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St. Lucie Estuary

Rescue the River of Grass – and finish the job of Everglades restoration

January 30, 2025

 You want to save the Everglades, the northern estuaries and Florida Bay? You want to protect people and animals from harmful algal blooms and safeguard South Florida’s economy? Then it’s time to “Rescue the River of Grass.” Launched by…

Blue-green algae in Port Salerno: Is it connected to Lake O discharges?

January 8, 2025

Ladies and gentlemen, we give you: The first blue-green algal bloom of 2025 (photo courtesy of the Ohana Surf Shop in Stuart). Well, technically, the Florida DEP’s “Algal Bloom Dashboard” flags numerous blooms across the state; but one of those…

In Florida, it’s government against the people

December 19, 2024

Today is Day 13 of damaging discharges from Lake Okeechobee to the northern estuaries. On Instagram, our friends at Friends of the Everglades posted video of water rushing through the St. Lucie Lock and Dam with the caption “This is…

DEEP DIVE: What the muck? How ‘black mayonnaise’ impacts our waters

December 11, 2024

Let’s face it: The Indian River Lagoon and its tributaries are mucked up. That is, they’re full of muck, a gooey mix of eroded soil, animal waste and both organic and inorganic matter that covers about 6,000 acres of the…

Day 5: Why are we getting these discharges, anyway?

December 11, 2024

The rationale behind the damaging discharges to the Caloosahatchee and St. Lucie rivers and Lake Worth Lagoon goes like this: Army Corps officials say the goal of “Recovery Operations” is to give Lake O a break. For six years in…

Discharges start Saturday, could last for months

December 7, 2024

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers confirmed in a press release Friday that it will begin “Recovery Operations” – discharges to the St. Lucie and Caloosahatchee rivers along with the Lake Worth Lagoon – on Saturday, Dec. 7. According to…

Why is this seat on the SFWMD board still vacant?

November 26, 2024

Hey, remember JTL? We do. Jacqui Thurlow-Lippisch was a solid advocate for the Treasure Coast region during her time on the South Florida Water Management District’s Governing Board, often agitating — politely — for clean-water solutions for her community. But…

Discharges to help Lake O by hurting Caloosahatchee, St. Lucie

November 21, 2024

Lake Okeechobee is in rough shape. The lake as of this writing remains over 16 feet, and it’s been high for a long time. Submerged aquatic vegetation (SAV) has died off; South Florida Water Management District officials say they like…

DEEP DIVE: Is this the calm before the toxic algae bloom storm?

September 17, 2024

Aside from some recent flare-ups — like the toxic algae found in the St. Lucie River this past spring and the near-constant algae in Lake Okeechobee — Florida waters have mostly been spared the massive, guacamole-like blue-green algae blooms that choked…

We did it: LOSOM is now the law of the land

August 14, 2024

Five years ago we had an opportunity for change. We seized it. And now, at long last, that change has come. On Monday the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers South Atlantic Division Commander signed a Record of Decision for the…

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