MIAMI (CBSMIAMI) – Miami is on the world stage as Mayor Daniella Levine Cava delivered the keynote address about protecting the environment at the United Nations.
“It’s a real honor to be here at the United Nations, talking with people from around the world who are facing similar challenges to ours,” Miami-Dade County Mayor Daniella Levine Cava told CBS 4 from New York.
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As part of her visit, Levine Cava is sharing her climate action strategy for the county, part of which is to reduce greenhouse gases and to heal the watershed system.
“Our runoff into the bay is something we’re aggressively tackling but there are similar issues in other parts of the world other places have septic systems that have to be converted, other systems have coral reefs that are dying others have seagrass that is no thriving,” she explained.
Through the mayor’s initiative, the Biscayne Bay report card recently released shows improvement from last year, with many sections showing fair, but one trouble area, a section identified as South-North Bay A received a poor rating; the goal is to get everything back in green, or good health.
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Miami-Dade Mayor Daniella Levine Cava at the UN
One culprit is nitrogen and phosphorus. “We cannot just be utilizing fertilizer whenever we wish it runs right into our system and right into the bay, and leads to the death of marine creatures and seagrass,” she explained.
In the coming months, money will be spent to find the source of major pollution and remove septic tanks in low-lying areas.
“We need to share what we’re learning, what’s working how we can prepare for this future,” Mayor Levine Cava added.
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Taking action to protect the environment is also a step in preserving a way of life all around the world.
