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More than 200 million gallons of contaminated wastewater from a fertilizer plant in central Florida leaked into one of the state's main underground sources of drinking water after a massive sinkhole opened up beneath a storage pond, a phosphate company said Friday. The sinkhole, discovered by a worker on Aug. 27, is believed to reach down to the Floridan aquifer, the company said in a news release.

As more utilities make reliability and resiliency their twin mantras, none has had more success than Florida Power & Light

Climate change and other hurdles mean it will take more water - and potentially more taxpayer money - to save the Everglades, according to new scientific findings released Thursday. The report to Congress warns that rising seas and warming temperatures are threatening to worsen damage already done by decades of drainage and pollution, caused by development and farming overtaking the Everglades. A recent report showed that climate change, pollution and other factors could increase the cost to restore the Florida Everglades. So far, restoration costs are pegged at $16 billion, but additional efforts, such as proposed reservoirs, could add to that cost.

Power company Duke Energy plans to build a solar panel farm across 20 acres in Orlando, Florida, near Walt Disney World's Epcot theme park in the shape of Mickey Mouse. 

Corporations interested in sustainability have become a major driver in the renewable energy industry, said experts at the North American Energy Markets Association meeting in Florida last month. "There is about 15 GW of latent demand for renewables that wants to be built by 2020 in order to meet the targets of Fortune 500 companies that have committed to some degree of renewable energy in their supply portfolios," said Invenergy Vice President of Sales and Marketing Craig Gordon. 3M, Alphabet, Amazon and Microsoft are among the companies seeking power purchase agreements with renewables in the US.

Over the past few years, so-called ugly fruit and vegetables have been gaining a host of admirers. Now, Wal-Mart has officially joined the bandwagon. Starting this week, America's largest grocer says it is piloting sales of weather-dented apples at a discount in 300 of its stores in Florida.

The Florida legislature has adopted a measure that allocates at least $250 million a year for 20 years to restore the Everglades. The money comes from a tax on real estate transactions.

Fast food restaurant chain Wendy's is reportedly piloting the sale of chicken that does not contain antibiotics "medically important to humans" in select Missouri, Texas, and Florida markets, according to CNBC.

Starbucks new store in Downtown Disney West Side at Walt Disney World Resort near Orlando, Florida.

Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus will be elephant-free by 2018, with the troupe's 13 performing pachyderms sent into retirement at a Florida conservation center. The move is a response to growing consumer concerns about the animals' welfare, coupled with the prospect of local bans on elephant performances. "It's a shame this took so long, but it's a creditable step toward treating animals with respect and dignity," writes Andrew Revkin

Naturally alkaline Hawaiian bottled water brand Waiākea says it will be the first beverage brand to utilize PET bottles that degrade in 10-15 years - rather than 1,500 - after teaming up with Florida-based TimePlast.

Chevron Energy Solutions will design and build a waste-to-energy plant at Broward County, Fla.'s wastewater treatment facility