Today, City of Pahokee Mayor Keith Babb presented the “Key to the City” to the South Florida Water Management District (District) for their assistance with cleaning up the blue-green algal blooms at the Pahokee Marina. In addition to the City’s efforts to combat algae in the marina, the District also turned on brand-new circulator pumps to keep the water moving at the Pahokee Marina and aid in the prevention of new blue-green algal blooms.
“We are honoring the South Florida Water Management District with the ‘Key to the City’ so we can show our appreciation to the District for their quick response and support to address blue-green algae at the Pahokee Marina,” said Pahokee Mayor Keith Babb. “The City of Pahokee is doing everything we can to reduce the impacts from algae to our residents, and we are grateful to the District for their assistance.”
“We are all hands-on deck to improve water quality under Governor Ron DeSantis’ leadership,” said South Florida Water Management District Executive Director Drew Bartlett. “We appreciate the City of Pahokee’s recognition of the hard-working District operations staff and scientists who worked to quickly address the algae at the Pahokee Marina. We remain committed to addressing algal blooms and reducing nutrient pollution for the benefit of Floridians and our environment.”
In 2019, Governor Ron DeSantis signed the Achieving More Now For Florida’s Environment (Executive Order 19-12), which prioritized agency resources to expedite water quality projects and prioritize algae response resources. When blue-green algae blooms became present in late April, the South Florida Water Management District partnered with the Florida Department of Environmental Protection to immediately deploy resources to address the algae in the marina. The District worked with the City to create a City-led response plan to address future algae blooms, including the installation of permanent circulator pumps.
The “Key to the City” is a symbolic gesture that is bestowed upon distinguished citizens, residents, or honored guests of the City of Pahokee. The Mayor may award the key to people, companies or agencies that have contributed positively to the City and the lives of its residents.