Giving Compass' Take:

• Zac Anderson reports that toxic algae blooms in Florida, where large clean air and water are essential to the economy, are forcing politicians from across the political spectrum to focus on environmental protections. 

• Is this trend going to continue as climate change and environmental degradation impact voters? 

• Learn about the latest on environmental policy and research. 

Environmental protection quickly is becoming a big issue in the 2018 election as more toxic algae blooms slime estuaries, kill sea life and choke coastal Florida communities with foul air.

Florida's tourism-driven economy depends on clean water, and candidates are under pressure to offer solutions for a problem that is so bad it led the governor to declare a state of emergency Monday in seven counties.

The issue is particularly acute in Southwest Florida, where red tide -- a naturally occurring algae bloom that can be worsened by nutrient pollution from human and animal waste and excessive fertilizer use -- is killing fish and other sea life from Sarasota County south to Charlotte Harbor, and green slime is smothering the Caloosahatchee River. The state of emergency covers Lee, Glades, Hendry, Martin, Okeechobee, Palm Beach and St. Lucie counties.

Investing in cleanup measures has become a popular campaign promise among candidates in both parties, and there is increasing talk of cracking down on polluters, something many GOP leaders in Florida have been reluctant to over the years.

U.S. Rep. Ron DeSantis, a conservative Republican from northeast Florida, has made the algae issue a centerpiece of his campaign for governor.

Read the full article about environmental protection policy by Zac Anderson at Governing Magazine.