Alderson has also worked as a lobbyist for
environmental groups, as a naturalist for the
Tallahassee Museum of History and Natural
Science and has worked for the Florida
Offi ce of Greenways and Trails for more
than 15 years. He is currently the Outreach
and Advocacy director for the Apalachicola
Riverkeeper.
While it’s hard for Alderson to pinpoint his
favorite Florida body of water, he admits that
he gravitates to his home stomping grounds
of Tallahassee, where he lives with his wife
Cyndi and his daughter Cheyenne.
“My favorite river is one close to my home
near Tallahassee where I can access it on a
frequent basis,” he said. “For me, that is the
spring fed Wacissa River, about 15 miles
away. The water is usually clear, there is an
abundance of wading birds and alligators,
and if I am fortunate, I get to observe playful
river otters. If it is warm, I usually end the trip
with a refreshing swim.
Of course, I have many other rivers around
the state that I love to visit, including the
mighty Apalachicola in the Panhandle, the
Santa Fe and Suwannee rivers in northcentral
Florida, the Silver and Ocklawaha
rivers, the Wekiva River near Orlando,
the Hillsborough and Peace rivers and
Fisheating Creek in southwest Florida, the
newly restored Kissimmee River and the wild
Loxahatchee River in Southeast Florida. All
of these rivers and more are featured in the
book.”
At the end of the book “Florida Rivers”
Alderson includes a brief synopsis of how
people can help to keep our waterways
sacred and clean. This is an area of extreme
importance to him and should be to all of us.
He describes the push beginning in 1966
by the Hudson River Fishermen’s Association
to stop heavy industrial pollution in rivers, to
more recent years and Florida’s Waterkeeper
groups. He also discusses the trend that
began in New Zealand in 2017 to treat rivers
as a living entity that should be treated as
such, but he knows in America the likelihood
of that being reinforced is slim due to a 2020
ruling by Florida legislature that outlawed
the granting of legal rights to rivers.
“We need to be tougher at addressing
pollution at its source, whether it be
agricultural or phosphate runoff, or septic
tank nitrates leaching into our aquifer and
showing up in our springs and rivers,”
Alderman said. “All of us need to be aware
that our own yard fertilizer often ends up
in springs and rivers, too, causing algae
blooms, so we need to take steps in
reducing our own pollution at the home
level. Reducing water consumption through
conservation and stronger permitting is
another area that needs priority attention at
every level. This book pays homage to the
incredible beauty and diversity of Florida’s
rivers and the need to protect them. I
hope readers will come away with a strong
appreciation of our rivers and will want to
experience them in person.”
Pineapple Press not only published “Florida
Rivers” this year, they have also released
another book by Alderson called “Hearth and
Soul.” He also has another newer release,
the second edition of “Traveling Florida’s
Seminole Trail,” an illustrated guide to
Florida’s historic and cultural sites that directly
relate to Seminole Indians.
For more information go to dougalderson.
net.
Ichetucknee Springs
22 GASPARILLA MAGAZINE • November/December • 2021