VENICE

Hands Along The Water plans peaceful red tide demonstration

Oct. 20 event designed to get attention of elected officials and candidates

Earle Kimel
earle.kimel@heraldtribune.com

VENICE — The grassroots environmental group Hands Along the Water is planning a statewide peaceful demonstration from 2 to 3 pm. Oct. 20 — with a main event at Waller Park in Tallahassee and local demonstrations set for Venice City Hall and the Unconditional Surrender statue at Bayfront Park in Sarasota.

Venice resident Samantha Gentrup, one of the founding members of the group — which is in the process of becoming a nonprofit — said a weekend was chosen so people can attend without taking time off from work.

“Our purpose is to have a united front for all Floridians, all people around the state,” said Gentrup, who now serves as the executive director.

The other two founding members, Vice President Adrienne-Miceli-Trask and communications director Jen Palmer, are both Sarasota residents.

The event, dubbed Hands Across the State is not unlike the original event that occurred Aug. 12 at various beaches, including Venice, Siesta Key and Anna Maria Island, with people joining hands in solidarity and a call for clean water.

Hands Across the State is not a protest, though water quality has become a statewide political issue. Four “things to remember,” listed on the web site stress that there will be no signs allowed and that it’s a peaceful event to show solidarity.

Participants are asked to wear a blue shirt to represent healthy water and bring drinking water in reusable bottles — to cut down waste.

At 2 p.m., a representative at each location will read an open letter to elected officials and candidates. The current plan is for those readings to be also webcast on the group’s Facebook page.

The letter will address how Hands Along the Water views the environmental disaster the state is currently faced with because red tide and the blue-green algae flowing from Lake Okeechobee to estuaries on both sides of the state.

Gentrup said the letter will ask for truthful answers and real solutions — not just temporary fixes.

Speaking specifically about Venice, Gentrup said, “We want the city to know that we want to help them.

“Not only do we want the truth — and we are asking the city of Venice to take leadership in the state on this — but we also want them to know we’ve got their backs,” she added. “I will fully support them in whatever direction they want to go.

“We want clean water.”

Among the requests in the current draft, the letter asks:

• That state government put regulations in place regarding Lake Okeechobee regarding nutrient levels and the use of science-based best management practices to reduce nutrients.

• Accountability from state legislators regarding the Florida Water and Land Conservation Initiative — Amendment 1, as approved by almost 75 percent of voters in 2014, and the use of those funds to preserve and protect the ecosystem in Florida.

• For the state to follow the action taken by 11 other states and implement a year-round ban on fertilizers containing nitrogen and phosphorus.

• Restoration of the funding of the state’s five water management district to 2011 levels — accounting for inflation.

• Restoration of the 2010 septic tank inspection law that the Legislature and Gov. Rick Scott repealed in 2012.

Read more: Complete coverage of red tide in Southwest Florida

Gentrup said once the letter is finalized, the goal is to have other environmental groups in the state endorse it as well.

Meanwhile, an effort that started as a peaceful demonstration is evolving into what Gentrup calls a "sustainable long-term mission" that is part education, part activism.

Locally, the Venice chapter will likely help the city label stormwater drains.

Once its nonprofit status is secured, the group also plans to conduct its own water quality tests on stormwater released by the city of Venice at one of 16 outfalls — 10 of which flow directly into the Gulf of Mexico. 

Interested?

• To learn more about Hands Along the Water, visit handsalongthewater.com or its main Facebook page at facebook.com/officialhandsalongthewater.

• To get involved, email Gentrup at director@handsalongthewater.com.