Tell the Board of County Commissioners to Allocate Healthy Funds for the Environment

ALLOCATE HEALTHY FUNDS FOR OUR ENVIRONMENT IN THE FY 24-25 MIAMI-DADE COUNTY BUDGET

Mayor Daniella Levine Cava proposes great things for fiscal year 2024-2025, including: expansion of the Climate-Ready Tech Hub, increasing our tree canopy, and accelerating the shift from septic to sewer. We applaud those initiatives!

But there is more work to do. Tell the Miami-Dade County Board of County Commissioners to support adequate funding for the following items: coral restoration, habitat monitoring, the Environmentally Endangered Lands (EEL) program, and sewage upgrades. Increased funding for these budget items will help protect native ecosystems, wildlife, clean drinking water, and the maintenance of our sewer systems. It will also provide invaluable data to guide conservation strategies that ensure the long-term health of Biscayne Bay. Here’s why:

• Coral reefs are vital to Miami’s biodiversity and economy, and serve as natural barriers from storm surge and erosion. Habitat monitoring effectively measures the success of our restoration efforts, and tracks the health of our ecosystems, including coral reefs. 
• The EEL program preserves remaining natural lands, breaks up urban heat islands, and receives stormwater runoff that would otherwise flood neighborhoods. 
• Miami-Dade’s sewage system overall needs significant infrastructure investment to cease sanitary sewage overflows and leaks, and to handle additional capacity as households with septic tanks transition to the municipal wastewater system. 

Support for these programs will improve water quality and enhance resilience. Tell the Board of County Commissioners to support additional funding for these budget items.

Take Action 

1. Sign the action alert. Scroll to the bottom of this page, enter your information, and press "Next" to send a letter urging County Commissioners to support adequate funding for these budget items.  
2. Spread the word. Share this action alert with your networks and tell them to join us at the meeting!
3. Make a public comment. Join Miami Waterkeeper at the FY 2024-2025 Miami-Dade County Proposed Budget public hearing.

Date and Time: September 19, 2024 at 5:01PM (Arrive at 3:00PM to register to speak, go through security, and meet other advocates.)

Address: Commission chambers at the Stephen P. Clark Government Center, second floor (111 NW 1st Street)

Check-in: Bring your ID and check in at the first-floor registration window. Tell them you’re going to the budget hearing on the second floor. 

Don’t forget: Sign up to make a public comment at the table downstairs (near the South entrance), and forward this information to those that would also like to have their say.

Read the 2024-2025 Proposed Budget here. 

This alert will be inactive after September 18, 2024, at 11:59 PM.

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