DeSantis Leaves Everglades Record as Candidates Eye Growth

Nearly $9.5 billion. That’s what Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis’ administration secured for water quality and Everglades restoration during nearly eight years in office, alongside more than half a million acres acquired for conservation. As he prepares to leave, two candidates to succeed him are promising to preserve parts of that agenda while facing fresh pressures: development and data centers’ appetite for water and power.

The Restoration Record

The story starts in 2018. Toxic blue-green algae covered Lake Okeechobee, and red tide washed dead fish, sea turtles and dolphins onto beaches. Eric Eikenberg, CEO of the nonprofit Everglades Foundation, said water and algae were prominent concerns in that year’s governor’s race. DeSantis, who called himself a “Teddy Roosevelt Republican,” promised to address water quality and protect the environment.

By several accounts, he delivered. Pat Rose, executive director of Save the Manatee Club, said DeSantis “did not ignore it” and “certainly didn’t shirk from it.” At a September press conference on Everglades restoration, DeSantis said: “When someone tells you, ‘We’re gonna do this,’ and they articulate an ambitious agenda and then you see it brought to fruition, that’s how it should be all the time.”

The centerpiece is the EAA Reservoir, a multibillion-dollar project south of Lake Okeechobee meant to improve the quantity and quality of water flowing to the Everglades and Florida Bay while cutting harmful discharges to south Florida estuaries. State and federal governments agreed to speed its completion by five years. It’s scheduled for completion by 2029, three years from now. DeSantis has called it the “crown jewel” of restoration.

He also signed a law creating a program to make coastlines and inland waterways more resilient to sea-level rise, even as he opposed what he called “radical climate agendas.”

What Comes After the Spending

At a Cabinet meeting in late September, DeSantis signaled that the heavy lifting may be ending. “I don’t think we’re going to need to spend what I’ve spent on the Everglades, because we’ve gotten so much done,” he said, adding that state Department of Environmental Protection Secretary Alexis Lambert “may have something to say” about it.

Advocates aren’t ready to call the work finished. Gil Smart, executive director of VoteWater, warned the reservoir’s completion could tempt DeSantis’ successor to declare victory. “If you take the view that that is the final piece of the puzzle, then once it’s done, you can stand atop it, wave the flag, and say we did it,” he said. “But you have to look at what the system is doing at that point too.” Advocates said the reservoir and related projects won’t resolve all of Florida’s water problems, and that the next governor will need to tackle nutrient pollution and consider acquiring more land for water storage and treatment.

The record has blemishes, too. Environmental advocates cited “Alligator Alcatraz,” an immigration detention center built in a national preserve and since shuttered, as a major stumble. Press secretary Molly Best, responding to questions, pointed instead to Everglades restoration, water quality, Florida Forever, coastal resilience projects and the removal of fluoride from public drinking water. “As Governor, Ron DeSantis has prioritized conserving Florida’s natural resources since his first day in office, recognizing the direct link between Florida’s environment, our economic competitiveness, and quality of life,” Best said.

The Candidates

The race to replace him is turning on growth. Haley Busch, outreach director with 1000 Friends of Florida, said residents are talking about congestion and “seeing their Old Florida disappear.” Data-center proposals in rural areas, she said, have mobilized residents worried about long-term planning.

Democrat David Jolly has pledged to pause hyperscale data-center construction and unwind some development laws passed under DeSantis, including a 2025 law restricting local governments from imposing development regulations after a hurricane. He also criticized the Live Local Act. “Live Local and other acts were designed to deliver more affordable housing, it hasn’t,” Jolly said, calling it “a giveaway to developers that have built the million-dollar condos and disrupted communities.” He’d continue Everglades restoration and expand Florida Forever, but would consider “nearly wholesale replacing” the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, whose members he described as “developers and trophy hunters.” Any new commissioners a governor appoints would need state Senate approval.

GOP Rep. Byron Donalds took a different tack. He said he’d protect natural resources from data centers and overdevelopment, though critics have faulted him for accepting millions of dollars from real estate and data-center interests. At an event where the Everglades Trust endorsed him, Donalds said he’d continue state funding for restoration and that “our goal is to be done over the next four years,” followed by a management phase. “It’s not just about finishing the work, it’s about maintaining it, managing it, so it can continue to be beautiful,” he said. His campaign spokesperson didn’t respond to questions before publication.

Nick Wiley, a former executive director of the Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission under Govs. Charlie Crist and Rick Scott, now leads the Fish and Wildlife Foundation of Florida. He said balancing growth and environmental management has “never been more front and center than it is right now.” DeSantis, Wiley said, did “a really nice job” and showed “a lot of good leadership.”

Why This Matters:

Florida is roughly three years from finishing its marquee restoration project, and the next governor will decide what comes next. Donalds’ four-year target and move to a management phase would put a defined end date on a program that has cost nearly $9.5 billion in state money—a boundary taxpayers may welcome. Jolly’s plan to pause data centers, unwind development laws and overhaul a wildlife commission would give the state more control over land use and private investment. These candidates offer competing views on how much government should steer growth.

The reservoir will deliver results. But advocates warn that nutrient pollution remains, and officials haven’t spelled out the long-term maintenance bill. How the next governor weighs finishing the job against holding down future costs will shape Florida’s budget and development climate for years.