POINCIANA, Fla. — Gov. Ron DeSantis spoke about SB 976, which was actually signed into law on July 1, Monday at Nature Conservancy's Disney Wilderness Preserve in Poinciana.
Florida's governor signed the bill earlier this month aimed at protecting our state's conservation lands and wildlife habitat.
Known as the "Florida Wildlife Corridor Act," the law designates conservation lands, reaching from the panhandle to the Everglades, as the Florida Wildlife Corridor and provides support, incentives and funding "to preserve and protect green infrastructure and wildlife habitat."
"Protecting Florida's environment has been a top priority of my administration from the beginning," DeSantis said.
The act authorizes a study to determine what is damaging Little Wekiva, a Central Florida waterway that encouraged Republican Sen. Jason Brodeur to file the initial measure for the bill, according to Florida Politics.
“These provisions promote preservation and protection of vulnerable lands and waters, especially those needed to allow for the migration and genetic exchange of Florida’s apex predators, such as the black bear and the panther,” Brodeur said, per the online publication.
Florida Wildlife Corridor Act will also address the Department of Environmental Protection, along with supporting agencies, to address sediment buildup in a stretch of river north of State Road 434.
The governor added that $300 million of the 2021 budget's designated $400 million for the DEP's Division of State Lands to conserve land will prioritize conserving wildlife corridors and agricultural lands.
Watch the full press conference below.
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