A roundup of news items related to climate change and other environmental issues in Florida:
After Miami’s hottest summer ever, public housing finally gets more air conditioning | Miami Herald
The most important thing in Angela Samuels’ life is staying cool. During the sweltering summer days, she finds momentary relief in the over-chilled air of the mall or grocery store. But come nighttime, there’s no escape from the hot, humid South Florida air.
She counts the public housing unit she stays in as a blessing, but unlike many apartments in South Florida, hers didn’t come with air conditioning.
This summer, as Florida experienced the hottest summer on record, the heat overwhelmed 56-year-old Samuels, who lives in the Edison Courts development just west of Miami’s Little Haiti neighborhood. She had to be rushed to the hospital. Doctors said it was dehydration from sweating so much.
This bird once called Florida home. This week it was declared extinct. | Tampa Bay Times
The Bachman’s warbler was one of the rarest songbirds in North America. It spent part of its migratory time in Florida and was last spotted in Cuba in 1988.
Now, according to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, it is likely extinct.
The bird was among 21 species that the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service took off the endangered list on Monday, signaling their almost certain extinction. The Mariana fruit bat of Guam, a Texas fish and nine southeastern mussels were also on the list.
Florida citrus forecast improves over last year when hurricanes hit state | Associated Press
ORLANDO, Fla. — The forecast for Florida citrus, the state’s signature crop, is expected to improve in the upcoming season compared to last year when twin hurricanes battered the state at the start of the citrus season, according to estimates released Thursday.
Florida is expected to produce 20.5 million boxes of oranges during the upcoming season, up from 15.8 million boxes last season, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
Florida growers are expected to harvest 1.9 million boxes of grapefruit during the 2023-2024 season, which lasts through next spring, up from 1.8 million boxes last season.
If you have any news items of note that you think we should include in our next roundup, please email The Invading Sea Editor Nathan Crabbe at ncrabbe@fau.edu. Sign up for The Invading Sea newsletter by visiting here.
