Environment Archives - WMNF 88.5 FM

Kelly McCormick and Glenn Maresca–co-founders of Florida Rescue Farm, a sanctuary in Duette, FL, devoted to rescuing, rehabilitating, and housing pigs, goats, geese, chickens, ducks, cattle, other critters, and no less devoted to cultivating a strong educational presence—described the remote community of Duette, and what prompted them to settle there.

They make clear their original intention in relocating there (and leaving city life behind) was to homestead on the five and a half acre parcel they occupy.

But those plans were scuttled when Maresca rescued an orphaned calf named Moobee. This turned out to be a pivotal moment that not only transformed Moobee’s life, but McCormick and Maresca’s life, too (including that they went fully vegan), as well as the lives of dozens of farmed animals that the pair has subsequently rescued.

In turn, Maresca recalls, Moobee (perhaps feeling a debt of gratitude) engaged in an unusual behavior—joined in short order by the other resident cows, encircling Maresca–protecting him, he realized, from two coyotes ambling through the sanctuary grounds. 

Yet another major, transformative episode for Maresca and McCormick, part of the duo’s arrival at their revised gameplan for the property—turning it into a vegan homestead. 

They also address the parallel priority at Florida Rescue Farm: McCormick and Maresca have cultivated a substantial educational predilection, both implied, in the sensibility of the sanctuary—to oversimplify, the ethos is: animals are our friends, not our food—and directly, in the educational tours they regularly offer, and other related experiences.

So, they explain, not just volunteers, but also visitors to the sanctuary are inculcated with the Rescue Farm philosophy, implementing a central facet of the sanctuary’s mission, improving the lives of all creatures who reside or spend time at the Duette facility.

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On April 16, 2025 we asked the question, “if a tree falls in Florida, who is responsible?” Could shifting liability for tree failures impact the region’s urban canopy? This week, Guest Host Matt Newton discusses the proposed Fallen Tree Act (HB 599/SB 724) with Landscape Architect Ricky Peterika and Civil Engineer Victor Huggins.

If adopted, the proposed legislation would shift liability in Florida from a “fault theory” standpoint to strict liability. In that case, the owner of a tree would be liable for its falling limbs, even if those limbs were not visibly prone to fall. This policy change could disincentivize tree planting and tree retention throughout Florida, and it may negatively impact our local tree canopy, as owners may not want to absorb the risk of liability for their trees.

Matt, Ricky, and Victor discuss the foreseeable impact of this law on neighborhood planning and how it could shape the region’s landscape moving forward.

Listen to the entire show here, on the WMNF app, or as a WMNF MidPoint podcast from Apple Music or Spotify.

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Among the many springtime festivals that will be showcased throughout Tampa Bay this year, one stands on a 18 year history, setting the standard for others to live up to. This festival is EcoFest, put on by Learning Gate Community School, a local environmental charter school located in Lutz, Fl.

Learning Gate Community School is an environmental charter school established in 1983 and is often ranked within the top 30% of all public schools in Florida. “The mission of Learning Gate Community School is to foster environmental stewardship through a curriculum that pairs classroom lessons with hands-on learning experiences.” The founder, Patti Girard, started this community school in Lutz, Florida with the promise that the students and teachers would put sustainability and environmental awareness at the forefront of its educational practices. Eighteen years ago, Learning Gate Community School decided to embark on something that few schools attempt, a festival that would be different from others that may have come before.  This new festival, coined EcoFest, would dedicate itself to teaching these environmental principles.

The Sustainable Living show sat with Heidi Hughes, 6th grade Environmental Education Teacher and Assistant Principal, Dr. Carlos Jordan, to discuss the upcoming EcoFest, 2025. Dr. Jordan says, “EcoFest is an opportunity for the community to get together and celebrate sustainability and environmental awareness, and to celebrate and partner with the many environmentally friendly businesses, organizations, and individuals in the Tampa Bay area.” With a focus of teaching the principles of sustainability, green living and eco-friendly innovation, EcoFest includes demonstrations, informational booths, green living products and services. Dr Carlos Jordan also touts it as “an opportunity for people all over the Tampa Bay area to come out and learn more about not only environmental awareness and sustainability practices, but also get in touch with other people in the community that are of the same mind, with a focus on vendors who value sustainability, who want to contribute to a sustainable world.”

Heidi has been to almost every Ecofest since the beginning. She has spent fifteen of the last twenty years teaching at Learning Gate Community School and has recently taken on the role of leading the “Green Team.” The group focuses on educating students on sustainability and environmental issues and solving problems within the Learning Gate community and beyond. Heidi explained that last year, the student led group successfully petitioned the school to replace styrofoam lunch trays with compostable ones—on the condition that the Green Team would handle composting them. The group’s enterprise was successful and the school is now composting 900 trays weekly, and Heidi boasts that festival trays will be composted too. 

“Bringing back its roots,” will be the focus of this year’s festival, Carlos Jordan said, “because after years of holding the festival at different locations throughout Tampa Bay, Eco Fest: Bringing it Back to its Roots will be held at the Schools Hanna Campus once again.” Heidi says she feels one of the reasons why the festival is being brought back to the Hanna Campus is that “we have the ability to showcase some of the sustainability and environmental programs that we are doing on this campus. When EcoFest is in another location, we can’t really show the public all the great things that are happening here.” Some examples of those programs include taking care of all the composting of food waste, and the recycling programs at the school, as well as the many organic gardens. “This is an opportunity to get the public around the campus.”

Eco Fest takes place Saturday, April 26th from 9am to 3pm at Learning Gate Community School, 16215 Hanna Road, Lutz, Florida. The event will be open to the public from 9am until 3pm. 

Jordan clarifies that ‘Back to it roots”, means coming back to the Hanna campus, and reminds everyone that Learning Gate was one of first charter schools in the state and nation to be an environmentally focused public charter school. Having just received a fifteen-year charter renewal after celebrating twenty five years of excellence, we can be sure that Learning Gate will be around for years to come as a bastion of earth friendly education.

For additional information on EcoFest 2024, please email [email protected] or call 813-948-4190, ext 313

If you love what we do on Sustainable Living, don’t forget to tune in every Monday at 11am on WMNF 88.5fm or listen to past episodes in the archives. If you’d like to donate to show your support, head over to the donations page and direct your pledge to the Sustainable Living Show.

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Researchers at the University of South Florida are predicting what they call another major sargassum year. 

In the open ocean, the large golden brown masses of seaweed provide habitat for marine life. But it can also affect tourism when it piles up on shore, releasing a nasty smell. 

Separate research that brings us closer to understanding why sargassum is impacting beaches rather than staying offshore. 

Researchers found that large sargassum blooms were carried from the open ocean to beaches in the tropics starting in 2009 by strong ocean currents and winds.  

And the nutrients that accelerate the growth of the seaweed are supplied by an ocean process known as vertical mixing. That’s where water masses mix seasonally due to shifting winds. 

Frank Muller-Karger is a professor at the College of Marine Science at the University of South Florida in St. Petersburg and was involved in the study. 

“It’s not that sargassum is a bad weed or that is reflecting pollution. Rather, it’s a natural phenomenon that we need to appreciate for what it  is, but also learn to live with.” Muller-Karger told WMNF.

“These things happen at such a big scale that it’s hard to control. So if it is man-made, then you can probably put some pressure on some of the activities that may lead to nutrients in rivers- but if it’s in the middle of the ocean, it’s a lot harder to do,” Muller-Kargersaid.

Muller-Karger said his findings may mean that managing sargassum will be hard to do on such an enormous scale, and communities must adapt. 

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April is one of the driest months in Florida, according to the National Weather Service. 

It’s also the peak demand season for public water suppliers. 

The Southwest Florida Water Management District declared April as Water Conservation Month for the 27th straight year.

This time, it’s under some pretty dry circumstances. 

The National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration said 30% of Hillsborough County is under moderate drought conditions.  

The remaining 70% of the county is abnormally dry — a region that is “going into” or “coming out” of a drought. That accounts for nearly 369,000 people in Hillsborough County.

Nearly half of Florida is under drought, according to NOAA, with 11.5% of the state under “severe drought.”

According to a news release last week from SWFMD, the Tampa Bay area has gotten just over five inches of rain so far this year, but the average amount is more than 8 and a half inches

Katherine Squitieri said that saving water this time of year is crucial. 

Squitieri is SWFMD’s Lead Conservation Education Coordinator. She said in many instances, people waste water without even knowing. 

“When you’re thinking about indoor use, a great thing is that is that some of it seems like common sense, it’s just about changing some of your behaviors,” Squitieri said.

SWFMD said there are several easy ways to cut down on water usage and save money on monthly water bills. 

People can only run the washer and dryer when they are full, or thawing frozen food in the refrigerator rather than under water.

To save water outdoors, people should not leave sprinklers unattended and should only use irrigation systems when needed.

For more information on how to save water, people can visit Watermatters.org/water101

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The Focus Academy in Temple Terrace has been fostering a learning environment for developmentally disabled students since 2012.

Now, they have given 18-22 year old students the chance to help Florida’s marine ecosystems.

Focus Academy has partnered with two Tampa-based seagrass restoration companies — Aquatech Eco Consultants and Aquaticus Plants — to provide hands on experience in seagrass restoration.

The students develop and create the plaster weights used in the restoration process. 

The weights anchor the seagrass, which help keep the water clean and maintain a healthy ecosystem. 

Clayton Clemens is the executive director of Project Focus, the nonprofit behind Focus Academy. He says that a lot of the students in the program typically aren’t given the opportunity to participate in hands-on activities at home. 

“With communication being such a big barrier for this population, I’ll go over to them while they’re doing the weights all the time and it’s ear-to-ear smiles and grinning with pride,” Clemens said.

Clemens said the students work in teams, mixing and stirring the plasters while others attach the string used to connect the weights.

The seagrass restoration company currently uses the weights for restoration efforts in Lake Apopka.

He said he hopes to expand the program to include more marine restoration efforts, such as mangrove and oyster shell projects.

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