In the late 1960s, aviation planners and regional officials unveiled plans for the Everglades Jetport, a massive airport proposed across 39 square miles of South Florida wetlands. Designed to be roughly six times larger than Miami International Airport, the facility was intended to accommodate future supersonic passenger aircraft and eventually operate six runways serving millions of travellers each year. Supporters promoted it as an economic boost, despite growing concerns that it would disrupt the Everglades' fragile water system.
Get breaking news anytime, anywhere. Download the TOI app now!
According to historical preservation records documented by the National Park Service , public resistance to the massive build was rallied in large part by Marjory Stoneman Douglas, the 79-year-old author of the 1947 book The Everglades: River of Grass. Douglas argued that building a major airport within the Everglades watershed would disrupt the natural flow of freshwater, threaten water quality, and damage Everglades National Park.
In 1969, Douglas founded Friends of the Everglades , a group that rallied public support and lobbied government leaders to protect the land. A detailed environmental review led by a special federal panel chaired by zoologist Starker Leopold concluded that the proposed jetport would cause severe ecological damage to the Everglades. As public concern grew and scientific evidence mounted, President Richard Nixon’s administration stepped in in early 1970, withdrew federal support, and halted work after only one training runway had been built.
How environmental advocacy changed infrastructure planning
The effort to stop the jetport combined public education with scientific research. Douglas helped reshape public understanding of the Everglades, arguing that it was not an unproductive swamp but a slow-moving river system essential to South Florida's ecology and water supply. When construction initially started, Douglas and her fellow campaigners pushed for a comprehensive environmental impact review, helping establish environmental impact assessment as an important part of major infrastructure planning in the United States. The resulting federal study confirmed that the proposed jetport would likely cause severe ecological damage to the Everglades.
By bringing together these scientific findings and strong community support, environmentalists created widespread public momentum that forced leaders to weigh nature protection alongside commercial expansion. The campaign became an early example of how scientific evidence and public advocacy could shape decisions about large infrastructure projects.
Why the Everglades Jetport campaign matters for policy decisions
The decision to cancel the Everglades Jetport remains a turning point in environmental history, showing the power of community advocacy in shaping land-use decisions. The single completed airstrip, now known as the Dade-Collier Training and Transition Airport, sits surrounded by protected wetlands, serving as a reminder of the commercial development that was prevented.
The controversy became an early example of the growing environmental movement that accompanied landmark legislation such as the National Environmental Policy Act and helped reinforce the importance of environmental review in future development projects. Today, the former jetport site remains largely surrounded by protected wetlands, while Everglades restoration continues through long-term conservation programmes such as the Comprehensive Everglades Restoration Plan . The episode remains a landmark example of how scientific research, public advocacy, and government action can work together to protect ecologically important landscapes before irreversible damage occurs.
