Photo Credit: L. Lawrence
Our mission: We work to ensure the IRL is the healthy heart of a connection between seven counties, 38 cities, 3.5 million people and a $28.3 billion annual economy that impacts over 40% of Florida’s east coast.
Our program tagline, “One Lagoon – One Community – One Voice,” is a shortcut way of stating our mission.
We would like every resident, every community, every local government and every agency of the region to understand that our personal behaviors and household habits — our methods of managing wastewater, stormwater, chemicals, trash, pet wastes and other hazards — have impacted the lagoon and created its current state.
It’s also in our hands to help reverse the negative trends we’ve seen over previous decades. We have the ability to improve the lagoon’s health, restore seagrasses and other habitats, and protect water quality for ourselves and for the wealth of species living in the lagoon.
Protecting the lagoon is about more than doing something good for the environment. It’s also about doing good for ourselves. When we protect the lagoon, its water quality and its critical habitats, we also protect our multibillion-dollar regional economy and our quality of life.
Photo Credit: C. Miller