Gov. Rick Scott on Monday issued an emergency order in Glades, Hendry, Lee, Martin, Okeechobee, Palm Beach and St. Lucie counties to help combat algal blooms caused by Lake Okeechobee water discharges from the Army Corps of Engineers.
This emergency declaration allows the Department of Environmental Protection and the South Florida Water Management District to waive various restrictions and regulations to store water in additional areas south of the Lake, which will help alleviate the Army Corps of Engineers’ water discharges that are causing harmful algal blooms in Florida’s rivers and coastal estuaries. This emergency action furthers the Governor’s previous action of directing the Florida Department of Environmental Protection to identify additional opportunities to move water south from Lake Okeechobee. Click HERE for the Executive Order.
“As Governor, it is my duty to protect Floridians, no matter what it takes. Today, our state is once again facing a crisis from water releases controlled by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. This has prompted me to issue an emergency declaration, so our state agencies can do everything in their power to minimize the harmful impacts these releases are having on our communities,” the governor said.
The governor announced this action following a tour of the Caloosahatchee River where he received a briefing on the additional water monitors he directed DEP to deploy to the river last month. Also, last year, the Governor signed a bill that expedited the EAA reservoir that will provide relief from the Army Corps’ releases and secured full federal funding to fix the Herbert Hoover Dike to meet his goal of completing the project three years ahead of schedule.