The Army Corps of Engineers began releasing water from Lake Okeechobee Saturday under Lake Okeechobee Recovery Operations.
To the Point
What's the latest on Lake Okeechobee water management?
Exactly how much will be released is based on many factors including current lake levels, climate outlooks and nesting activities, but the maximum allowable releases are:
- Up to 2,100 cubic feet/second to the Caloosahatchee River Estuary
- Up to 1,400 cubic feet/second total St. Lucie Estuary inflows
- Up to 300 cubic feet/second to the Lake Worth Lagoon
- Up to maximum practicable at S-351 and S-354 points south of the lake
Army Corps of Engineers
There are six considerations for implementing the Recovery Operations, which the Army Corps says all have been met:
- Lake stage not receding below 13 feet in the summer
- Submerged aquatic vegetation coverage significantly below 11,000 acres
- No strong El Nino nor La Nina forecasted for the dry season
- Lake stage not receding below 11 feet of the National Geodetic Vertical Datum point in the past five years
- Ecological and Snail Kite conditions
- No water supply concerns
Protecting Paradise
Water releases from Lake Okeechobee to start next month
The Army Corps told WPTV Reporter Cassandra Garcia that the water releases could last as long as May 1.
The goal of the release is to lower lake levels before the wet season to allow for recovery of the lake's ecology.
As of Dec. 7, Lake Okeechobee's water level is 15.61 feet.
