Tell the Army Corps of Engineers,

Water Management District, and your elected officials to

FIX THE FLO.

The floodgates from Lake Okeechobee opened Oct. 14, 2020, forcing polluted water into the Caloosahatchee and St. Lucie estuaries and posing a risk of toxic algae blooms. This government-sanctioned pollution is preventable. 

Tell the Army Corps of Engineers to stop future discharges to the northern estuaries by moving more Lake O water to the Everglades during the dry season, when algae is not prevalent and the Everglades and Florida Bay need freshwater. This change in Lake O operations will: 

• Protect human health: Toxic algae from Lake Okeechobee discharges to the Caloosahatchee and St. Lucie estuaries is linked to neurological and liver diseases. Airborne toxins from algae blooms can travel miles from shore. 
• Protect the Herbert Hoover Dike and Glades communities: Sending more Lake O water to the Everglades during the dry months would lower the lake ahead of hurricane season, when the Herbert Hoover Dike encircling the lake is most vulnerable to a breach. 
• Protect Florida’s economy: Polluted discharges from Lake Okeechobee have depressed real estate values, harmed water-dependent businesses and deterred tourists from visiting Florida. Meanwhile, dry winter conditions in the Everglades pose a threat to water supply and contribute to hypersalinity in Florida Bay.
• Protect marine life: Lake Okeechobee discharges contribute to blue-green algae and red tide blooms that in 2018 caused widespread fatalities of marine life on Florida’s coasts. Even when toxic algae is not present, massive Lake O releases deplete salinity levels and destroy habitat, including critical nurseries for important fisheries. Conversely, moving water to the Everglades and Florida Bay during the dry season benefits those ecosystems.

Sign this petition to tell the Army Corps of Engineers, Water Management District, and your elected officials to change how they manage Lake Okeechobee to finally stop the toxic discharges that have plagued Florida for decades.