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Drop in Lake O releases proposed
With levels falling in Lake Okeechobee, water managers have recommended controversial releases down the Caloosahatchee River be reduced, too.
Because of heavy rainfall during the rainy season — Hurricane Wilma alone dropped 10 inches on the Kissimmee Valley, which drains into Okeechobee — lake levels were 16.5 feet in November.
To protect the health of the lake and the dike surrounding the lake, the South Florida Water Management District and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers decided to release water down the Caloosahatchee at 6,500 cubic feet, or 48,623 gallons, per second until the lake level falls to 16.25 inches. The level dropped to 16.27 inches Tuesday, and the district recommended the Corps reduce releases to 4,500 cubic feet, or 33,664 gallons, per second.
By next Tuesday, the lake should be down to 16.25 feet, and water managers could go to more environmentally friendly pulse releases. "Water is still coming in from the upper chain (Kissimmee Valley)," water district spokesman Kurt Harclerode said. "So rather than go straight to pulse releases, we're recommending ratcheting back to 4,500 (cubic feet per second).
"Generally, our recommendations are a fait accompli, but the Corps has the final say." Army Corps spokesman Barry Vorse said Wednesday the Corps is evaluating the district's recommendation and may make a decision by today.
The water district and Corps of Engineers have been criticized for the high releases because excess fresh water upsets the balance of fresh and salt water in the Caloosahatchee estuary and carries nutrients that can cause massive algal blooms. Releases also have been blamed for damaging plants and wildlife. One result of the heavy freshwater releases is that seagrasses started losing their blades before they normally do, said Steve Bortone, director of the Sanibel-Captiva Conservation Foundation Marine Laboratory.
"Seagrasses are in pretty bad shape," Bortone said "They sloughed off two months early, and all we know is that the habitat is very different than what it should be at this time of year for species associated with seagrasses. It could be that a lack of hiding places could lead to higher predation, or a lack of grasses themselves could mean lack of food. "These are speculative things, but you could argue that for one-sixth of this year, the habitat is drastically different."
Pulse releases, which range in the Caloosahatchee from 1,600 to 3,000 cubic feet — or 11,970 to 22,443 gallons — are better for the river and estuary because they mimic natural storm events, whereas high releases blast steadily down the river and into the estuary.
"Any reduction in discharges from Lake Okeechobee is of some help," Bortone said. "But at 4,500, it still causes harm to our estuaries. At this time, they're heading in the right direction by reducing the discharge rate, but until they can reduce it to the optimum level, which at this time of year is 500 to 800 (cubic feet per second), we'd still be justifiably and understandably concerned." Last week, Lee County commissioners sent a letter to Gov. Jeb Bush that said water managers are sacrificing tourism to agricultural interests by releasing so much water down the river. Farmland is kept artificially dry by the dike. Commissioner Ray Judah says water should be diverted to sugar cane fields south of the lake instead of poured down the river.
The county also has contributed $25,000 to explore the possibility of joining east coast counties in a lawsuit against water managers.
On Dec. 20, the county attorney's office will give the county commission options, including legal action, about Lake Okeechobee
