After 10 years, a lot of money, and an untold number of stops and starts, the Army Corps of Engineers has in effect a Grand New Plan to manage water releases from Lake Okeechobee.
It touts improvements in water quality, protection of ecosystems in the Everglades, and better management of water resources to prevent harmful algal blooms in the Caloosahatchee River and the St. Lucie Watershed on Florida’s East Coast.
A fundamental change is to, for the first time, take into account how much pollution is in the lake water when deciding whether to open the spillways, and if so, for how long, in which direction(s), and how much.
I’ve researched and written about the Grand New Plan and I don’t understand how it is possible, within the laws governing hydrodynamics, gravity, and human behavior, for those in charge of the agency to accomplish what they say they can.
How can the Army Corps restrict the amount of lake water it releases, through fewer floodgates, less often, yet still lower the lake to a safe level when necessary as is being advertised?
It's a hydrological paradox.
Or is it?
Exception detection
Blue-green algae, at the time of this writing, covers 220 square miles in the lake and has for many months. A way-more-than-average hurricane season is ramping up to the historically most active period.
Lake Okeechobee is two feet below any level of concern. Should hurricane rains drop two feet of water in the lake — easy peasy during a rainmaking tropical system — and, say, another hurricane is incoming ... what to do, what to do?
It's a bit more complicated than this, but if the lake is high and another rainmaker is imminent, an exception in the Grand New Plan allows for the hard-fought rules about the Caloosahatchhee and St. Lucie river ecosystems to go *poof* and allow for the spillways to crank open wide.
It seems that the hydrological paradox has an exit ramp.
No pollution solution
It's not new news to Everglades watchers that Lake Okeechobee has a runaway problem with nutrient pollution. That is water containing high concentrations of phosphorus, nitrogen, and other chemicals due to the overuse of fertilizers for more than 100 years by the family and industrial farms surrounding the lake.
Adding to that chemical stew is Greater Orlando’s runoff. The everyday detritus of life – motor oil, radiator fluid, gum, animal feces, spit, cigarette butts, and other nasty things – flow through the stormwater system into the Kissimmee River, which meanders south to the northern shore of Lake Okeechobee.
There, suburban Orlando’s street pollution pours into Lake O.
That's not going to change.
Credit to all
Nearly every environmental nonprofit in South Florida working to better the Everglades, and that is nearly all of them, is claiming credit for their work being the catalyst for the Army Corps’ Grand New Plan.
All of them deserve a good share of the credit; none of them did it alone.
The Everglades Foundation acknowledges the complexity of balancing water needs and environmental impacts, joining others who express concerns about the practical challenges of those conflicting imperatives.
Eric Eikenberg, leader of the foundation, said despite any contradictions and difficulties balancing the changes in the Grand New Plan, it's as good as it gets for now.
“While the long-term solution to South Florida’s complex water problems and the full elimination of discharges from the lake will only happen with new water infrastructure like the Everglades reservoir, this is a significant step toward a more balanced approach to managing the lake water that Floridians and our state rely on.”
Several of the environmental heavyweights share my concern about the Grand New Plan counting on conflicting actions being possible at the same time.
Let's hope that within the hundreds of pages of the Grand New Plan, these contradictions are recognized and there are plans for future fixes — so the whole thing isn't just expensive window dressing.
And now we join WGCU’s Water Quality Report which, like the Grand New Plan, has contradictions that allow us to start at the beginning and end simultaneously.
RED TIDE
The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission sampled statewide for the red tide organism, Karenia brevis, and found none at observable levels including in Southwest Florida.
That means Southwest Florida’s beaches are free of that acrid, red-tide stench
No reports of fish kills or respiratory issues related to red tide have been reported.
However, the Clinic for the Rehabilitation of Wildlife on Sanibel admitted six birds with suspected red tide toxicosis: Four are still in care, but a pelican and a brown noddy died
BLUE-GREEN ALGAE
The Florida Department of Health has not found any blue-green algae since Hurricane Debby’s storm surge inundated the region several weeks ago.
The Florida Department of Health in Collier and Manatee counties issued water quality advisories after Hurricane Debby for human feces in the water. The health department has since lifted the advisory for the Marco Island area, but further north the advisory for Palma Sola Causeway in Bradenton remains in effect.
Satellite imagery from Lake Okeechobee showed the presence of an algal bloom but once again cloud cover and wind prevented an area from being determined. The last clear image of the surface of the lake earlier this month showed a blue-green algae bloom covering 220 squares, or about half of the lake.
The FDEP says it is important to remember the blue-green algae potential is subject to rapidly changing environmental conditions or satellite inconsistencies.
What is red tide?
Red tide is one type of harmful algal bloom caused by high concentrations of the toxic dinoflagellate K. brevis, which is a type of microscopic algae found in the Gulf of Mexico.
Red tide typically forms naturally offshore, commonly in late summer or early fall, and is carried into coastal waters by winds and currents. Once inshore, these opportunistic organisms can use nearshore nutrient sources to fuel their growth.
Blooms typically last into winter or spring, but in some cases, can endure for more than one year.
Is red tide harmful?
K. brevis produces potent neurotoxins that can be harmful to the health of both wildlife and people. Wind and wave action can break open K. brevis cells and release toxins into the air. This is why you should monitor conditions and stay away from beaches where red tide is in bloom.
People in coastal areas can experience varying degrees of eye, nose and throat irritation during a red tide bloom. Some individuals with chronic respiratory conditions like asthma or chronic lung disease might experience more severe symptoms.
Red tide toxins can also affect the central nervous system of fish and other marine life, which can lead to fish kills.
What causes red tide?
A red tide bloom develops naturally, but recent studies have discovered mankind's infusion of other nutrients into the mix can make the red tide last longer or get stronger. But biology (the organisms), chemistry (natural or man-made nutrients for growth) and physics (concentrating and transport mechanisms) interact to produce the algal bloom. No one factor causes the development of a red tide bloom.
What is blue-green algae?
Blue-green algae, also known as cyanobacteria, are a group of organisms that can live in freshwater, saltwater or brackish water.
Large concentrations, called blooms, can change the water color to blue, green, brown, orange or red. Some cyanobacterial blooms can look like foam, scum, or mats on the surface of freshwater lakes and ponds. As algae in a cyanobacterial bloom die, the water may smell like something with a naturally unpleasant odor has now started to rot, too.
Is blue-green algae harmful?
Different types of blue-green algal bloom species can look different and have different impacts. However, regardless of species, many types of blue-green algae can produce toxins that can make you or your pets sick if swallowed or possibly cause skin and eye irritation.
The FDEP advises staying out of water where algae are visibly present as specks or mats or where water is discolored. Livestock and your dog should not come into contact with water like that, and if they do, wash the animal right away. It very well might save Fido's life.
What causes blue-green algae?
Blue-green algae blooms occur when the algae that are typically present grow in numbers more than normal. Within a few days, a bloom can cause clear water to become cloudy.
Winds tend to push the floating blooms to the shore where they become more noticeable. Cyanobacterial blooms can form in warm, slow-moving waters that are rich in nutrients. Blooms can occur at any time, but most often occur in late summer or early fall.
If any major type of water quality alert is issued, you can find the details here in WGCU’s Water Quality Report.
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