Floridians of all political hues agree on at least one issue: Save the Everglades.</p><p>So says a poll of 600 residents throughout the state that was commissioned by the Everglades Foundation and released Tuesday morning.</p><p>"There is near universal support for Everglades restoration," said Kirk Fordham, Everglades Foundation chief executive officer. </p><p>"It's important to remind lawmakers that this is an issue that Floridians feel very passionately about ... that the restoration of the River of Grass should be a high priority," Fordham said. "Voters really want to see this thing happen."</p><p>"There are very few issues that unite Democrats and Republicans these days but this is one," said Jim Kitchens, president of the Kitchens Group that conducted the telephone poll in late September.</p><p>"It's bigger than being a member of a party, this comes down to being a Floridian," Kitchens said.</p><p>The poll indicated 48 percent of the respondents said Everglades restoration is "very important," with another 34 percent describing it as "somewhat important."</p><p>The most critical reasons cited by the respondents were to ensure a freshwater drinking supply, and to provide flood-control protection.</p><p>Providing habitat for wildlife also ranked highly, with 60 percent saying it's very important.</p><p>The Everglades Foundation is a leading voice in support of preserving South Florida's most critical ecosystem.</p><p>Fordham said the group commissioned the $10,000 poll because "we wanted our own gauge on what political attitudes are on Everglades restoration generally."</p><p>He acknowledged poll results may be raised in upcoming discussions with the Florida Legislature over the state's pending purchase of 73,000 acres south of Lake Okeechobee.</p><p>Also on the table is a proposal to build an "inland port" off Lake Okeechobee that could serve as a distribution center for cargo containers arriving on freighters. Four sites have been proposed, including one on Florida Crystals-owned land that could affect Everglades restoration.</p><p>If built, the port eventually could encompass 3,000 acres.</p><p>For more on the poll, go to <a href=”http://”target=”www.EvergladesFoundation.org”> www.EvergladesFoundation.org </a>.</p><p><b>C-111 start</b></p><p>The first major project to mitigate effects of the C-111 Canal in South Florida -- seen as perhaps the key to restoring water flows to Florida Bay -- could be under construction by mid-November, according to the South Florida Water Management District.</p><p>The district approved contracts Thursday for the $26 million work to improve water flows into Taylor Slough, the channel that feeds areas including Joe Bay and Little Madeira Bay, on the mainland north of Key Largo.</p><p>Staff at Audubon of Florida's Tavernier Science Center have been contracted to monitor environmental changes from the project, and pending changes to water-control operations.</p><p>Megan Tinsley, Everglades science coordinator for Audubon, said local staff would use existing monitoring stations and new stations to assess changes to fish populations, water salinity and seagrass growth.</p><p>However, effects of the restoration may not start showing up in Florida Bay for another three years, Tinsley said.</p><p>Work on the ongoing C-111 project, west of Florida City, will continue for another two years. The water-management district will slowly change water-retention levels expected to benefit Taylor Slough a year after that, she said.</p><p>"It's a slow process, but after the last eight years, things finally seem to be going pretty well," she said.</p><p>Changes in water salinity should encourage the growth of seagrasses favored by waterfowl like the American coot and the blue-winged teal that have largely disappeared from South Florida, she said.</p><p>A second phase of the C-111 improvements, which include a spreader canal underneath the 18-Mile Stretch of U.S. 1, likely will not begin for several years.