Monday's small brushfire in Avon Park Estates will hopefully serve as a reminder for residents to be prepared. To see just how devastating brushfires can be, check what happened in Brevard County last week. All it took apparently was tossing a cigarette and the result was thousands of acres of land burned, 30 homes destroyed, 140 structures damaged, people displaced and lives impacted for years to come. Although May is officially the last month of the brushfire season, the threat of fire is still very possible in many parts of the state. It has been dry – as evidenced by lawns turning brown – and will likely continue to remain that way. May is traditionally one of the driest months of the year in Florida. ...more

May 17, 2008

A West Pasco Special Olympics Pasco County athlete, Rosetta LoBianco, recently returned home from the Special Olympics Florida Athlete Congress, in Tallahassee. ...more

February 9, 2008

United States Envirofuels, a Tampa alternative fuel corporation, has been given a $7 million grant to build an ethanol plant in Venus. ...more

January 23, 2008

TALLAHASSEE – Florida Agriculture Commissioner Charles H. Bronson is urging the state's farmers and ranchers to watch their mail in early January for the arrival of the 2007 Census of Agriculture form. "I urge all of Florida's agricultural producers to participate in the Census by completing and returning the form," Bronson said. "The input received by the Census helps shape the future of agriculture for years to come, and we want to make sure that the voices of Florida's farmers and ranchers are heard." ...more

December 30, 2007

Much has been made of government's decision last summer not to pump phosphorous rich water into Lake Okeechobee. Florida Agriculture Commissioner Charles Bronson claims that this one decision - which some claim will somehow deprive growers of some irrigation water - makes up $4 million of the $1 billion in losses expected to Florida's farm economy. Further, sugarcane farmers argue that sugar production (and presumably profits) may fall by 20 percent. ...more

December 27, 2007

An emergency rule designed to guard Florida's citrus crop against a fungus that might be on California fruit shipped into the state withstood an initial court challenge Wednesday. ...more

December 20, 2007

Another hurricane season has come and gone and fortunately our state avoided the big storms this year. However, we can't let down our guard because another potentially dangerous time – brush fire season – is upon us. While brush fire season doesn't seem to draw the attention as hurricanes do, wild fires can be deadly and destructive. If you don't believe that, check with the folks in California. Now is the time to make homes as safe as possible from the threat of brush fires. ...more

December 17, 2007

Florida has soured on California-grown citrus. A legal dispute has emerged between the two states over the importing of fresh citrus, and concerns of fungus-laden fruit making its way into Florida groves and markets and, eventually, into Korea. ...more

December 15, 2007

TALLAHASSEE – Florida Agriculture and Consumer Services Commissioner Charles H. Bronson is urging consumers to check out charitable organizations before making any donations. As the holidays get under way, charities are gearing up for their busiest time of the year. Many collect about half their annual donations in the short time between Thanksgiving and New Year's Day. Florida law requires most charities that do business in the state – regardless of where they are headquartered – to register with the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services and provide financial information about income and expenditures. There are 12,597 charitable organizations registered with the state. ...more

December 9, 2007

Florida is enlisting the help of hundreds of farmers and nursery growers to clean up the state's polluted waterways, but environmentalists complain the environment is suffering under the partnership. ...more

November 18, 2007