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Nancy Smith

So You Think We Have Enough Water Storage North of Lake O?

August 19, 2016 - 6:00am

More evidence that ridding Lake Okeechobee of phosphorus has no simple answer.

What we've been doing for the past 30 years to control the flow and clean the water from the Kissimmee River Basin plain isn't working, according to a story in Wednesday's Okeechobee News.

"Data compiled since 1987 shows phosphorus loads going into Lake Okeechobee from the Kissimmee River basin are nowhere near the maximum target of 140 metric tons a year set by the Florida Department of Environmental Protection all those years ago," the News reports.

Have a look at the chart on this page: In 1987, 562 metric tons of phosphorus went into the lake. In 2013, the load was 569 tons. In 2014, 609 tons.

As you might imagine, extremely wet years are the worst: 2005 brought storms that resulted in 960 metric tons of phosphorus carried by flood water into Lake O.

Only drought years came anywhere near hitting the target -- and even those figures failed to meet the DEP maximum target. The 1997 phosphorus load -- lightest in the 30-year period -- was 167 metric tons.

I remember how much effort has gone into saving the lake from the chemical deluge from the North. Since 1987, the millions of dollars spent on restoring the Kissimmee River to its orignal winding path, for instance..

Don't forget, the Kissimmee, also known as "the fallen lady of Central Florida," is the largest source of water going into the lake. Channelization obliterated its wilderness beauty and abolished many of its natural values, when the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers turned the formerly scenic 105-mile river into a 50-mile ditch and Lake Okeechobee into a cesspool.

But here's the rub: Even when the project is complete, less than half of that channelization -- only 43 miles -- will be restored. Lots of people don't realize we're not going to get full restoration.

I also remember what a high price agriculture paid -- particularly dairy farms in the late 1980s, when the same residents in Lee and Martin counties fought mightily to get the DEP Dairy Rule put in place in 1987, and when other restrictions for nutrient loads in runoff went into effect for all kinds of agriculture. Residents had convinced state leaders that dairy farm runoff -- runoff that included an excess of cattle dung -- was the chief culprit.

Now look. As the Okeechobee News points out, of the 50 dairies that were previously in the watershed, only 19 remain. State Rep. Katie Edwards, D-Plantation -- whose family was among the victims -- has talked about it before a legislative committee. The other farms closed entirely or moved out of state, causing a loss of hundreds of jobs. The dairies that stayed made expensive changes in order to keep phosphorus-rich runoff out of the waterways by using retention ponds, sprayfields and confinement areas.

Costly lesson: It didn't work. Losing the farms, losing the cattle, losing the jobs -- it helped not a jot. The phosphorus loads remain high. Which is why I so often insist that science, not theory, drive the Legislature's action.
 
"Some researchers speculate the projects and best management practices are working," the newspaper says. "They point to the environmental beauty of the floodplain in the restored portions of the river, the reduction in the phosphorus content of water leaving farms, and the reduction in the number of dairy cattle in the basin.

"The problem is that while some phosphorus sources, such as farms, are targeted and addressed and have made progress, new sources of phosphorus have entered the watershed. Those new sources come in the form of the human population of the South Florida Water Management District, which has more than doubled in the past 30 years."

"Orlando/Kissimmee not only has more than 2 million residents, but also has more than 60 million visitors a year."

It's no wonder scientists at the University of Florida made their first priority adding reservoirs north of Lake Okeechobee. 

This has been my point for a very long time -- in fact, long before I ever went to work for Sunshine State News -- and why I continue to pursue the story.

Reach Nancy Smith at nsith@sunshinestatenews.com or at 228-282-2423. Twitter: @NancyLBSmith

 

Comments

we absolutely do not have enough sotrage north of the lake. The water is polluted and filled with sewage sludge. We can not send that water to our Evergaldes.

We cannot send this phosphorus water down south to an already struggling ecosystem in the everglades. The excess Nitrogen and Phosphorus is what is causing this sewage sludge.

If we had storage to the north of the lake we could treat the water before it even gets to Lake O.

Nancy, you must stop printing facts like this. You must stop. Facts are stubborn and insulting to those with political agendas based on a hyperventilating constituency that wouldnt know a scientific fact it it kicked em right in the rear.

Nancy, nobody cares about fixing the real problem which is the pollution levels in Lake O. Not the Governor, the Legislature, the DEP, Joe Negron, Bill Nelson, Marco Rubio, Adam Putnam, Gwen Graham, Richard Corcoran and certainly not the environmental groups. The problem is simply too big and expensive to solve, requires too much money, and points the fingers are the real culprits - communities north of the lake all throughout central Florida where growth has resulted in a new normal of runoff into the Kissimmiee and the Shingle Creek area - the "headwater" of the everglades. Are people going to point the finger at Mickey Mouse and the tourists? No, because we all love tourism and what it brings to the state. Lake O pollution also does not have a boogeyman like the big ole cigar smoking sugar farmers from Clewiston. Its all of us. And what politician wants to tell the truth about that? Who wants to say "hey, look folks, we just studied the problem and its our own yards, septic systems and stormwater runoff"? I'll answer - NOT A SINGLE GD ONE OF THEM. Not anyone in the Senate, House or anyone running for another office will tell the truth, and none of them want to spend the billions it would take north of Lake O to treat before dumping all this polluted water into Florida's commode - Lake O. Instead Its all about press events with a fake solution to a misidentified problem that has no chance of doing anything, but it all keeps the money flowing during campaign season and polls well with low information voters. The farming community could not only be a part of the solution, they could be a huge part of this solution, but they are constantly being trashed by the environmental groups to the point they all just want to fight it out. Its a sad day when the most responsible environmental policy doesn't come from the environmental community, but from the water management districts and the sugar and rest of the agricultural industry. The environmental groups have jumped the shark of science-based advocacy. But that's where we are. Whatever. In ten years, Lake O will be as green as an Olympic pool in Rio, Central Florida will claim no responsibility, and we will all be talking about the same crap (pun intended). And your friends in Martin county will still be flushing their own poop in the estuaries because they are scared that a central sewer system will lead to growth. And they will still be griping and blaming the sugar industry for dirty water that they are in fact making cleaner.

Finally some one with some sense

Finally some one with some sense

Yes. TRUTH BOMB ^^^^^^

By far the best written comment I've seen lately. Inconvenient truth.

The Northern Everglades Lake Okeechobee Inflow graphic depicted above speaks for itself. Unfortunately, none of the "Buy the Land" knuckleheads in Martin County (including the next Senate president) seem to pay any attention to the real problem and are fixated on a plan that will never resolve their problem with discharges. If the "Negron Plan " were in place today, where would the water go? It cannot go south because of endangered species issues (Cape Sable Seaside Sparrow) , limitations on existing water control structure capacity and system-wide operational criteria which limits the ability to take on more water. Presently, there are thousands of acres located north of Lake Okeechobee in public ownership that could be used for all or parts of storage project(s). Even if additional lands are needed, costs would be considerably less ($3000 acre/north versus $15,000 acre/south) with much less impact to the economy of South Florida. Lastly (and I really hate to be the bearer of bad news), I do not believe the residents of Pensacola, Tallahassee, Jacksonville, Tampa, Orlando, Miami, Ft. Lauderdale, Ft. Myers, St. Petersburg and other communities in Florida voted in favor of Amendment 1 subject to all future funding being directed to Martin County and its water issues. Sorry Martin County, it's not all about you!

The water did go south at one time. Short term rain events were spread out over a huge area which is impossible for us to reverse engineer. The problem with the sparrow issue and the like is because the water is channelized south and the flow rates are way above historical levels. That said, in any natural system, weather events do cause harm to wildlife and management practices should take this into account. It's not a popular idea but sometimes I think less management and a long view on how ecosystems survived without our help in the past should be taken into account.

Troubles?!?!?.... Can you spell "p-o-l-i-t-i-c-i-a-n-s", or "l-a-w-y-e-r-s", or "L-o-b-b-y-s". or "g-o-v-e-r-n-m-e-n-t- a-g-e-n-c-i-e-s", or "c-o-l-l-e-g-e-s-c-i-e-n-c-e-e-x-e-r-c-i-s-e-s"??? One (or ALL of them collectively) can, or will, screw up your very existence over most of your lifetime... YOU CAN COUNT ON IT ! ! !

Thank you, Nancy Smith for keeping this alive among the chaos and clatter about below the lake projects. It will take all efforts but north of the lake is crucial!

Comments are now closed.

nancy smith
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