Salazar tours Everglades, champions federal funding

Stay Connected

More on this Story

Story | Bill aims to keep Everglades free of exotic pets
Story | Florida officials approve scaled-down Everglades land deal
Story | Everglades restoration may be easier in new Big Sugar deal
Story | Federal spending planned for Everglades, Fla. beaches
On the Web | More McClatchy coverage of the nation's capital

Curtis Morgan | Miami Herald

Top White House aides acknowledged Thursday that the federal government had "not done its job" in supporting Everglades restoration over the last decade and pledged to make the effort a priority.

Calling his first glimpse of the Glades ''awesome,'' U.S. Interior Secretary Ken Salazar touted the $279 million-plus in funding for restoration projects this year a sign that the Obama administration was committed to making up a $1 billion-plus spending shortfall.

"I think our best days are just ahead of us," said Salazar, who toured the marshes of western Broward County aboard an airboat flanked by U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson and Florida Gov. Charlie Crist and piloted by Ron Bergeron, a prominent developer and state wildlife commissioner.

Read the complete story at miamiherald.com

JOIN THE DISCUSSION

We welcome comments. To post one, you must sign in using either your McClatchyDC login or your login for Facebook, Twitter or Disqus. Just click the appropriate box below.

Please keep your comment civil, short and to the point. Obscene, profane, abusive and off topic comments will be deleted. Repeat offenders will be blocked. If you find a comment abusive or inappropriate, please flag it for the moderator by placing your cursor on the comment, then clicking the "flag" link that appears. Thanks for your participation.