Here’s a geography question: What’s the capital of Florida? If you said Tallahassee, you were right… sort of. But Wednesday, the city of Ft. Myers became “Capital for a Day.” Governor Jeb Bush and members of his cabinet held their bi-weekly cabinet meeting in the City of Palms. It was was open to the public – which got a civics lesson, of sorts. Valerie Alker has more. (AUDIO)

A small army of building officials from Ft. Myers descended on a migrant labor camp on the city’s outskirts Wednesday morning. They were there to document code violations. Valerie Alker was also there and has this report. (AUDIO)

These days, meteorologists at the National Weather Service near Tampa are on the lookout for more than just severe weather. That’s thanks to a new tsunami-awareness program in place for the Atlantic Ocean. Although unlikely, tsunamis have struck Florida in the past… most recently in 1755 – when an earthquake in Portugal resulted in 10 to 13 foot waves on Florida’s east coast. The event killed about a hundred people. December’s tragic tsunami in southern Asia prompted this new Atlantic warning program. Meteorologist - Daniel Noah – says local forecasters had to be educated about the potential for Atlantic tsunamis.

“We did have it in place for much of the country, however the Gulf Coast and the Atlantic Coast needed to shore up their tsunami warning programs. We have them so infrequently on this side of the country, we had to do a training program to say what is the tsunami threat to Florida?”

Noah says meteorologists learned what to look for, and how to relay information to emergency managers and local media. He says the next step is a series of buoys that can detect a passing tsunami. But, there’s no word on when they might be in place.

North Port's Meals on Wheels will stop deliveries to homebound residents Saturday because it can’t find enough volunteers. The organization has operated out of North Port for the last 33 years. Meals on Wheels has been an institution in North Port. More than 60 volunteers have made hot meals and delivered them to homebound residents since the late 1970s. Some of the volunteers today have been with the organization for 20 years or more. But they can’t continue any longer and ads for help went unanswered. Many clients have made other arrangements, either with family or friends. But for some, the only option is to sign up for the local Senior Friendship Centers' meal delivery program. Reports in the Herald Tribune say that program costs twice as much as Meals on Wheels. But, Cathy Emmett with the Sarasota Venice Senior Friendship Centers says that’s not necessarily the case.

“We also administer a program through federal funds as part of the Older Americans act. And that’s a program that’s a program that’s available to people that are 60 and older. They do have to be assessed for that program to see if they meet the criteria. And that’s a process though that usually takes a couple of weeks for individuals to do. So what we’re doing is for those individuals who can pay privately and many have indicated to us they can but for those who can’t we’re walking them through that process. We’re just trying to make sure nobody goes hungry.”
Under the Senior Friendship Centers' private pay program, clients will pay $5 a meal, which works out to about $100 a month. Instead of six hot meals, there are only five. There’s also a 100 deposit to start receiving meals.

The health of Lake Okeechobee – and the impact the lake will have in the coming months on the health of water down stream – is on the agenda of the Lee County Commission tomorrow (today). Representatives from the South Florida Water management District will brief commissioners on the state of the Lake. Susan Grey is director of the District’s Lake Okeechobee Division.

“The lake is in pretty bad shape, its probably the worst I’ve seen it since I started with the agency back in 1992. And it’s a combination of significant impacts from the hurricanes, coupled with high water levels and a very windy dry season which kept everything stirred up and in suspension.”

High water levels in the lake lead to releases into the Caloosahatchee River… which flows through Lee County and into the Gulf. Fresh water releases—aimed at lowering lake levels—also dilute the salinity in the estuary - and can contribute to environmental degradation.

Mote Marine Laboratory celebrates its 50th anniversary this week. The lab was incorporated June 13th 1955. Sarasota City commissioners declared this “Mote Marine Laboratory Week.” Similar proclamations have also come from county commissions and five nearby cities. Mote started out as a tiny operation in Cape Haze after philanthropist William Vanderbilt asked noted shark researcher Dr. Eugenie Clark if she would start a marine lab in Florida. She headed the lab for ten years. It’s gone on to serve as a local, national and international resource, furthering the understanding of the oceans through research. Ocean explorer Dr. Sylvia Earle, whose career now includes more than 60 expeditions worldwide and more than 7000 hours underwater, started at Mote.

“I had the great pleasure of being at the Mote Marine Laboratory before it was called the Mote Marine Laboratory. Eugenie Clark took me under her flipper when I was a student so I got to see the very beginnings of what now has blossomed into this magnificent institution that include education, research. It includes exploration and even merging into policy.”

Mote scientists have gained a worldwide reputation for studies on sharks, red tide, river and estuary ecology, marine mammals, sea turtles and coral reefs. Over the last 20 years, the lab has rescued, rehabilitated and released several hundred whales, dolphins and sea turtles. It also attracts 400,000 visitors a year making it one of Sarasota County’s largest tourist destinations.

A series of apparent acts of vandalism in Lee County have left thousands of residents temporarily without phone service. Since mid-April a number of Sprint fiber-optic cables in North Fort Myers and South Fort Myers have been cut. Service to several thousand Sprint customers was affected… including on one occasion Lee Memorial Hospital, and the Lee County Justice Center.
Coordinator for southwest Florida Crimestoppers - Trish Route – says it appears they are deliberate acts of vandalism.

“This wasn’t an accident where a construction crew could’ve cut through the fiber optic cables…the person who did this knew what they were doing…it wasn’t like you or I could go in there and oops, cut a fiber optic cable. This was something where somebody clearly had intent and followed through…and as a result of their actions a lot of people went without phone service for a while.”

Route says it’s believed the same person or persons is behind the vandalism. Sprint is offering up to $10,000 for information leading to the arrest of the persons responsible for the outages. Anyone with information should call 1-800-780-TIPS…callers will remain anonymous.

A book some are now calling a Florida classic – a book which had been out of print for decades – has been given new life. Botanist John Kunckel Small’s “From Eden to Sahara, Florida’s Tragedy" has been republished by the Seminole Soil and Water Conservation District. John Kunkel Small, was born in Pennsylvania in 1869. He became curator of The New York Botanical Gardens in 1898. In 1903 he published “Flora of the Southeastern United States” which remains one of the best reference books of its kind. His first trip to Florida was in 1901. During travel to the state over the next decades he documented its development and destruction. Author Bill Belleville wrote the introduction to the new edition of “From Eden to Sahara – Florida’s Tragedy”.

(AUDIO)

Bill Belleville wrote an introduction to “From Eden to Sahara, Florida’s Tragedy” the book, by botanist John Kunkel Small, was first published in 1929. It’s available from the Seminole Soil and Water Conservation District ---look on line. It’s also for sale at Amazon.com.

The health department employee who investigates mold problems in southwest Florida is a very busy guy. Bob Kallotte inspects homes and businesses in seven counties. He says since Hurricane Charley last August, he’s investigated 16-thousand mold issues. Kallotte gets lots of calls from people whose doctors suspected mold was causing their respiratory problems or other reactions. Mold needs water to grow—and last year’s storm provided plenty of that. Speaking on WGCU’s Gulf Coast Live, Kallotte said homes that had only minor damage are often prime grounds for mold growth.

“It’s the home that only had a corner of the roof blown off or one window blown in… the water that got into those walls—under those carpets—that are creating mold problems. And people are, in some cases, ignoring the mold issues.”

In the last session, Florida lawmakers passed a home inspector and mold remediation bill. It creates certification guidelines for people who work in mold elimination.

Forty miles west of Sarasota, the Gulf of Mexico hides underwater mysteries. One to two hundred feet below the surface are openings to places no one had ever been…. Until a group of divers, calling themselves “Explorers Under the Gulf,” made some awesome discoveries. Here’s a preview of this month’s In Focus on the Environment - Blue Holes in the Gulf. Dive into the Blue Holes and Caves in the Gulf of Mexico – tonight at 8:30 on WGCU-TV. (AUDIO)