Tampa Bay Editorial: Rick Scott's Record: An Environmental Disaster

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In what was a priority for big polluters, Scott waged a protracted fight with the federal government over long-delayed clean water standards. The Environmental Protection Agency eventually caved to the pressure and gave the state too much discretion, a transparent attempt by the Obama administration to boost the president's popularity in Florida during his re-election campaign. In 2012, Scott killed a statewide septic tank inspection program that would have been key to reducing water pollution. He ended a springs restoration initiative launched by Gov. Jeb Bush. This year, he did nothing to push a bipartisan bill in the Senate that would have spent hundreds of millions of dollars cleaning up the springs. He did ask for $55 million in his budget for springs, but instead the Legislature agreed to only $30 million.

Conservation

The economic meltdown caused spending for the Florida Forever land conservation program to drop by nearly two-thirds by the time Scott took office from its high-water mark years ago. But spending in Scott's first three years dropped significantly, from $100 million the year he came into office, to $27 million in 2012 and $17 million in 2013. Most of the money committed in the last two years has not been cash but permission to use money from the sale of surplus state property. Scott's plan in 2013 to generate $50 million for conservation by selling existing state lands was so controversial and mishandled that the administration scrapped the effort without selling a single acre.

Now Scott wants to pave over his record with a campaign plan that calls for more than $1 billion in spending over the next decade. He would commit $500 million each for springs restoration and alternative water supply projects. His proposal far exceeds what he budgeted for springs and conservation land during his first term, and he offers no suggestions for how to raise the money. The governor also calls for tougher legislation to punish polluters, which would be another major shift in direction.

It is difficult to imagine Scott increasing environmental enforcement when the number of such cases dropped by nearly two-thirds after his first year. Or pursuing a more robust effort to buy endangered land when the land-buying office has been decimated. Or following through on ambitious promises to emphasize restoration of the Everglades after he signed legislation that caps the sugar industry's financial liability for the cleanup. Scott also made it easier for private companies to tap the state's supply of reclaimed water even as he made it much harder for the public to challenge water and mining permit applications. He even signed legislation that fast-tracked the permitting process for gas pipelines and restricted how many times local officials may ask developers questions about their permit applications.

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http://www.tampabay.com/opinion/editorials/editorial-the-rick-scott-record-an-environmental-disaster/2196359