Activists jailed over FPL protest in Barley Barber Swamp

On Saturday, 17 Earth First! activists were arrested for entering the Barley Barber Swamp near Lake Okeechobee to demand the protection of Florida old growth ecosystems against the encroachment of FPL.

Everglades Earth First! has charged that aquifer pumping related to FPL's massive 3750 megaWatt Martin County power plant and adjacent 17-mile-long cooling pond are killing the 1,000-year old Cypress trees in Barley Barber, one of the few remaining old growth cypress swamps in the Southeast.

In a press statement, Earth First! noted that "several of the bald cypress trees in Barley Barber are over a thousand years old. They are the oldest in Florida and the entire Southeast region."

According to the press relase, posted online at the Eye on Miami blog:

"Following a five day standoff, six activists entered the swamp through a public waterway and chained themselves to trees. Eleven other activists were swept up by the police in a frivolous attempt to quell the protest. Currently, Everglades Earth First! is confronted with the immediate need to raise $18,000 to bail these courageous activists out of Martin County jail."

Local TV footage posted at Eye On Miami has also been posted on YouTube by Earth First!.

Additional coverage, along with photos and video footage of the 1,000-year old Cypress trees in Barley Barber are online at PlanetSave.com, here.