Ban the Banning Ban

Florida’s Ban on Banning Fertilizer

By Lenny Guckenheimer

Why do people visit and move to Florida? What about you? Why do you live here? Do we live here because of the access to waters such as our Boca Ciega Bay, Tampa Bay, the Gulf of Mexico, and the many lakes, rivers, springs, and wetlands? After all, we love to swim, fish, kayak, boat, or walk along the beaches.

Or did we move here because of all the nice, thick green lawns? That’s a silly question, right? Well, the Florida legislature and Governor DeSantis would rather have green lawns than clean and healthy waters. And they also want to help fertilizer industry profits grow lush and green. To accomplish that, DeSantis recently signed a moratorium on fertilizer bans.

Many counties and cities have enacted summertime fertilizer bans to help keep their waters clear. During the summer rainy season, fertilizer runs off into waterways. The nutrients then pollute the waters by feeding red tide and algae which deplete oxygen, block sunlight, and can cause fish kills. We know all too well how red tide causes fish kills and the terrible stench that comes. The new law will prevent a county or city from enacting a new fertilizer ban or changing a current ban. The state-enacted moratorium on local fertilizer bans is only the most recent gutting of local water quality controls.

What is a lot clearer than Tampa Bay water is that the Florida state government is beholden to shortterm profit-making and completely unconcerned about consequences. However, anyone who uses or lives near Florida waters will feel the effects as nutrients feed algae blooms and cause fish kills.

We, the people of Florida, need an override on state government to stop the legislature and governor from their destructive ways. We need a constitutional amendment that guarantees that clean and healthy waters are a fundamental human right. Furthermore, we need the right to take action against state government if it fails to protect our waters and health. We need the Clean and Healthy Waters amendment in our Florida Constitution. Despite this recent setback, there is good news. We can put the Clean and Healthy Waters amendment in our Florida Constitution. But, to do that, we first need the proposed amendment placed on the 2024 ballot. And for that to happen, we need at least 900,000 petitions signed by November 2023.

To find out more about this amendment, please visit floridarighttocleanwater.org. You can download the petition and mail it to your Supervisor of Elections. Please act soon!

Lenny Guckenheimer became a volunteer for floridarighttocleanwaters.org after seeing the state pass laws that blocked efforts to keep Florida waters clean. Lenny’s lived on the Gulf Coast for more than 20 years.

New Four-Way Stop at Tangerine and 52nd Move Intended to Cut Down on Speeding

By Monroe Roark

Gulfport officials installed stop signs at a key intersection in an attempt to curb speeding and improve safety.

Motorists in all directions now face a four-way stop at Tangerine Avenue South and 52nd Street. In that location, Tangerine Avenue, is actually a pair of two-lane roads separated by green space going east-west from 49th to 54th Streets South, ending at Tomlinson Park.

The northern part of Tangerine Avenue had no stop sign at all along that stretch and had become “a dragway,” as City Councilmember Ian O’Hara (Ward IV) put it.

“The south side is a two-way street but it is narrow, so it is very hard to go fast,” said O’Hara. “[The new stop signs] really push the speed of the traffic down a few notches; the initial issue was extreme speed.”

O’Hara announced the arrival of the stop signs at the June 20 council meeting. The councilmember initiated a traffic study that confirmed the need for the stop signs, according to Gulfport public works director Tom Nicholls. Neighborhood complaints about speeding played a role, he added.

“There’s not a lot of volume on that road but a lot of speeding,” said Nicholls. “Because there is a school crossing at that location, we felt it was necessary to put that four-way stop in.”

City staff monitored traffic over a 72-hour period, using high-tech counters to gather data that showed traffic counts as well as speed. Nicholls said the traffic volume was not excessive, but the speeds were higher than the City wanted to see.

“They [speeding drivers] were sporadic in timing so enforcement would have been difficult,” said Nicholls. “Usually, it is in the peak a.m. or p.m. hours, but we didn’t see that here.”

Gulfport leaders do not need county or state approval to install stop signs. No state highways run inside City limits. Even with county roads, the City has regulatory jurisdiction inside its own borders, Nicholls said.

There are no concrete plans right now for additional stop signs in Gulfport. Nicholls said his department is taking a look at a different option for the area around the 6000 block of 11th Avenue South.

“We had done a small project between 63rd and 64th where we striped the roadway, and that’s what I’m looking at between 63rd and 58th,” he said. “What that does is give the perception of a more narrow roadway, which tends to slow folks down. We are looking at some edge line striping as well as some double yellow lines down the middle.”

Back at Tangerine and 52nd, motorists will see another new wrinkle beginning in August. Crossing guards will be on hand to help stu- dents navigate the intersection. In past years they have been in place on 52nd Street at two other locations — at Gulfport Boulevard and at 15th Avenue South.