly 60 projects to reduce damage from floods and storms across multiple states and Puerto Rico.

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Orange County, Texas - see page 11 in the 75 page report within the link below.  It describes the proposed construction for the levee in Orange County and includes a map showing the placement of the proposed levee.