CERP marks 25 years of work to restore Florida's Everglades

WPTV, January 8, 2026

For decades, it's been seen as the ultimate solution to save the Everglades, protect our estuaries, and safeguard Lake Okeechobee. Now, it's hitting a major milestone.

It's been just over 25 years since the Comprehensive Everglades Restoration Plan — CERP — was signed into law. The sweeping blueprint of more than 60 projects was designed to restore Florida's natural flow of water south through our state.

I visited the Everglades to see CERP's progress, what remains undone, and why efforts to finish the job are gaining new urgency.

In the year 2000, Florida was in the national spotlight, embroiled in a contested presidential election. At the same time the U.S. Supreme Court was deciding the race, President Bill Clinton was signing another historic document — one that would shape Florida's future for generations: the Comprehensive Everglades Restoration Plan, or CERP.

President Bill Clinton signs (CERP) into law, accompanied by a bipartisan group of lawmakers and stakeholders including one of The Everglades Foundation's Founding Directors, Mary Barley.

"Once it passed, it was like the dog catching the car. Then it became — what do we do next?" said Eric Eikenberg, CEO of the Everglades Foundation. Eikenberg says the crisis was undeniable.

"The Everglades was dying in the '90s... You saw ecological collapse. You were seeing it on the ground. Fish kills. Seagrass die-offs. Thank goodness people stood up 25 years ago and said we have to save this national treasure," Eikenberg said.

The goal was to protect coastal estuaries, stabilize Lake Okeechobee, secure water supply, support agriculture — and deliver clean, fresh water back to the Everglades.

Watch the interview and read the WPTV article here: https://www.wptv.com/news/protecting-paradise/cerp-marks-25-years-of-work-to-restore-floridas-everglades

Want to learn more?

You’re in the right place. For more than 30 years, The Everglades Foundation has been the premier organization fighting to restore and protect the precious Everglades ecosystem through science, advocacy, and education.

Join the movement to restore and protect the global treasure that is America’s Everglades. Sign up to learn more. Follow us on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, YouTube, and X (formerly Twitter). Give a gift of any amount you can to support our mission at EvergladesFoundation.org/Donate.