http://www.wmnf.org/news Recent stories from the WMNF Evening News, RadioActivity, and public affairs shows. 27.98152-82.44591 http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/WmnfNews/~3/_jkNUx-z9Qc/authentic-and-sustainable-destinations-in-florida-and-around-the-world When you travel, do you look for destinations that have a predictable and homogeneous appearance and feel, or do you gravitate toward locations with a unique environment and authentic history? If you fall into the latter category, a newly-updated list of destinations might give you some ideas. The current edition of National Geographic Traveler [rates 133 worldwide destinations](http://traveler.nationalgeographic.com/2009/11/destinations-rated/intro-text), including three in Florida, for their authenticity. Jonathan Tourtellot is the director of the Center for Sustainable Destinations for the National Geographic Society. [NatGeo’s Places Rated](http://traveler.nationalgeographic.com/2009/11/destinations-rated/intro-text) http://www.wmnf.org/news_stories/authentic-and-sustainable-destinations-in-florida-and-around-the-world WMNF http://www.wmnf.org/news_stories/authentic-and-sustainable-destinations-in-florida-and-around-the-world http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/WmnfNews/~3/Hl6XRDZFihM/desalinization-plant-outage The Tampa Bay Waters desalinization plant was shut down last weekend after a power outage occurred in Apollo Beach. The abrupt shutdown damaged the troubled water supply plant. The desalinization plant had another problem last weekend, when several pipelines burst, forcing an extended shutdown for repairs. The damage was caused by a condition known as “water hammer,” which can result if high pressure water in motion is forced to stop suddenly, creating a pipe-breaking pressure surge. The power failure created the water hammer condition at the plant. The plant is the largest in the United Statues, and treats bay water that is far more salty than normal sea water. But the plant has had a troubled past. It went on line 5 years late, and cost $40 million over budget. During the delay, major modifications were made because mollusks and impurities were clogging the plant up. Since going on line after a multi year redesign process, its record has been spotty. Tampa Bay Water’s Chuck Carden noted that the plant reliability has improved greatly and has been operating at 25 million gallons per day, its original design capacity, for several months. Tampa Bay Water produces around 160 million gallons per day from 3 source: well and river pumping, and desalinization. Currently most is pumped from wells, with some supplied from local rivers, and the desalinization plant. During the rainy season, excess water production is sent to the giant C.W. Bill Young reservoir, which is used to supplant production in the dry winter months. The water utility is under orders from the Southwest Florida Water Management District (SWFWMD) to reduce well production to an average of 90 million gallons per day by December. To comply with that, the utility plans to increase the use of river water and maintain desalinization production at its maximum levels. The balancing of sources is expected to be worse for two years, starting in 2012, when repairs are being made to the reservoir. Carden noted that the repairs might not require draining the reservoir. One little understood aspect of the desalinization process is energy usage. The Apollo Beach plant uses a relatively efficient technology known as reverse osmosis, where salt and impurities are filtered out of seawater at high pressure. Even with this technology, desalinization can take up to 10 times more electricity that the conventional sources, well and river pumping. Under full production, the Apollo Beach plant uses about as much electricity as 10,000 homes, and generating the needed electricity adds about 7500 tons of carbon dioxide to the atmosphere monthly. Carden noted that Tampa Water recognizes the high costs of desalinization, but has little choice in running the plant at high levels. The next challenge for the utility is to run the plant at full capacity continuously for 4 months. Upon meeting this benchmark, SWFWMD will make its final payment of $21.5 million to the utility for the construction of the plant. http://www.wmnf.org/news_stories/desalinization-plant-outage WMNF http://www.wmnf.org/news_stories/desalinization-plant-outage http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/WmnfNews/~3/yiHO0UOYvX8/the-coalition-of-immokalee-workers-campaigns-for-tomato-harvesters The farmworkers of the Coalition of Immokalee Workers (CIW) have been on a campaign for better wages for Florida tomato pickers. Yum Brands (owner of Taco Bell, Pizza Hut, KFC), McDonald's, Burger King, Subway, Whole Foods, food-service giant Compass Group, and Bon Appetit are all working with the CIW to improve wages and conditions for those who pick their tomatoes. According to the CIW: “this resulted in a breakthrough agreement with Florida's third largest tomato grower and two smaller organic growers to implement the penny per pound wage increase--the first real wage increase for tomato pickers in 30 years-- and a code of conduct for fair conditions in the fields. This also includes zero tolerance for modern-day slavery and a voice for farmworkers in reporting abuses and improving conditions.” For almost a year, the CIW and others have invited Publix to join in improving the sub-poverty wages and abuses faced by farmworkers. Publix has declined to participate. Publix continues to purchase tomatoes from farms where the victims in the most recent slavery case-- who were beaten, locked in trucks, chained and forced to work-- were taken to work. Farmworkers from the CIW will be traveling to the Tampa Bay area for public witness and educational events this fall. *Sunday, Oct. 25th at 4pm: Picket at the Publix at 53rd and Fowler Ave., Tampa *Saturday, Nov. 14th at 1:30pm: Picket at the Publix at 525 S Belcher Rd, Clearwater (corner of Belcher and Gulf to Bay Blvd) *Sunday, Nov. 15th at 2:00 pm: Walk from the Publix at 5295 34th St. S., to the Publix at 3030 54th Ave. S., St. Petersburg For more background visit . http://www.wmnf.org/news_stories/the-coalition-of-immokalee-workers-campaigns-for-tomato-harvesters WMNF http://www.wmnf.org/news_stories/the-coalition-of-immokalee-workers-campaigns-for-tomato-harvesters http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/WmnfNews/~3/RtAIga201uM/bud-chiles-walks-across-fl-to-promote-education Welcome to Radioactivity. I’m Rob Lorei. Coming up today we’ll talk with the Coalition of Immokalee Workers about their effort to raise the wages of the people who harvest tomatoes here in Florida. But first, Bud Chiles is one of the sons of former Governor Lawton Chiles and he’s walking across the state in an effort to highlight how far the state is behind in meeting the basic education needs of its citizens. He calls the campaign 'Worst To First'. He's walking 600 miles across Florida to talk with ordinary people about Florida's dismal score on many education, health care, and social service rankings. http://www.wmnf.org/news_stories/bud-chiles-walks-across-fl-to-promote-education WMNF http://www.wmnf.org/news_stories/bud-chiles-walks-across-fl-to-promote-education http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/WmnfNews/~3/tCwSozhRJKY/marine-reservist-attacks-greek-priest-in-tampa-thinking-he-is-a-terrorist A U.S. Marine Reservist was arrested for attacking a Greek Orthodox Priest in Tampa Monday night. The victim was hit in the head with a tire iron. The assault might be investigated as a hate crime because the alleged attacker told police an Arabic male tried to rob him and he was going to take him into custody. The Tampa Bay Human Rights Council is condemning the attack; Ahmed Bedier is their president. Bedier is also the co-host of the WMNF program True Talk. The Tampa Police say that during a 911 call the suspect, Jasen Bruce, claimed that an Arabic male tried to rob him and he was going to take him into custody. In reality, the victim, Alexios Marakis, is a Greek Orthodox Priest visiting from the island of Crete. Tampa Police spokesperson Laura McElroy says that the victim was looking for directions in a parking garage and tapped the suspect on the arm. McElroy says the suspect was booked into jail and bonded out after the police determined he should be arrested for aggravated battery with a deadly weapon. Bedier says the Human Rights Council has asked the Tampa Police Department and the FBI’s Tampa office to look into whether the case should be prosecuted as a hate crime. As of late Tuesday afternoon, it was not known whether the suspect has served time overseas or has any military-related mental health concerns. For those reasons, Bedier thinks it is too soon to draw any links between this crime and last week’s mass shooting at Ft. Hood. WMNF attempted to speak with the victim and the Tarpon Springs church he is visiting, but they did not return calls by airtime. The 911 call has not yet been released. *In an update to this story, minutes before the 6:00 p.m. newscast, WMNF reached Captain Paul Greenberg with the Marine Reserves. He said there is no record of overseas deployment for the suspect in this case, Jasen Bruce. Bruce was in the Marine Reserves from 1998 until 2006 when he got out, according to Greenberg. Bruce rejoined the Marine Reserve in March, 2009. He is with the 4th Air Naval Gunfire Liaison Company based in West Palm Beach.* *The Associated Press reports that Bruce's defense attorney says Bruce was "defending himself from a sexual attack." The attorney, Jeff Brown says Rev. Marakis followed Bruce into the parking garage of his apartment building, made sexual comments and grabbed Bruce's genitals.* http://www.wmnf.org/news_stories/marine-reservist-attacks-greek-priest-in-tampa-thinking-he-is-a-terrorist WMNF http://www.wmnf.org/news_stories/marine-reservist-attacks-greek-priest-in-tampa-thinking-he-is-a-terrorist http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/WmnfNews/~3/0_ejCs2644A/florida-waterways-under-scrutiny-by-epa In efforts to protect Florida’s surface waterways, the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and Florida’s Department of Environmental Protection have joined forces and are making efforts to adopt stricter state regulations. Passed in the early ‘70s, the Clean Water Act mandates that each state establish “water quality standards” for the water bodies within their boundaries and then compile a list of those that do not meet its water quality standards every two years. According to the EPA’s website, Florida has been a national leader in managing and fighting water pollution. David Guest is an attorney for Earth Justice, a non-profit based out of Tallahassee that works toward enforcing environmental law. He said Florida’s efforts are not enough. Florida’s 2008 Integrated Water Quality Assessment documents that more than 1000 miles of rivers and streams, 350,000 acres of lakes, and 900 square miles of estuaries are impaired by nutrients, such as phosphorous and nitrogen. These nutrients are run-off from excess fertilizer and manure, which Guest said has caused the worst water pollution problem in Florida. On behalf of several environmental groups, including the Sierra Club and the Florida Wildlife Federation, Earth Justice sued the EPA for not enforcing or mandating stricter regulations on fertilizer run-off. Guest said the resolution is and always has been simple. Florida’s Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) is now working with the EPA to establish stricter nutrient water quality criteria for Florida. This has sparked controversy between the supporters of the move and the Department of Agriculture, which Guest said has been DEP’s biggest opponent in moving toward reform in the past. Terrence McElroy, speaking on behalf of Charles Bronson, Florida’s Commissioner of Agriculture, said the Department of Agriculture believes Florida’s DEP should be left alone to make their own revisions. Regulations should not come from the settlement made between federal government and environmental groups in the 2006 Earth Justice Case. In correspondence with WMNF, the DEP said that it was already working toward revisions within the state. But it is now working with the EPA to ensure that the “criteria are informed by local information and data, scientifically defensible and appropriately address the ecology of Florida’s ecosystems. Guest said regardless of whether the revision comes from the DEP or EPA, it needs to happen now. Another problem, McElroy said, is that the new revisions may help the waterways, but they will further devastate an already failing economy in Florida. Earth Justice’s Guest said that cleaning up the waterways in Florida will only help the state’s economy, which thrives on tourism, not agriculture. Guest said that these revisions should have taken place a long time ago and both the EPA and DEP will continue to push for the changes. The new numeric nutrient criteria for Florida are expected to be prepared by December 2010. http://www.wmnf.org/news_stories/florida-waterways-under-scrutiny-by-epa WMNF http://www.wmnf.org/news_stories/florida-waterways-under-scrutiny-by-epa http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/WmnfNews/~3/43ENYtSCWSc/author-community-provides-leadership-in-uncertain-times Author Meg Wheatley is President Emerita of the Berkana Institute. Her new book is called *Finding Our Way: Leadership for an Uncertain Time*. She will speak tonight at USF St. Petersburg on how organizations should change to mobilize community rather than rely on top-down leadership. http://www.wmnf.org/news_stories/author-community-provides-leadership-in-uncertain-times WMNF http://www.wmnf.org/news_stories/author-community-provides-leadership-in-uncertain-times http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/WmnfNews/~3/vmkma_pulRY/st-pete-s-homeless-protest-mayor-baker-s-farewell-party Saturday night, St. Petersburg Mayor Rick Baker was given a farewell celebration at Demens Park, courtesy of the St. Petersburg Chamber of Commerce. The event was protested by homeless activists who believe that Mayor Baker’s record deserves scrutiny for his mistreatment of the homeless population. A small bridge and a waterway separated the attendees of Mayor Baker’s farewell party from the homeless protesters outside. Tickets for the farewell celebration ranged from $125 up to $10,000. No one was allowed into the park without a ticket. Rev. Bruce Wright, with the Refuge and the [Poor People’s Economic Human Rights Campaign](http://old.economichumanrights.org), helped organize the protest. Wright said the lack of a designated free speech zone for the protest outside the event was the cause of tension between the protesters and local officials. WMNF attempted to speak with Mayor Baker and his associates, but was denied entry to the park along with the general public. Major Didi Karen with the St. Pete Police Department was one of the officers who denied the protesters park access. In January 2007 St. Pete police slashed the tents of 25 homeless people. Rev. Wright said that was one of the reasons for Saturday’s protest. Wright said that several law firms are representing the local homeless population to address the abuse. Greta Hunzicker attended the protest with St. Pete for Peace, holding a sign that read “Freedom should be more than a pretext for war.” [St. Pete for Peace](http://stpeteforpeace.org) is a non-partisan anti-war group founded in January 2003, and brings awareness to the atrocities they say our government is committing in Afghanistan, Pakistan, Palestine, and Iraq. Hunzicker was amazed at the disparity of resources allotted for the Baker event compared to the protest. Benjamin Araya brought food for the homeless from Food Not Bombs, a direct action group that shares free vegan and vegetarian meals with the hungry in more than 1,000 cities around the world every week to protest war, poverty and the destruction of the environment. http://www.wmnf.org/news_stories/st-pete-s-homeless-protest-mayor-baker-s-farewell-party WMNF http://www.wmnf.org/news_stories/st-pete-s-homeless-protest-mayor-baker-s-farewell-party http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/WmnfNews/~3/d_Q8_bqaezg/scientist-stephen-schneider-on-the-battle-to-save-the-climate Next month, representatives from countries all over the world will gather in Copenhagen, Denmark to create a new climate accord to replace the expiring Kyoto Protocol. But the U.S. has yet to come up with a final plan to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions. Last week the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee advanced a bill that would limit emissions of the pollutants that accumulate in the atmosphere, trap heat and cause global warming. Stephen Schneider studies climate change at Stanford University and has been researching climate and contributing to the climate policy debate for decades. His new book is called *Science as a Contact Sport: Inside the Battle to Save Earth’s Climate*. http://www.wmnf.org/news_stories/scientist-stephen-schneider-on-the-battle-to-save-the-climate WMNF http://www.wmnf.org/news_stories/scientist-stephen-schneider-on-the-battle-to-save-the-climate http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/WmnfNews/~3/vI8XdzNZuDg/shaman-s-way-with-alberto-villoldo-ph-d We spoke with Alberto Villoldo, Ph.D., about the *Shaman's Way*. Dr. Villoldo's web site is: . Villodo will also be speaking at the "I Can Do It" conference in Tampa on November 19th - 22nd. This conference is sponsored by [Hay House](www.hayhouse.com). http://www.wmnf.org/news_stories/shaman-s-way-with-alberto-villoldo-ph-d WMNF http://www.wmnf.org/news_stories/shaman-s-way-with-alberto-villoldo-ph-d http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/WmnfNews/~3/zBsc4ihkBCQ/cris-williamson Cris Williamson one of the legends and founding members of "Women's Music" talked about her upcoming concert with Crescendo the Tampa Women's Chorus whci is to be held at the Palladium in St. Petersburg Sat. Nov 14 at 8 pm. Cris talked about her life and her music. Hear her talk and realize why she is the legend so beloved by so many. As Bonnie Raitt says,"Cris Williamson is not only a hero to women" www.criswilliamson.com; www.crescendosings.com http://www.wmnf.org/news_stories/cris-williamson WMNF http://www.wmnf.org/news_stories/cris-williamson http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/WmnfNews/~3/f7b5w8EYJyo/film-the-way-we-get-by Gita Pullapilly Gaudet is a producer/ interviewer for the film The Way We Get By which is to be shown on the POV series at 9 pm on WEDU Nov 11. The Film is about the greeters-mainly elderly inidivuals from Bangor Maine who greet the Soldiers coming or leaving to go to Iraq or Afghanistan. Bangor Maine is the last airport in the USA for these planes and soldiers. A Wonderful film-not only about the soldiers, but as well the lives of these elderly-in some cases in frail health-people. A truly "American film" in so many ways. The film is non-political neithersupporting nor condemning the wars. Some of the lindivuals express their opinions-but the focus is on the caring and the relationships among all of these indidivuals. the film will be shown in the Tampa area at 9 pm, Nov 11 WEDU. www.pov.org; www.thewaywegetbymovie.com http://www.wmnf.org/news_stories/film-the-way-we-get-by WMNF http://www.wmnf.org/news_stories/film-the-way-we-get-by http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/WmnfNews/~3/Lg_Q80goB3w/chalet-comellas Chalet Comellas one of the artists in The Three Aartists now showin at the Scarfone Gallery at the Univ of Tampa discussed her art pieces in the show. Chalet is very interested in the subconcious and the manifestation of such into the collective conciousness. She uses images, symbols, recognizaable forms and totems to so accomplish. Very dynamic, challenging, a composition of both the story and the image. The show started nov 6 and continues through Dec. 10. www.chaletart.com http://www.wmnf.org/news_stories/chalet-comellas WMNF http://www.wmnf.org/news_stories/chalet-comellas http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/WmnfNews/~3/_IXoSABSKdM/perri-neri Perri Neri who is one of the three artists whose work is being shown in the Three Artists show at the Scarfone Gallery at the University of Tampa, talked about her art works being show in the show. Very dynamic "moving" forms,particularly feminine in nature. Peri discussed the evolution of these peces and her own personal evolution as well. The show is at the Scarfone Hartley Gallery at the University of Tampa, 401 W. Kennedy Blvd www.perrineri.com http://www.wmnf.org/news_stories/perri-neri WMNF http://www.wmnf.org/news_stories/perri-neri http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/WmnfNews/~3/u6HEI_g_jJ8/governor-crist-flip-flops-on-stimulus-support Wednesday, Governor Charlie Crist said he never endorsed the $787 billion stimulus bill, when he spoke with Wolf Blitzer on CNN. But on February 10th, Crist appeared with President Barack Obama in Ft. Myers touting the bill. The governor, who is also running for the US Senate seat vacated by Sen. Mel Martinez, even received backlash from some conservative counterparts on the issue. And on February 13, Crist told reporters outside of St. Petersburg’s City Hall that he did support the bill. But at the University of South Florida today Crist spoke with WMNF and attempted to bring clarity to what appears to be classical political flip-flop. http://www.wmnf.org/news_stories/governor-crist-flip-flops-on-stimulus-support WMNF http://www.wmnf.org/news_stories/governor-crist-flip-flops-on-stimulus-support