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According to an investigative report, workers for Florida's Department of Environmental Protection are not allowed to use the term "climate change" or '"global warming."

The Florida Center for Investigative Reporting found that, since Gov. Rick Scott took office in 2011, directives from the top of the department, which has has 3,000 employees and a $1.4 billion budget,聽have聽prohibited employees from using the term "climate change" in all official communications, emails, or reports.

鈥淲e were told not to use the terms 鈥榗limate change,鈥� 鈥榞lobal warming鈥� or 鈥榮ustainability,鈥欌�� Christopher Byrd, an attorney with the Department of Environmental Protection鈥檚 Office of General Counsel in Tallahassee from 2008 to 2013, told the Florida Center for Investigative Reporting. 鈥淭hat message was communicated to me and my colleagues by our superiors in the Office of General Counsel.鈥�

The report comes at a time when the environmental stakes have never been higher for the Sunshine State.聽Nearly 2.4 million people live in low-lying coastal areas in Florida within four feet of a high tide line, notes climate scientist Ben Strauss on the independent climate research group聽ClimateCentral.

A report by Florida Atlantic University estimated that even a six inch sea level rise in the next two decades would have catastrophic consequences on South Florida's ability to handle storm surges.聽Many coastal areas around the US are expected to see storm surges exceeding four feet past high tide lines by 2030, and five feet by 2050, according a study by Dr. Strauss and his colleagues.

A separate study by Strauss found that聽five million Americans live less than four feet above a high tide line, and six million live less than five feet above a high tide line.

鈥淚t鈥檚 an indication that the political leadership in the state of Florida is not willing to address these issues and face the music when it comes to the challenges that climate change presents,鈥� Mr. Byrd told the聽Florida Center for Investigative Reporting.