Tackling Pollution North of Lake Okeechobee/Headwaters Wildlife Refuge

The Everglades ecosystem encompasses 16 South and Central Florida counties and the hydrology of the region is such that agricultural and urban activities in the upper regions of the ecosystem -- just south of Orlando -- have a profound impact in other areas of the interconnected waterway.

This is of particular concern to the Everglades Foundation as its scientists explore options available to tackle the issues of legacy pollution and water quality in the northern regions of the watershed while other Everglades restoration activities proceed to rehabilitate the environment and sustain the regional water supply.

The Foundation is in the process of evaluating initiatives being put in place to address "Northern Everglades" pollution issues. These include:

A) Best Management Practices (BMPs) that the state of Florida is working to implement with citrus, dairy and cattle operators that could decrease the pollution-carrying runoff from agricultural production in the Lake Okeechobee watershed. These BMPs would address a host of mitigation alternatives that farmers could implement to reduce the pollution impacts conveyed to Lake Okeechobee including enhanced land fertilization techniques, improved water management (irrigation and drainage), moderate wetland restoration together with creation of on-farm stormwater retention and detention ponds.
B) Identification and special attention to nutrient-generating "hot-spot" agricultural areas (activities, farms) that are sources of the highest nutrient loadings.
C) Construction of regional Reservoir Assisted Stormwater Treatment Areas (RASTAs) - adequately sized land parcels that could be made available for strategically placed large-scale water retention/detention reservoirs and wetland stormwater treatment areas. These reservoirs will be designed to actively remove nutrients as well as replenish the underlying aquifers and providing habitat for wildlife.

"All these measures are meant to work in combination and take dead aim against two of the biggest Everglades nutrient pollution culprits -- excessive phosphorus and nitrogen," said Melodie Naja, water quality scientist, Everglades Foundation. "These actions must be vigorously and urgently applied to meet the phosphorus total maximum daily load of Lake Okeechobee."

Naja goes on to add that "it is not just the BMPs that must be enforced, it is also the other initiatives that must be established and work in combination with the BMPs. Together, these actions also will contribute to supply cleaner fresh water for 8 million people residing in South Florida."

Lake Okeechobee Watershed Committee

The Foundation, in association with several environmental partners, has convened the Lake Okeechobee Watershed Committee to promote the environmental community's vision for Lake Okeechobee and its northern watershed. This committee includes scientists and policy experts from more than half a dozen organizations.

The Lake Okeechobee Watershed Committee's positions on Lake Okeechobee and the Northern Everglades watershed are the following:

1. Creating a holistic vision for addressing Lake Okeechobee watershed rehabilitation.
2. Restoration of natural system functions north of Lake Okeechobee is essential to maintain the health of the Lake and improve the overall health of the watershed.
3. Lake water levels are to be maintained between 12 ft. and 15.5 ft.
4. Lake nutrient loading is not to exceed the total maximum daily load specified for the Lake
5. Exotic and nuisance plants and animals in the shoreline areas are to be minimized

The Lake Okeechobee Watershed Committee will employ strategies designed to address each area of concern and develop an agreed-upon road map which will lead to actions that will institute practical solutions to Northern Everglades pollution issues.

Everglades Headwaters National Wildlife Refuge

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) is considering a proposal to create a new Everglades Headwaters National Wildlife Refuge in the Kissimmee Chain of Lakes Area, which would create non-traditional, public-private land preservation agreements on a larger conservation footprint. This bold proposal would potentially create one of the first new refuges in Florida in more than a decade.

There are several reasons for considering this option to address Northern Everglades pollution and restoration issues including protecting and restoring water quality and quantity in this headwaters region of the Everglades ecosystem as well as protecting a land base that will enable wildlife migration for species such as the Florida black bear and the Florida panther.

The USFWS goals are to protect and manage the unique assemblage of rare species and habitats found in the Northern Everglades, manage and restore the wetland resources contributing to the Everglades ecosystem and anticipate the migration of species and habitat in response to climate change.