<your name>
<your return address>
<your city, state and zip>

<recipient’s name>
<recipient’s address>
<recipient’s city, state, and zip code>

<date>

Dear <recipient>,

	The passing of the Restoring the Everglades, An American Legacy Act (REAL) 2001, was an enormous step forward in our country’s responsibility toward the environment, namely the unique ecosystem that is globally recognized as so.  The REAL Act, as you know, authorized the Comprehensive Everglades Restoration Plan (CERP) and though lacking specific allocation of funds for restoration projects, it encompasses all aspects that need to be addressed and corrected to ensure the remainder of the Everglades healthy.1  I commend your initiative in applying $1.5 billion of the state’s money to start the restoration but I am saddened to see that five years since the passing of CERP, there has been not a single project completed.2 
	The Everglades ecosystem is at a point where further degradation could jeopardize the possibility of restoration.2   I urge you to not be misled by sugar corporation lobbyists and nullify the 2003 amendment of the Everglades Forever Act.  This legislation that allows continued and increased pollution of phosphorous by the sugar industry into the Everglades until 2016.  This legislation is completely in conflict with your previous and adamant dedication to the Everglades and CERP.  I am outraged that you have allowed this legislation to be passed into law.  Not only does it create more cost to the tax payer for restoration but bypasses the voter approved 1996 “Polluter Pay” constitutional amendment and undermines the alliance and partnership of those involved in the restoration effort, including the federal government.3  If the Everglades is lost in the name of urban growth and agriculture pollution, we will all lose part of our heritage.  The citizens of this planet demand response on the lack of action taken to fulfill CERP and keep the world’s most famous wetland alive and healthy.

Sincerely,
<your name>