Rapid growth in Florida's Heartland weighs heavily on aging infrastructure. Paving new roads harms already imperiled ecosystems. Can smart planning keep native plants growing when the population is, too?

The law is a direct response to a bipartisan wave of protests last summer when the plans became public, although DeSantis has since distanced himself from the proposal.

Farms aim to keep beluga on the market despite a U.S. import ban. But scientists say that won’t save the species from going extinct in the wild by 2050

Track Line Rail LLC, a Texas-based company that grinds old railroad ties into a mulch used as fuel for cement kilns, moved into Newberry in January. It began operating immediately, Newberry staff said, and without city, county or state permits. Neighbors worry about its environmental and health impacts.

Alachua residents want their city leaders to make progress on the restoration of Pinkoson Springs, a project that began a year ago and remains stalled.

Amid support from hunters and warnings of a “slaughter” from animal-rights advocates, state wildlife officials Wednesday moved forward with Florida’s first black bear hunt in a decade.

The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission voted 4-1 at a meeting in favor of a bear hunt in December and annually into the future, allowing the use of up to six dogs to corner the bears.

The commission staff says the goal is to “begin managing population growth” for bears, which number about 4,000 in Florida.

Florida wildlife officials this week will hear a proposal to create an annual “limited-entry” black bear hunt, with a December hunting period the first in more than a decade.

What is typically a quiet, staff decision turned into a hour-long public discussion as the Suwannee River Water Management District considered Alachua County’s objections to water permitting for a cavetop development.