When are the people of Florida going to wake up to the fact that there is a water shortage? The days of soaking grass with precious water are soon to come to an end. Tampa Bay Water and everyone else need to wake up to fact that water can no longer be taken for granted. Just like oil, we are slowly running out of water, too. ...more

June 14, 2008

CLEARWATER - Clearwater residents could someday be drinking treated sewage. City officials are looking to meet the ever-increasing demand for drinking water with purified wastewater. They say recycling wastewater would take pressure off the aquifer, cut the amount of sewage running into local waters and eventually trim water bills. ...more

May 25, 2008

TAMPA - The end of a grueling drought that started in 2006 with the state's third driest year on record could be in sight. ...more

May 7, 2008

So how does one remember 2007 now that 2008 is officially upon us? Certainly not with great joy even though we in Florida did not have much of a hurricane season. Like the rest of the nation, Floridians convulsed under the grip of a tanking real-estate market, marked by record foreclosures. In Florida, high property taxes and insurance premiums made things worse for homeowners – and snowbirds, among some, promised to go elsewhere. ...more

January 1, 2008

Editor's Note: We are republishing this letter to the editor due to an error. We apologize for the error. It is good that our county leaders are seeking sound suggestions for the future growth of our county. It would have been more significant if they had actually accepted and followed through on suggestions in the last five years. ...more

December 27, 2007

This desert oasis east of Los Angeles sold itself for decades on water and all the luxury it brings: strings of emerald golf courses, lush resorts and manicured neighborhoods with sparkling pools. ...more

December 25, 2007

It is good that our county leaders are seeking sound suggestions for the future growth of our county. It would have been more significant if they had actually accepted and followed through on suggestions in the last five years. For instance, a number of citizens had pleaded for alternate arterial roads parallel to U.S. 27. There are still no through arterial roads unless you count the Sebring Parkway, which has a number of traffic lights, and is a number of years from completion north of Avon Park. Even the 2025-year bypass from south Sebring will stretch west into Hardee County and come back to U.S. 27 in Polk County. Great concern had been expressed about development in wetlands and flood-plains, to no avail. The recent decision to rebuild State Road 8 at twice the cost, because of the low-lying topography, apparently ignored that concern. Even after the county government bought a number of houses in that area due to flooding, the county commission approved another permit to build in Venus. The fact that some areas in this county are un-developable apparently is not a logical deterrent to development. The issue of conserving water run-off has been in the news recently, and the related agencies have expressed concern about employing a number of measures to achieve that goal. This includes preventing pollution of our lakes. Rain run-off must have a place (wetlands and flood plains) where it can be filtered into the aquifer. ...more

December 21, 2007

Don't be fooled. Just because it's called "water" and comes in a bottle doesn't mean it's "bottled water." Most fortified drinks are actually "water beverages." If you really want "bottled water," it must be "intended for human consumption and sealed in bottles or other containers with no added ingredients," except for antimicrobial agents and fluoride, according to the Food and Drug Administration, which regulates bottled water as a food. We know it's confusing. So here's what to look for if you want old-fashioned bottled water, according to the FDA: ...more

October 18, 2007

When Hurricane Frances dumped 8 inches of rain in 2004, much of North Tampa was underwater. But it doesn't take a hurricane to flood the neighborhoods between Fowler Avenue and Busch Boulevard. ...more

September 5, 2007