Eric Eikenberg, The Everglades Foundation chief executive officer, gushed optimism for the long-running Everglades restoration project as speaker at the Sep. 18 SanCap Chamber business luncheon held at The Community House on Sanibel Island.
“When I’m standing here at the chamber lunch in September 2030, we’re going to have champagne on every table….,” he projected completion of the restoration’s final reservoir to a round of applause. “It’s in our grasp.”
In reviewing the history of the degradation and consequential restoration of the Everglades watershed, he attributed the “whole new dynamic of these business voices [that] are really taking us to a next level” of financial support from state and federal governments. He praised the SanCap Chamber and its president and chief executive officer John Lai.
“We work with a number of chambers across the state…,” he said of his nonprofit organization. “There is not a more dynamic leader of a chamber in this state… he’s at a totally different level. You should be very proud and honored to have John Lai leading this effort.” He mentioned the clout of Lai’s new position as chair of the Visit Florida board of directors.
The goal of the Everglades project, since President Clinton in 2000, has been to restore a system that drains water from the north – Kissimmee River, Lake Okeechobee, the Caloosahatchee included – through the Everglades’ river of grass to filter out pollution before reaching Florida Bay, meanwhile stopping Lake Okeechobee polluted drainage into local Southwest Florida waters.
Eikenberg traced the impact of the business community back to the 2018 algae crisis in remedying “the current infrastructure that we are plagued with today, an infrastructure that benefits special interests.”
Through the outcry of economic impact along with bipartisan cooperation, both state and U.S. leaders have come to understand that the Everglades is a national treasure and this is a nationwide issue, not just a Florida concern. He applauded the elevating of bridges along Highway 41, the near-completion of the C-43 reservoir, and the recent adoption of the new LOSOM (Lake Okeechobee System Operating Manual) as giant steps moving the project closer to accomplishing the historic sheet flow of water through the Everglades, the “River of Grass” about which Marjory Stoneman Douglas wrote in favor of creating Everglades National Park.
“The good news, a couple of weeks from this luncheon, the Army Corps of Engineers will issue the largest contract in its history,” he said in support of his statement that “momentum is picking up more and more steam as days go by.” The massive EAA (Everglades Agricultural Area) reservoir the new contract will build is the final piece of the puzzle in efforts to move polluted water through the Everglades once again and deliver clean, filtered water to Florida Bay – in the meantime ending harmful flows down the Caloosahatchee.
“The decade we’re in is the most consequential decade in Everglades history,” Eikenberg said. “If the business community and all of you remain engaged in this issue — and I know you will, because I think this is the only chamber that has a legislative directive that has six out of the 10 centered around water quality and Everglades restoration – so when we stick together… by the end of this decade this reservoir is built.”
“Eric and The Everglades Foundation have been among the strongest of the chamber’s partners, most recently for the Preserving Paradise initiative, which has gotten the business community deeply engaged in the water-quality issues at hand,” said John Lai, president and chief executive officer of the SanCap Chamber. “He has a deep passion for the Everglades, and it shows in the way he excites us all to save the habitat to fuel our economic engine.”
Lai announced the upcoming series of “the state of” business luncheons that will culminate in January with the second annual State of the Islands breakfast. The next luncheon meeting will take place Wednesday Oct. 16, at the Sundial Beach Resort, featuring Sanibel Fire Chief Kevin Barbot speaking about the State of the Fire Department. Sponsorship opportunities are still available.
ABOUT SANCAP CHAMBER
The SanCap Chamber is dedicated to promoting the prosperity of its members and preserving the quality of life of our community. The Chamber plays a key role in facilitating communication and cooperation between business, residents, and government to enhance the economic health of the islands. Its website, sanibel-captiva.org, receives over 1.3 million visits per year. For more information about the chamber, visit sanibel-captiva.org or contact John Lai, president and CEO, at 239-472-2348 or [email protected].
