Sugar growers reached an agreement with the state of Florida and the federal government over cleanup of the Everglades National Park, according to Environment & Development, an American Planning Association publication. (Sept. '93)

This is another step in the ongoing debate between the environmentalists and the sugar industry, in which sugar growers will pay up to $322 million over the next 20 years for cleanup of the Everglades. It was reported in the Tampa Tribune that the $1 billion-a-year sugar industry has spawned three dozen legal challenges and fierce debate over issues such as public vs. private financing of the cleanup in the past.

Florida environmentalists, who have supported farmers bearing the brunt of the costs, still criticize the accord for being reached in closed-door sessions convened by the Interior Secretary, Bruce Babbitt.