PRESS
RELEASE: June 26, 2015
DEP HOSTS MEETING TO ADVANCE
LAKE OKEECHOBEE RESTORATION
~Technical meeting to
discuss progress and future water quality restoration ~
OKEECHOBEE, Fla. – The Florida Department of
Environmental Protection invites stakeholders and interested members of the
public to a technical meeting on July 1 to discuss the Lake Okeechobee
restoration plan. The restoration plan, known as a basin management action plan
or BMAP, was adopted late last year and identifies strategies and projects to
reduce sources of phosphorus in the basin and return the lake to
health.
“The department and stakeholders invested considerable effort
into the development of this BMAP,” said Tom Frick, director of the Division of
Environmental Assessment and Restoration. “But our work is not over. These
meetings are part of our ongoing commitment to restoration as we continue to
work alongside stakeholders for the benefit of the basin.”
Since the adoption of the restoration plan, the department has
held regular update meetings to keep stakeholders and the public informed of
progress and to solicit feedback on future restoration activities
going forward. Representatives will provide updates on the watershed model
and ongoing projects as well as review information concerning monitoring data
and land use.
This restoration plan is specifically designed to reduce
excessive phosphorous, a type of nutrient pollution. Projects that reduce or
eliminate sources of phosphorous frequently also reduce or eliminate sources of
nitrogen, comprehensively addressing nutrient pollution in the basin. Nutrients
like nitrogen and phosphorous are naturally found in the water and necessary
for the healthy growth of aquatic plant and animal life; however, excess
nutrients can lead to abnormally rapid algal growth and cause water
quality complications such as habitat smothering or oxygen depletion in the
water. Stakeholders continue to be actively engaged in coordinating with DEP
and implementing projects to improve water quality in the basin.
Lake Okeechobee is the largest freshwater lake in Florida and
the second largest freshwater lake in the contiguous United States. This
natural resource provides drinking water for urban areas, irrigation for
agricultural lands, recharge for aquifers, and freshwater for the Everglades.
The lake is also a major source of water for the Caloosahatchee and St. Lucie
rivers and estuaries.
For more information
on the Lake Okeechobee restoration plan and meeting agenda, please click here.
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