# South Florida Clean Coastal Waters Act of 2021

South Florida has a serious problem with harmful algal blooms—those toxic green slicks that sometimes appear in coastal waters—and dead zones where water becomes so oxygen-depleted that fish and other marine life can't survive. This bill tells the federal government to figure out what's causing these problems in South Florida and come up with a plan to fix them.

The bill creates a deadline for a federal task force to study the issue and report back to Congress. Within about 18 months, they need to submit an initial assessment looking at what's causing these blooms and dead zones, what research is already happening, and where the gaps are. Then, within three years, they need to finalize that assessment and develop a detailed action plan. This plan has to include specific ideas like setting up a network of remote monitoring stations that can warn communities early when harmful algal blooms are coming, so people can protect themselves and their families.

The task force has to work with Florida state officials, local governments, scientists, farmers, businesses, and environmental groups to make sure the plan actually makes sense and won't duplicate work already being done. They also have to publish their proposed plan in the Federal Register so the public can see it and comment before it becomes final. Once the plan is approved, the task force has to report back to Congress every two years on how things are progressing. Essentially, this bill is about getting organized, gathering information, and creating a coordinated strategy to tackle a growing environmental and public health problem affecting South Florida's coastal communities.

South Florida Clean Coastal Waters Act of 2021

Mast, Brian J.

South Florida Clean Coastal Waters Act of 2021 This bill addresses harmful algal blooms and hypoxia in the South Florida ecosystem. An algal bloom is a rapid growth of algae that may create toxic or hypoxic (severely low-oxygen) conditions that are harmful to humans, animals, aquatic ecosystems, and the economy. The Inter-Agency Task Force on Harmful Algal Blooms and Hypoxia must assess potential approaches to reduce harmful algal blooms and hypoxia in the ecosystem. The task force must also submit a plan, based on the assessment, for reducing, mitigating, and controlling harmful algal blooms and hypoxia in the region.