Environmental issues in Florida
There are a number of environmental issues in Florida. A large portion of Florida is a biologically diverse ecosystem, with large wetlands in the Everglades. Management of environmental issues related to the everglades and the larger coastal waters and wetlands have been important to the history of Florida and the development of multiple parts of the economy of Florida, including the influential agricultural industry. This biodiversity leaves much of Florida's ecological ecosystem vulnerable to invasive species and human sources of industrial pollution and waste. Moreover, because of Florida's low geography, Florida has been described as "ground zero" in the United States for the impacts of climate change in the United States. Everglades The Everglades are tropical wetlands located in the southern portion of Florida that have been designated under the Ramsar Convention as one of only three wetland areas of global importance. A restoration of the Everglades is being carried out with a $7.8 billion, 30-year project aimed at its preservation and restoration. Biodiversity The Florida panther is an endangered population of the cougar (Puma concolor). There are about 230 individuals in the wild. The Center for Biological Diversity and others have called for a special protected area for the