Steve Newborn
ReporterI cover Florida’s unending series of issues with the environment and politics in the Tampa Bay area.
I love to go camping, ride bikes and go for long paddles on scenic, winding rivers, so I can think about that while covering meetings that go on for hours.
I've been around Florida so long that I have covered events that most people can’t remember anymore. I've covered President George W. Bush’s speech in Sarasota as the Sept. 11 attacks unfolded; the ongoing drama over whether the feeding tube should be removed from Terri Schiavo; the arrest and terrorism trial of USF professor Sami Al-Arian; how the BP Deepwater Horizon spill affected Florida; and followed the Florida Wildlife Corridor Expedition as they walked and paddled through the state — twice.
I also got the privilege of tagging along with a Sarasota-based group investigating how manatees are faring in Cuba.
Before joining WUSF, I covered environmental and Polk County news for the late, great Tampa Tribune and worked for NASA at the Kennedy Space Center during the early days of the space shuttle.
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Lawmakers are back in Tallahassee this week for their annual session. Environmentalists are concerned about bills that would reduce local government control over pollution and new developments. -
The measure would ban capturing threatened or endangered marine life off the Florida coast for exhibits. -
The Florida Aquarium is releasing 9,000 juvenile corals that were born and grown at its Apollo Beach facility, and transferring them to larger grow houses before they're planted back on the state's coral reef. -
The crabs' numbers have been depleted in recent years because of a loss of habitat and their value for testing new medicines. -
The Trump administration wants to roll back protections for endangered and threatened species viewed as detrimental to economic growth. One critic says the proposals would have "destructive effects." -
The $50 million project will capture methane that is flared into the atmosphere at the Lena Road landfill and convert it to usable energy. -
The proposed ordinance would have prohibited bicyclists from riding in groups or doing wheelies and stunts. -
Two candidates will square off in the March special election to fill the seat vacated by now-Lt. Gov. Jay Collins. -
Jewish officials in Tampa Bay say the shootings will inevitably lead to more security measures at Jewish institutions around the world. -
A phase one water shortage is still in effect in areas served by the Southwest Florida Water Management District.
