U.S. Army Corps poised to threaten South Florida water supplies

On the evening of February 28, one night after a crowded public forum hosted by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, the Palm Beach Soil and Water Conservation District passed a resolution to encourage the Army Corps to adopt a responsible approach to regulating the depth of Lake Okeechobee.

The Corps has the unenviable task of trying to safeguard the Treasure Coast and estuaries from future flooding, while still providing enough water for communities and farms throughout southern Florida. The Corps generally operates the lake within a range of 12.5 feet – 15.5 feet, and existing rules only allow for the lake to drop to 10.5 feet, for a single day, at the start of the rainy season.

The Corps, however, is feeling political pressure to consistently lower Lake O to 10.5 feet going into the rainy season. This unproven strategy is meant to reduce harmful discharges into the St. Lucie and Caloosahatchee estuaries during summer months that could trigger further intense outbreaks of algae blooms, like those experienced last summer.

At the forum, dozens of elected county officials, coastal city and agricultural community mayors, as well as numerous concerned residents, pleaded for the safety and economic stability of their communities. Palm Beach County Mayor Mack Bernard has already declared, “Palm Beach County will fight any attempt to lower the water in Lake Okeechobee to 10.5 feet.”

Lowering lake levels to 10.5 feet during the dry season, coupled with even a mild drought, would trigger severe water shortages. Many residents of West Palm Beach recall the 2010-2011 drought, when the city was forced to buy water from the county and public fountains were shut off. Another water shortage of this magnitude would harm agriculture, wildlife and businesses from Palm Beach County down to the Florida Keys, and could permanently compromise many freshwater supplies in wellfields, due to salt water intrusion.

County officials have raised the question, “Why did we spend over a billion dollars to rehabilitate the leak-prone Herbert Hoover Dike, just to impose lower lake levels?” The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has decided to spend more than $500 million — part of $17.4 billion Congressional appropriation for hurricane-ravaged states — to complete ongoing repairs to the aging dike by 2022. These rehabilitation efforts include 28.6 miles of cutoff wall, armoring and raising embankments, replacing water control structures and other work, all of which will drastically decrease the risk of the dike failing.

Lowering lake levels will have unintended dire consequences for Palm Beach County’s wellfields, drinking water supplies and ecology. The algae blooms along the Treasure Coast are a crisis that must be solved, but not with a high-stakes gamble that could threaten the health, safety, and security of Palm Beach County residents. There will be more opportunities for county residents to weigh in on this vital discussion, as the Corps continues to hold public forums throughout South Florida.

ROB LONG, DELRAY BEACH

Editor's note: Long is chair of the Palm Beach Soil and Water Conservation District.