To the Editor:

Re: “In South Florida, a Polluted Bubble Ready to Burst” (news article, Sept. 9):

Joni Mitchell’s words — “They paved paradise and put up a parking lot” — have never been more relevant. Sadly, her message didn’t resonate with planners, engineers and developers in South Florida, where Lake Okeechobee has become an environmental quagmire.

Environmentalists are quick to fault the Army Corps of Engineers for creating these larger ecological problems, but the essential problem in the Everglades and across the country is our poor local management of water. Paved, impervious surfaces, including the ubiquitous drive-through restaurants, malls, parking lots, roads — and even lawns — contribute to excess surface water runoff, carrying polluted water into our rivers and bays.

We need better planning that considers the impact of many small engineering decisions on the larger regional ecosystem. If we combine technology and engineering with ecology and design, we can help restore the natural resilience of our landscapes. With political courage and strategic local actions, we can unpave parking lots and restore a piece of paradise.

SUSANNAH C. DRAKE

Brooklyn, Sept. 10, 2013

The writer is a landscape architect designing systems to capture and filter storm water runoff in natural landscapes.