FLORIDA — Governor Ron DeSantis touted his plan for environmental protections in the upcoming state budget in Naples Tuesday morning, along with staff members from the Environmental Protection Commission and the South Florida Water Management District.

DeSantis said he kept his campaign promise of $2.5 billion over four years for environmental protection. With the upcoming budget, that number may be closer to $3 billion.

The upcoming budget will set aside: 

  • $600 million for Everglades restoration - 37 Everglades restoration projects are already underway under the DeSantis administration
  • $300 million for protection of water resources
  • $40 million for alternative water supplies
  • $50 million for Florida Springs restoration
  • $50 million to further enhance python removal and new technologies for assisting the removal of pythons
  • $35 for blue-green algae and red tide innovative technologies

On top of the $630 million committed to the "Resilient Florida" grant program, which was established last year to help prevent flooding issues in coastal communities, DeSantis plans to commit an additional $550 million toward coastal community resiliency, which includes $50 million for coral reef protection and planning. 

DeSantis said the grants should help coastal communities handle big weather events better. The program also provides matching grants to local municipalities for their coastal resiliency projects.