Eric Draper named state parks czar; Julie Wraithmell interim director at Audubon Florida

THE DAILY FRAY
November 4, 2017 10:00 am
Eric Draper, executive director of Audubon Florida for eight years, was named Florida state parks director, filling a post that has been vacant since February and troubled for the past year. MORE-»

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For conservationist Joseph Gordon, a menhaden experience

By JOHN HOWELL • The Daily Fray
October 30, 2017 11:00 pm
Menhaden is a pinch-your-nose kind of fish that even its family, including herring, might like to disown. Practically no one eats menhaden on purpose (unless you are popping omega-3 pills). And, according to legend, Squanto introduced the oily little stinker to hungry Plymouth colonists only as fertilizer for their crops. MORE-»

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Hurricane Carlos, Aqua by the Bay, bearing down on Manatee County

By JOHN HOWELL • The Daily Fray
October 1, 2017 3:01 pm
Hurricane Carlos appears determined to make landfall on Tuesday at 9 a.m. in Bradenton when the Manatee County Commission is expected to finally decide the destiny of Aqua by the Bay. The courageous decision is to say no, hell no. MORE-»

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Polls show baby boomers putting charge into Amendment 2 drive

By JOHN HOWELL • The Daily Fray
October 23, 2016 7:54 am
In September 2014, Luigi Costello of Sarasota was a United for Care volunteer, pacing a sidewalk on busy Manatee Avenue in Bradenton, holding big signs in each hand. At the time Costello was not typical of the block of voters who were coveted for Amendment 2. He is now. MORE-»

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Leaked tape: Solar chicanery guiding strategy for big utilities, Amendment 1

THE DAILY FRAY
October 19, 2016 5:46 pm
Amendment 1, misdeeds, and audiotape emerged in an in-depth report in the Miami Herald that claims Florida electric companies collaborated — flexing more than $21 million in "political jiu-jitsu" — to deceive voters regarding a hotly contested utility-funded solar power initiative. MORE-»

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Al Gore provides strong words for grassroots solar but not 'one cent' to help campaign

By JOHN HOWELL • The Daily Fray
October 12, 2016 5:53 pm
Former Vice President Al Gore was in Miami Tuesday on political business, including his signature mission, climate change. The stump included a sharp dig at Amendment 1, labeling the utility-funded solar power initiative “baloney.” But Gore, a multimillionaire and founder of the Climate Reality Project, never contributed “a cent” to support grassroots solar advocates in Florida. MORE-»

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Cautionary poll: Florida's voters 'lack knowledge' on fallout from Amendment 1

By JOHN HOWELL • The Daily Fray
October 4, 2016 7:33 pm
UPDATED | Florida residents expected to vote on a constitutional amendment Nov. 8 that potentially shifts solar energy policy into the hands of large utility companies appear widely misled regarding the ballot, according to the director of a poll that shows strong support for Amendment 1. MORE-»

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New Approach, $1 million boost for medical marijuana

By JOHN HOWELL • The Daily Fray
October 2, 2016 3:25 pm
With the clock winding down for Florida’s hopeful medical marijuana patients and advocates, United for Care received a $1 million boost Friday and a potential Nov. 8 difference-maker against deep-pocketed Amendment 2 opponents. MORE-»

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Federal, global inattention contribute to burst in crisis

By JOHN HOWELL • The Daily Fray
July 24, 2016 3:37 pm
UPDATED | Rare tropical diseases were always part of South Florida’s scene from time to time. But Zika is an extraordinary health threat — a perplexing mosquito-borne, sexually transmitted illness linked with neurological disorders and seemingly without peer in the insect world, according to scientists and health authorities. Many, though, saw it coming for years. MORE-»

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United for Care braces for new slugfest with medical pot foes

THE DAILY FRAY
April 26, 2016 10:34 am
Drug Free America spent roughly $7.5 million in 2014 to defeat a medical marijuana initiative by United for Care and is promising to raise $10 million to stop a revised ballot in November. For the architects behind Amendment 2, the rematch was hardly unexpected. "Bring it on," John Morgan said. MORE-»

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Florida solar advocate sees sunlight in August vote

By JOHN HOWELL • The Daily Fray
March 20, 2016 1:00 pm
Susan Glickman became Florida director for the Southern Alliance for Clean Energy in 2013 and is a key advocate for opening Florida’s solar energy market. And in a combative 15-month political duel for the sun, a statewide vote in August will be pivotal. MORE-»

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Solar power, lawyers, and money: It gets electric at top state court

By JOHN HOWELL • The Daily Fray
March 5, 2016 10:32 pm
When Debbie Dooley joined Floridians for Solar Choice, the influential national conservative voice from Georgia and a barnstorming clean energy ally said, “The sun never sends a rate increase.” In fact, that may be for Florida’s Supreme Court to decide. MORE-»

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Fracking foes succeed after state Senate halts drilling bill

THE DAILY FRAY
March 1, 2016 5:00 pm
UPDATED | Florida lawmakers who oppose fracking were outnumbered in the House recently and a setback in the Senate seemed likely. But opponents — including 41 cities and 27 counties — achieved a victory Tuesday when a Senate panel refused to reconsider the bill after tapping the brakes on the controversial oil drilling practice last week. MORE-»

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United for Care: Some extra gray in fall campaign

THE DAILY FRAY
January 29, 2016 9:23 am
Orlando attorney John Morgan was 9 years old in 1965 when a pot-smoking free speech activist at Berkeley said never trust anybody over 30. In November, Morgan and United for Care's campaign strategists may be more unsure about anybody under 30. MORE-»

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Smart Solar's petition beats deadline, awaits top court

By JOHN HOWELL • The Daily Fray
January 22, 2016 6:05 pm
A solar energy amendment funded by Florida utility companies moved a giant step closer Friday to a statewide vote and escalated charges of dirty tactics in the battle for clean energy. “Today we have officially met all of the voter requirements” for a place on November’s ballot, said Dick Batchelor of Consumers for Smart Solar. MORE-»

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Big power's Smart Solar initiative 'on track' for 2016

By JOHN HOWELL • The Daily Fray
December 21, 2015 6:54 pm
UPDATED (12/29) | Consumers for Smart Solar and a solar amendment drive that is the brainchild of big Florida utilities is closer than ever to gaining a spot on the 2016 ballot. “Suffice it to say, we are on track,” Smart Solar spokeswoman Sarah Bascom said. MORE-»

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For solar advocates in Florida, dim prospects for 2016 ballot

By JOHN HOWELL • The Daily Fray
December 18, 2015 10:08 am
Floridians for Solar Choice is “exploring options for 2018” after coalition leaders said Thursday their yearlong amendment drive is unlikely to qualify for next November’s ballot. "We are looking at options,” said Mike Antheil, a Solar Choice board member. “But not the inevitability of opening Florida's solar market." MORE-»

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United for Care: 100,000 and counting in new drive

THE DAILY FRAY
July 22, 2015 9:16 pm
The statewide effort to legalize medical marijuana picked up speed Wednesday when United for Care turned in roughly 100,000 signed petitions to Florida election officials. The revised amendment could be on next year's ballot “before the holidays.” MORE-»

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For Florida solar power advocates, FPL promotes a duel in the sun

By JOHN HOWELL • The Daily Fray
July 16, 2015 9:42 pm
A second solar power ballot initiative arrived on Florida’s political grid Wednesday and it’s one that even big utilities can love. They should. They helped to write it, according to Florida Power & Light. “Our company rarely weighs in on ballot initiatives, however, this situation is unique.” MORE-»

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Revised marijuana initiative about persistence for patients

By JOHN HOWELL • The Daily Fray
July 12, 2015 8:00 pm
United for Care is a year older and wiser than in July 2014 when legal medical marijuana in Florida seemed like an Election Day formality. Patients are a year older, too, and many are sicker, John Morgan says. “So many people need this law to pass in order to have some quality of life.” MORE-»

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Florida OKs bear hunting but not until opponents get a say

THE DAILY FRAY
June 24, 2015 8:26 am
Education, garbage control, new habitat, and do the science were urged Wednesday as Floridians weighed in on bear hunting. Birth control for bears, potshots, and “rednecks” figured in the mix, too. A 15-year-old girl named Hanna was heckled. And FWC commissioner Richard Corbett was often in the crosshairs because of a teddy bear quote. MORE-»

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Land and water advocates plan statewide rallies

THE DAILY FRAY
May 25, 2015 10:48 pm
Florida’s land and water advocates are planning statewide rallies Saturday and the message takes shape in the form of a question. What part of Amendment 1 do state lawmakers not understand? “This is our last chance to convince our legislators to finish the job and protect Florida's natural treasures before they are gone,” Aliki Moncrief said. MORE-»

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Bitter standoff in Tallahassee buys time for clean energy

By JOHN HOWELL • The Daily Fray
April 30, 2015 6:00 pm
Florida’s fracking opponents gained a small window of time to hold off controversial oil and natural gas drilling when sparring lawmakers walked out on the job this week. “What I am hearing is that we’ll see these bills again next year, not before,” a clean energy advocate in Tallahassee said. MORE-»

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United for Care restarts campaign to legalize medical marijuana

By JOHN HOWELL • The Daily Fray
April 28, 2015 10:04 pm
Minutes after Florida’s legislative session abruptly ended Tuesday, advocates for medical marijuana jumped on a new campaign to forge a 2016 constitutional amendment. "I never had much faith in Tallahassee to do the right thing,” attorney John Morgan said. MORE-»

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For embattled Charlotte's Web, 2 lawsuits down and 1 hanging on

By JOHN HOWELL • The Daily Fray
April 25, 2015 1:57 pm
After a monthlong courtroom paper chase, one legal challenge is still standing against Charlotte’s Web medical marijuana and the state Department of Health. A lawsuit for a 4-year-old patient was dropped. And a case involving a secretive cannabis trade group withered quickly and was withdrawn. MORE-»

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Next test for solar power is state Supreme Court

THE DAILY FRAY
April 24, 2015 6:48 pm
A solar power initiative overcame a lunar pace Friday, advancing to the state Supreme Court after Attorney General Pam Bondi ran out the clock in Tallahassee. “While we were disappointed it has taken the full 30 days to advance to this critical step, we now eagerly await the Supreme Court's opinion,” Tory Perfetti said. MORE-»

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Rare seabird losing fight to gain federal attention

THE DAILY FRAY
April 13, 2015 9:17 pm
The black-capped petrel, a prolific nocturnal seafarer, is fighting extinction on several manmade fronts and could even use some protection from itself. A big help is some techy advances. A huge enemy is time. That fight may be settled in court, a St. Petersburg conservation attorney said. MORE-»

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California dreamin' for some medical marijuana hopefuls

By JOHN HOWELL • The Daily Fray
April 6, 2015 5:00 pm
For budding entrepreneurs in a crowded field, name recognition is big. Cannabiz Gurus, Cannabonix and Cannabilutions get style points. Medical Marijuana Inc., Medical Marijuana Centers of Florida and Medical Marijuana Dispensaries of Florida do not. Cafes, boutiques, legal teams, security, beverages. “Everyone wants to get into this business,” said Steven Cooksey, a medical marijuana business specialist. MORE-»

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Duke Energy adjusts forecast for Florida to a chance for sun

THE DAILY FRAY
April 3, 2015 4:09 pm
Duke Energy submitted plans with state regulators for a burst of solar power in Florida, a shift from partly cloudy to partly sunny in the energy giant's solar outlook. Also in the forecast is a fresh flood of cash to oppose wider freedoms for rooftop solar. MORE-»

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With populations recovering, Feds downlisting green turtles

THE DAILY FRAY
March 20, 2015 3:31 pm
The green sea turtle, whose populations in Florida are the second largest in the Western Hemisphere, is up for a demotion of sorts after 37 years on the endangered list. A federal proposal to downlist the sea turtle to a threatened species also calls for a new system of protection. MORE-»

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