Stump Pass, Don Pedro 7-20-18

[Happy Dayz]

Sad what the Okeechobee release is doing to our Fl west coast. just a year ago this area had crystal clear water. Now i didnt get in, coughing from red tide.

 

[JimG]

I saw an article where dead sea turtles were washing up on the Florida coast... they were blaming red tide.

Why the release, and what makes it red and toxic?

(still cool pics though!)

 

[Ididntdoit]

Toxic Algae Bloom in lake O.......And the Army Corps of Engineers released water due to strain on the dykes.....shit floats down hill - a real shame - anyone know if Stuart is affected too? Last year it got as far south as Jupiter

 

[FootballFan]

Wow.

That water is so nice normally, gives pause to see this.

We left the west coast at the end of June. This had not hit yet.

When we crossed the lake it was over 14ft I think. How long do you think this will last?

 

[JVM225]

Did storm runoff in to Lake O cause that?

 

[Happy Dayz]

Did storm runoff in to Lake O cause that?

yes

 

[FootballFan]

Has it gone north of Ft Meyers at all? Or just out the river and down?

Read a few stories online over the weekend. Fast becoming a political issue it seems. But also gathered that it was expected after IRMA and then the rains.

Heart goes out to all who are experiencing it. The water is normally so beautiful there, hate anything that disrupts.

Mark

 

[dpvandy01]

The Red Tide killing the turtles is not related to the Lake O release. the algae bloom is 100% from the release and has the canals in Cape Coral so thick with algae that the lizards can walk across them in some places. The east coast is affected as well but to a lesser degree since 75% of the water was sent west. They need this water to follow it's natural path which is SOUTH to the everglades. They are KILLING the coastal areas. And boating in the Caloosahatchee now looks like boating in root beer

 

[Happy Dayz]

i signed an online petition and email... here is the response from Rubio

Thank you for contacting me regarding Lake Okeechobee water releases. Understanding your views helps me to better represent Florida in the United States Senate, and I appreciate the opportunity to respond.



As you know, severe weather events with heavy rainfall result in Lake Okeechobee rising to record levels. In response, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Army Corps) acts to discharge water to the east through the St. Lucie River into the Indian River Lagoon and Atlantic Ocean, and to the west through the Caloosahatchee River into the Gulf of Mexico. These discharges are necessary to ensure that the structural integrity of the ailing Herbert Hoover Dike, and with it the safety of tens of thousands of Floridians living along the lake, is not compromised. Unfortunately, the discharges change downstream water quality and lower salinity levels, negatively impacting important ecosystems and hurting area businesses, tourism, and residents’ quality of life. Recently, the discharges have contributed to harmful algal blooms along Florida’s Caloosahatchee and St. Lucie Rivers and associated estuaries.



I have long advocated for solutions to Florida’s water quality issues, specifically by securing authorizations and funding for critical Everglades restoration projects. The Central Everglades Planning Project (CEPP), which would lessen the discharges to the east and west by restoring the original flow of waters to the south, through the Everglades, has been one of my top priorities in the Senate. I was proud to successfully include authorization for CEPP in the 2016 Water Infrastructure Improvements for the Nation Act (Public Law 114-322). This important Everglades restoration project will greatly reduce the recurring environmental and economic disasters caused by Lake Okeechobee discharges and harmful algal blooms in Florida’s waterways.



Realizing the important projects that require funding, in the 115th Congress I joined the Senate Appropriations Committee, which is responsible for allocating federal money. On June 25, 2018, I was proud to join 85 of my Senate colleagues in voting in favor of the Fiscal Year 2019 Energy and Water Appropriations bill (H.R. 5895), which includes important funding that I advanced for Everglades restorations projects and Herbert Hoover Dike rehabilitation. Complementary to this funding, I was successful in securing the $514.2 million in funding necessary to expedite completion of the Herbert Hoover Dike rehabilitation project by 2022 in the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2018 (Public Law 115-141). Ensuring the integrity of Herbert Hoover Dike, along with a revised Lake Okeechobee Regulation Schedule, will allow water managers additional flexibility to manage lake levels and releases.



H.R. 5895 also includes two amendments I authored which seek to protect communities near Lake Okeechobee and restore the Everglades. The first amendment ensures that any Lake Okeechobee discharges by the Army Corps to the Caloosahatchee River or the St. Lucie River are conducted in pulses, unless there is a threat to the integrity of the Herbert Hoover Dike. This measure would strengthen existing water management rules to minimize the downstream impact of discharges on water quality, and allow for regular flushing of potentially harmful algal blooms and nutrients, as well as the periodic recovery of brackish conditions in the estuaries. The second amendment reasserts the original intention for Everglades restoration efforts to redirect Lake Okeechobee discharges towards the Central Everglades, where they would be stored, treated, and utilized to increase freshwater flows to Everglades National Park and Florida Bay. Additionally, the amendment expresses the sense of Congress that water quality features, including those required by the proposed Everglades Agricultural Area (EAA) Storage Reservoir, should be cost-shared equally by the state and federal government.



On July 8, 2018, I wrote to President Trump to urge him to order the Army Corps to conduct an emergency re-evaluation of water flows from Lake Okeechobee entering the Caloosahatchee River and the St. Lucie River. My letter also requested that the administration double the federal investment in Everglades restoration infrastructure through the President’s fiscal year (FY) 2020 budget. Following my request, I was pleased that the Army Corps briefly delayed these discharges from Lake Okeechobee to the St. Lucie River to reevaluate and implemented a pulsed-release schedule at flow volumes lower than regulations prescribe. In addition, on July 11, 2018, I sent a letter to the Small Business Administration urging the agency to quickly open a Business Recovery Center and make agency resources available to small businesses that are adversely affected by harmful algal blooms related to discharges from Lake Okeechobee.

At this time, it is more critical than ever that the Senate expeditiously consider its biennial water infrastructure bill, which will allow us to move forward with authorization of the EAA Storage Reservoir. After directly and regularly communicating to the administration, including a June 1st letter to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), on the importance of a timely approval of the South Florida Water Management District’s plan for the reservoir project, I welcomed OMB’s July 10 approval of the this important project to store, treat, and move more water south to the Everglades. I look forward to supporting language authorizing this project in the America’s Water Infrastructure Act of 2018 when it comes up for a vote before the full Senate.



This issue is important to our state and cannot be ignored. I understand the frustration by folks throughout our communities regarding the lack of a quick and effective solution to water quality issues as a result of the Lake Okeechobee water releases, however, the current situation has been created by more than 80 years of disastrous choices in the design of South Florida’s flood protection system. I remain committed to championing real fixes to this problem in a comprehensive fashion to bring excess discharges to an end as quickly as possible, and improving water management to protect our state’s ecosystems, tourism and economic growth, and quality of life.



It is an honor and a privilege to serve Florida in the United States Senate. As a member of the Senate Committee on Appropriations, I will keep your thoughts in mind as I consider these issues and continue working to ensure America remains a safe and prosperous nation.



Sincerely,

Marco Rubio
United States Senator

 

[Todd320]

Sad what the Okeechobee release is doing to our Fl west coast. just a year ago this area had crystal clear water. Now i didnt get in, coughing from red tide.

Looks like both the water on the inside and outside are bad? Or is the gulf side relatively clear as the algae dispersed? I am boating to the island and stumps pass in 3 weeks, so trying to determine what to do. Didn’t completely understand your last statement, but I think you said, “I didn’t get in (because the water was so bad?), and I was coughing (from the smell of the algae)”, is that correct?

 

[Todd320]

Happy Dayz, thanks for this post and the pics, extremely helpful given my upcoming trip.

 

[dpvandy01]

Rubio???? I I I I I did this that and the other???? I I I I have no idea what You did to help the home owners on the Caloosahatchee