A PROPOSED MODIFICATION TO REGULATION OF LAKE OKEECHOBEE1

Abstract

ABSTRACT: The current Lake Okeechobee regulation schedule is two feet higher than previous schedules that were in operation during the early 1970's. Its implementation was in response to prolonged periods of drought that occurred during the 1960's and early 1970's and the large increases in consumptive uses that were projected, and are presently occurring in south Florida. The additional storage provided by the schedule undoubtedly helped prevent more severe water shortages during the record setting 1980–1982 drought. However, two environmental concerns associated with the present schedule surfaced in recent years with the return to more normal rainfall conditions. First, the present schedule allows frequent high water conditions to exist in the lake that appear to be stressful to the unique littoral zone habitat of the lake. Second, the allowable buildup of storage prior to the dry season, combined with the large required decrease in storage prior to the hurricane (wet) season, contribute to the need for large regulation releases to tidewater. These large discharges have undesirable impacts on ecosystems of the downstream estuaries. This paper presents an alternative schedule that better meets the needs of the estuarine habitats without negatively impacting the other objectives of managing the lake.