Is lowering Lake Okeechobee 4 inches worth it? \
Is lowering Lake Okeechobee’s level by 4 inches worth releasing more freshwater into Florida’s fragile coastal estuaries over the next few weeks? That’s the question lawmakers and clean-water advocates are asking as the floodgates remain open to the St. Lucie and Caloosahatchee rivers, with traces of toxic algae in the water and oysters nearing the point when they typically die from too much freshwater. Continuing discharges at the current rate would help reduce Lake O’s level by about ⅓ of a foot — for a total drop from 14 feet,3 inches Thursday to 12 feet,6 inches June 1, according to TCPalm’s calculations, which don’t factor in unknown variables such as rain, evaporation and farmers siphoning lake water for irrigation. Some environmentalists say continued damage to the St. Lucie River now may outweigh the hope of curbing discharges this summer, when algae blooms typically are bigger and more toxic. Scroll down to read U.S. Rep. Brian Mast’s letter to the Army Corps „It’s the duration that hurts,“ sometimes more than the volume, said Mark Perry, executive director of the Florida Oceanographic Society in Stuart. Even a small amount of discharges can damage the river if they continue for several months, he said. „If all things stay the same, we can still move that water south and we’re only getting three-tenths of a foot (of water off Lake O). It’s not really significant enough perhaps to continue to damage the estuaries with these discharges,“ Perry said. The Treasure Coast’s congressman has raised similar concerns. „These releases are already having an impact on the health of the fragile ecosystem in the St. Lucie,“ U.S. Rep Brian Mast, R-Palm City, wrote Wednesday in a letter to Col. Andrew Kelly, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers‘ Florida commander. „While I understand the Army Corps‘ goal is to make preventative discharges now in an effort to avoid discharges during the summer,“ Mast wrote, „continuing these releases indefinitely… will put lives at risk.“ Lake Okeechobee: It’s receding, but not enough Manatee death crisis: FWC addresses Senate on seagrass loss Bathtub Reef Beach: Why is it closed and when will it reopen? Since discharges began March 6, about 10 billion gallons of lake water has poured into the river through the St. Lucie Lock and Dam, about six miles from downtown Stuart. That amount would cover the city in about 5 feet of water. Still, that pales in comparison to previous discharges. The record amount was 507 billion gallons during a seven-month discharge event that began in 1969 and ended in 1970. The record duration was 20 months, beginning during the 2004 hurricane season.
