One of the most unique environments on the entire Earth, the northern Everglades and Kissimmee River basin not only boasts rich biodiversity, but a rich source of Florida’s ‘cracker’ cowboy heritage.
A new film by producer Elam Stoltzfus explores both the natural and social heritage of this rich region and how different stakeholders ranging from cattle ranchers to environmental groups like the FWF are working together to ensure its vitality well into the future.
The Kissimmee River basin, which begins in Osceola County and flows south to Lake Okeechobee, is a rich paradise of a wide variety of waterfowl, wading birds, fish and wildlife. Following very active hurricane seasons in the late 40s though, it was decided that parts of the river needed to be ‘channelized’ in order to control flooding.
This in effect shortened the river’s length from 103 to 56 miles.
As a result, many species of plants and waterfowl endemic to the area dried up – fishing along the river suffered as well. And it was later determined the channelized water flow prevented water running off from Orlando from being cleaned up. As a result, water quality from the Kissimmee and into Lake Okeechobee and the Everglades suffered.
Recognizing this fact prompted Congress to authorize the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to restore the basin in 1992. Working with state agencies, cattle ranchers and environmental groups, the restoration of the Kissimmee is in fact nearly complete. Land surrounding the basin has been purchased as well as development rights to cattle ranching lands.
Besides serving as a critical habitat and water resource for central and south Florida, the Kissimmee’s restoration is helping ensure Florida’s cattle industry continues to thrive. Many ranchers also experienced difficulty and water shortages from the channelization. Therefore, they’ve been critically interested in restoring the basin and ensure their way of life is able to continue.
Watch a preview of the high-definition film below. Full release should be in the near future.
