PRESS RELEASE: May 22, 2015
DEP HOSTS WORKSHOP TO DEVELOP RESTORATION GOALS FOR LAKE WEIR
~Department solicits feedback on water quality
restoration goals ~
EAST LAKE WEIR, Fla. – On May 27, The Florida Department of Environmental
Protection will hold a public workshop to further develop water quality
restoration goals for Lake Weir. Located in the Ocklawaha River
Basin, Lake Weir contains excess nutrients that have caused water quality
complications. The restoration goals will define reductions in nutrients
necessary to restore the water body to health.
“We want
our restoration process to be inclusive,” said Tom Frick, director of the
Division of Environmental Assessment and Restoration. “As we develop our water quality goals, these public meetings are an opportunity for
stakeholders and the public to be part of the conversation.”
These
water quality goals are known as TMDLs, or total maximum daily loads. Total
maximum daily loads are a calculation of the maximum amount of a specified
pollutant that a water body can contain and still remain healthy and
functional. DEP uses available data, watershed models, as well as stakeholder and
public input, to develop the best possible TMDLs. After adoption, TMDLs serve as
the primary objective for long-term restoration plans that identify strategies
and projects to reduce or eliminate pollutant sources.
Since the
last workshop, DEP has received new information regarding sources of nutrient
pollution to the lake and the restoration goals have been revised to
incorporate the new data. The revisions will be discussed at the workshop. After the TMDLs have been finalized, the department
intends to move forward with a combined project to adopt TMDLs for five lakes
within the Ocklawaha River Basin: Lake Weir, Lake Denham, Lake Roberts, Marshall Lake and Lake Lochloosa.
Lake Weir
is a 5,600 acre lake in Marion County southeast of Ocala within the Ocklawaha
River Basin. The lake is naturally spring fed and clear with a white, sandy
bottom. Lake Weir is a popular destination for fishing, boating and other
water sports.
For meeting details, please click here.
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