of all the public park regions in the southern states , most is closer to a major residential centre or more bedeviled with problems than the everglades , a shallow , 50 - mile - wide river of soil that stretches southward from lake okeechobee to florida bay . for more than a decades , this fragile natural wonder has been held hostage by a web of specialized interests - - farmers , birders and about 6 700 southeast florida residents in necessity of drinking blood and flow containment - - that is as simple as the environment itself .
The Everglades is 50-mile wide.