TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WCTV/Gray Florida Capital Bureau) - The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency says Florida is breaking federal clean water rules, and now advocates are suing to force the state to act.

Clean water is critical in Florida, not just for drinking, but also to protect beaches, springs, and the tourism and fishing industries that drive the state’s economy. Yet the Florida Department of Environmental Protection hasn’t updated its water quality standards in decades.

Jen Lumberk, chair of Waterkeepers Florida, says updating these standards every three years, as required under the Clean Water Act, is essential as scientists learn more about chemicals in Florida’s waterways.

“As we study these chemicals, we learn how they accumulate in fish and affect people who eat them,” Lumber

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