Florida's Growth
Growth in a state is a sign of maturity and prosperity. Too much growing in a state can cause the reverse effect. Florida appears to be growing at a rapid rate and there's not much to do but sit back and watch. Florida has to be able to handle the growing of population, transportation, and environment. Florida is growing fast and the necessary needs and funds to keep up do not appear to be in the local governments' hands.
Population is the major concern for Florida for many reasons. Increased population means more children, which calls for more schools. Leon Bouvier says from the "population of two point one million students in 1990 will increase to three point five million by the year 2020, and will expect fifty thousand new kids a year for the rest of the decade." To keep up with this growth two thousand eight hundred teachers will need to bee hired each year, and a new school will have to be built every week. Population growth will also include the elderly, as well as middle age people. This means the government will have to hire over twenty thousand new physicians, and over one hundred thousand new nurses. By the end of this decade fifty more hospitals will have to be built to keep up with growth.
Florida has five point two percent of Americas' population, and just two point eight percent of the nations' roads. Population rose over forty percent in the eighties while the number of vehicles increased fifty percent. This means, roads have about twice the amount of traffic necessary. To maintain and keep up with population growth, twenty-four thousand five hundred ninety-eight additional miles would need to be added by the year 2000. The Department of Transportation has said it is highly unlikely due to the minimum amount of funds.
Most people today know the damage done to Florida's environment because agriculture. Urbanization, flood control, and draining of swamps have reduced the original Everglades systems by half. Disruption of natural water flows and pollution have incredibly reduced the population of many species of wildlife, and severely damaged the Florida Keys reef.
Recorded during 1980 a total of 87.2% of American homes owned at least one vehicle, while 51.5% of Americans owned more than one vehicle.[2] The increasing amount of sales resulted in an increase in the amount of cars that were on the road. The large amount of cars made the time of traveling from one destination to another longer than it was when not as many vehicles were on the road. Reducing the amount of time it took to travel lead to the idea of the highway system in 1938.[4] The extensive process of figuring out where the highways should lay and how they should be created did not allow the building process to begin until 1956.[4] Besides reducing the amount of time that it took to travel to each destination the highway system will
Florida became a state in 1845 and almost immediately people began proposing to drain the Everglades. In 1848, a government report said that draining the Everglades would be easy, and there would be no bad effect. Canals and dams were dug to control seasonal flooding. Farmers grew vegetables in the rich soil of the drained land, Ranchers had their cattle graze on the dry land, and new railways lines were constructed to connect communities throughout south Florida; but the ecosystem of the Everglades was not suited for either farming or ranching. The natural cycle of dry and wet seasons brought a devastating series of droughts and floods. These had always been a p...
The effect of the Everglades in water supply is wildlife. One effect of this is, the water is dirty and unclean with mercury, phosphorus, and other hazardous waste. As a result of that, the water is killing the animals. In passage one it states,”Quantity and diversity of the wetlands wildlife
Governor Jeb Bush's One Florida Initiative has come into action and there have been many opposing opinions towards this plan since The Board of Regents approved it. Some might say the plan has split Florida in two. Many Florida citizens who support One Florida argue towards opposing positions to give the plan a chance. These supporters believe this state needs a change because of the numerous problems within our school system. Opposing sides argue that they might consider part of, which is the plan that grants schools money towards scholarships and mentoring but their position is that affirmative action is not a problem. Supporter of One Florida Initiative believe that the plan could not have come about any later than it did because we needed some action done fast. While opposers believe that this plan was voted on too fast and the governor didn't give citizens enough information or time to do anything about it.
In American history the adjective used to describe the 1920s is known as the “Roaring” twenties. During the decade Florida had its own adjective used to describe the real estate market known as the “Land Boom”. The Florida land boom of the 20s was Florida’s first big real estate bubble. During the great land boom of the 20th century Florida saw tens of thousands of Americans flood to the state to move or purchase land. By looking at the how this development of real estate began, who was affected, and how the “Boom” became a soft clap by the end of the decade one can see the immediate impact this event had on the United States.
Florida’s state flag is a white background and a big red “X” and the flag has the state motto “In God we trust” and also says “Great seal of the state of Florida” the picture is a American woman purposely dropping flowers,a steamboat, a palmetto tree,and a beautiful sun.
...restore natural lands. The federal, state, and local governments are joining forces to bring these pristine natural lands back to their original splendor and beauty. "The question of why we should protect the Everglades has now evolved into how we should restore the Everglades," according to Suzie Unger. "Everglades National Park is the largest remaining sub-tropical wilderness in the continental United States and has extensive fresh and saltwater areas, open Everglades prairies, and mangrove forests. Abundant wildlife includes rare and colorful birds, and this is the only place in the world where alligators and crocodiles exist side by side. The park is 1,506,539 acres (606,688 hectares) in size. It is a World Heritage Site, an International Biosphere Reserve, and a Wetland of International Significance," according to the following website: http://nps.gov/ever
During the early 1920s, Florida was flourishing economically. Land sales were reaching planetary heights, tourism was booming, and new residents were coming in every day. By September 1926, the population of Dade County and the new City of Miami had blossomed to more than 100,000 and construction was all over. Although Florida was prosperous that was only on the surface, behind the scenes there existed a widespread of poverty. And things got even worst when the 1926 hurricane hit Florida. The hurricane was described by the U.S. Weather Bureau in Miami as "probably the most destructive hurricane ever to strike the United States." Severe flooding and wind damage weakened communities. Lake Okeechobee flooded and drown over 2,000 people in nearby communities. Many buildings that were a work in progress were damaged and discontinued, tourism was at an all-time low, and also many citizens lost their homes. And The Great Depression didn’t make things any easier. Florida was in trouble and in need of help.
The Everglades is a diverse ecosystem located in southern Florida, yet urbanization has created a considerable amount of impact that has altered the physical landscape of the region, resulting in a symbiotic environment between humans and nature. Based on geographical research, the original Everglades spanned an area of approximately 12,000km2, and now because of urbanization and agricultural growth in this sub-region the area of the Everglades has been condensed to half of its original size (Willard et al 1-2). The Everglades is actually a sub-region of the Southern Coastlands region of the United States. It is comprised of a unique climate, divided into sub-provinces that create a diverse pallet of environments for wildlife to thrive, yet the impact of human modifications over a period of decades has drastically effected animal populations, and changed the functionality and physical landscape of its expanse. Despite the differences of urbanization and wildlife, major cities and the ecosystem of the Everglades thrive and fuse together to form the diversely changing landscape of the modern Everglades.
Archaeological research indicates that Florida had been inhabited for thousands of years before any European settlements. Of the many indigenous peoples, the largest known were the Ais, the Apalachee, the Calusa, the Timucua and the Tocobago tribes. Juan Ponce de León, a Spanish conquistador, named Florida in honor of his discovery of the land on April 2, 1513, during Pascua Florida, a Spanish term for the Easter season (Juan Ponce de León may not have been the first European to reach Florida; according to one report, at least one indigenous tribesman who he encountered in Florida in 1513 spoke Spanish.[6]). From that date forward, the land became known as "La Florida" , although from 1630 until the 19th century Tegesta (after the Tequesta tribe) was the name of choice for the Florida peninsula following publication of a map by the Dutch cartographer Hessel Gerritsz in Joannes de Laet's History of the New World.[7]
The Spanish had great expectations of Florida despite disastrous results from expeditions such as Ponce de Leon and Lucas Vazquez de Ayllon's. In a description of the panhandle region from Hernando de Soto's campaigns, Gonzalo Fernandez de Oviedo wrote, “The Province of Apalache is very fertile and abundantly provided with much corn, kidney beans, pumpkins, various fruits, much venison, many varieties of birds and excellent fishing near the sea.” Notwithstanding the environmental benefits, the Spanish were ultimately unsuccessful in establishing a plantation economy in Florida. Both the British and the proto-Seminoles achieved greater success in establishing a plantation economy after the failure of the Spanish. Many factors contributed to the success of the proto-Seminoles and British in Florida including increased population, choice of economy, and African presence in Florida.
Located in tropical ocean waters, coral reefs provide priceless resources to both human and marine life. The leading natural cause of destruction among the coral reefs is global warming. Other natural causes are earthquakes, hurricanes, cyclones, and typhoons. The destruction to the coral reefs from these natural disasters is minimal compared to the dangers caused by man. Man-made destruction has a much wider impact on the health of the coral reefs. This destruction includes over-fishing, damage from anchors, aquarium industry, overgrowth of seaweed, and being smothered by sediments.
In the past seventy-five years the United States has increased its population over by 200% to a staggering three hundred and fourteen million people according to the United States Census Bureau. This growing number represents a series of unfavorable factors which can have major effects on our country. Detrimental elements such as poverty can have spiraling effects on things such as education, and depletion of our ecosystems natural resources. Overdevelopment in the United States is an increasing issue, as we push the margins of calculated safe population stability; America faces struggles of scarcity and an overall decline in quality of life from its overdevelopment.
According to World WildLife Fund, many ecosystems around the world are being destroyed, eliminating many plant and animal species that inhabit them (“Pollution”). 2. And acid rain, which is created when water in the atmosphere mixes with chemicals, ravage through rain forests and can even kill fish. 3.
OTA stated that based on current trends in population and travel … the number of vehicle-miles traveled (VMT) nationwide is projected to increase by 2 to 3 percent per year from now through 2005, resulting in a cumulative increase of about 40 to 60 percent. Obviously, VMT growth could have a major impact on traffic flow in urban areas, as well as on air pollution (84).