The Village of Pinecrest is taking enormous initiatives in changing environmental innovation and the ways communities think about waste and environmental stewardship. In their efforts, they secured a $400,000 U.S. Department of Agriculture Grant for the Everglades Earth Cycle Project. “The Everglades Earth Cycle” is a composting program, and a collaboration between the Fertile Earth Worm Farm, the Miccosukee Tribe of Indians of Florida, The Love The Everglades Movement and Miami-Dade Commissioner Raquel Regalado’s Office.
This new environmental innovation is a pilot program to remove invasive plants and improve water quality in local canals. In partnership with Green Thumb Strategies’ Phytoflora, the project single-handedly combines sustainability and practicality to address critical water quality challenges, while contributing to the health of Biscayne Bay.
The program’s goal is to create a closed-loop circular system that benefits the ecosystem and environment. The initiative generates nutrient-rich soil and compost for application in the Everglades by diverting biodegradable organic materials from landfills within the urban matrix.
The program has already diverted an estimated over 90,000 pounds of food waste from landfills.
The first two floating flower beds will be installed at secondary canals managed by the Village near 115th Street and 70th Avenue in February and March 2025. Each flower bed will be a 500-square-foot platform that will feature plants such as African marigolds, celosia and amaranth. They will also include more native species to experiment with the way they filter natural chemicals like phosphorus and other pollutants from the water.
Another pressing issue the flower beds address in a beneficial approach is the Hydrilla plant — a highly invasive plant that overtakes canals and hinders water flow as well as creating unpleasant odors. The flower beds, however, intercept nutrients that mitigate Hydrilla growth while reducing the need for herbicides.
This initiative also connects spreading environmental beauty and active community engagement. Another benefit is that the harvested flowers from the floating flower beds will be sold at the Pinecrest Farmers Market at Pinecrest Gardens.
Pinecrest demonstrates how effects in unified local community change can address global challenges.
