$2 Billion Plan to Restore Everglades Stuck in Congressional Limbo
The plan aims to reverse much of the 20th-century draining of the Everglades.
In the 20th century the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers drained much of Florida's Everglades to prepare the wetlands for development. At the dawn of the 21st century, Congress directed the corps to reverse much of that work and restore the Everglades to a more natural condition.
It's proving to be a very slow process.
Last week, the corps approved a central element of the restoration plan: a $2 billion series of engineering projects designed to collect water around Lake Okeechobee, in the center of the Everglades, and channel it south into the rest of the wetlands. The corps had hoped this Central Everglades Planning Project would be approved and funded by Congress quickly.
But Congress is operating on its
