Can cowboys save the Indian River Lagoon?
BY SHELLEY OWENS CORRRESPONDENT Have you ever heard of water farming? You will soon. As the drought/flood cycle continues in Florida, as drinking water supplies decrease with development and uncontrolled fresh-water runoff, as conservation efforts like the Comprehensive Everglades Restoration Plan grind to a halt because of lack of funding, as ranches and groves face financial devastation because of the economy, hopes will soon turn to a water conservation deal worked out between a bunch of cowboys and the World Wildlife Fund. Their efforts have led to a market-based, low-cost and innovative water management program that could save help save Lake Okeechobee and the Indian River Lagoon. And once it expands statewide, these water farming operations could be a model for economies everywhere. Where it begins @BJ Bodycopy: In 2003, Sarah Lynch, director of agriculture at the Washington, D.C.-based World Wildlife Fund, approached ranchers north of Lake Okeechobee to sit down and talk about h
