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Lake Okeechobee releases reduced

By NATHAN MAYBERG - | May 26, 2021

nmayberg@breezenewspapers.com

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Jacksonville District recently announced that it would reduce Lake Okeechobee releases at the W.P. Franklin Lock and Dam (S-79) which feeds the Caloosahatchee River and Lee County from the current 2,000 cubic feet per second (cfs) to 1,500 cfs as of May 15.

“The releases will also change from a steady flow to a pulse release to flush the lower end of the system, raise salinities, and help combat the formation of algae,” the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers announced.

According to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Lake Okeechobee is at 13.61 feet, which is 0.63 feet lower than 30 days ago though it is still 2.53 feet higher than last year at this time. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is projecting the lake level to drop between 13-13.5 feet on June 1, which it states is “a significantly lower level than January projections of 14.5 feet or higher at the start of rainy season.”

The decision by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers follows a resurgence of red tide in the region and a visit from Gov. Ron DeSantis to the area.

The most recent readings reported by the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission from May 12 show red tide to be high at Lovers Key State Park and low at Lynn Hall Memorial Park on Fort Myers Beach. Tests taken May 12 showed high levels of red tide at nearby Bonita Beach Park, with medium levels of red tide reported off Sanibel.

“We believe this change to lower-level pulse releases has a good chance of helping combat algae formations in the upper estuary,” said Col. Andrew Kelly, Jacksonville District Commander. “We are certainly still concerned about the lake being high for this year, but we think the potential benefits of attempting to reduce algae right now outweighs the benefits of getting more water off the lake at this point.”

After consulting with the South Florida Water Management District, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers announced that they agreed to “take action now to reduce freshwater releases and attempt to flush higher salinity water into the upper estuary to help reduce the algae that is forming there.”

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is working with the Florida Department of Environmental Protection as they monitor algal blooms and test for Microcystin in regional waters.

Town of Fort Myers Beach Mayor Ray Murphy said “We’re all watching very carefully the goings-on up at Lake Okeechobee at the moment, the blue-green algae that is cooking up there and our red tide off of the shores down here at the moment. So we are all holding our collective breath, hoping that we don’t have any adverse impact from that. The point is that it’s not time to let down our guard nor to remain silent about this — to keep up the communications, the pressures to our higher elected officials and the powers that be. We are watching and we don’t want a repeat (of 2018).”