National Academies Report Released: Progress Toward Restoring the Everglades: The Fourth Biennial Review, 2012

Recently, the National Academies Press (NAP) released a report produced by the Committee on Independent Scientific Review of Everglades Restoration Progress; Water Science and Technology Board; Board on Environmental Studies and Toxicology; and the National Research Council titled, Progress Toward Restoring the Everglades: The Fourth Biennial Review, 2012. The 244-page report available free for download (with registration) discusses how,

[t]welve years into the Comprehensive Everglades Restoration Project, little progress has been made in restoring the core of the remaining Everglades ecosystem; instead, most project construction so far has occurred along its periphery. To reverse ongoing ecosystem declines, it will be necessary to expedite restoration projects that target the central Everglades, and to improve both the quality and quantity of the water in the ecosystem.

The new Central Everglades Planning Project offers an innovative approach to this challenge, although additional analyses are needed at the interface of water quality and water quantity to maximize restoration benefits within existing legal constraints. Progress Toward Restoring the Everglades: The Fourth Biennial Review, 2012 explains the innovative approach to expedite restoration progress and additional rigorous analyses at the interface of water quality and quantity will be essential to maximize restoration benefits.