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SCCF: More Lake Okeechobee releases to start

By SANIBEL-CAPTIVA CONSERVATION FOUNDATION - | Mar 1, 2024
SANIBEL-CAPTIVA CONSERVATION FOUNDATION
SANIBEL-CAPTIVA CONSERVATION FOUNDATION Lake Okeechobee release schedule for March 2-15. While westward flows are measured at the S-77 lock, they often combine with basin runoff before they reach S-79 (W.P. Franklin Lock and Dam) and the mouth of the Caloosahatchee Estuary.

The Sanibel-Captiva Conservation Foundation reported that the next 14 days of Lake Okeechobee releases to the Caloosahatchee and St. Lucie estuaries will begin on March 2, according to an announcement from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers this week.

This follows 14 days of releases to the Caloosahatchee that averaged approximately 4,000 cubic feet per second (cfs) per day from Feb. 17 to March 1.

From March 2-15, a daily average of 4,085.7 cubic feet per second (cfs) is scheduled to be sent to the west coast, while an average of 1,800 cfs per day will be sent east.

“Large, long-duration releases damage our estuaries,” SCCF Environmental Policy Director Matt DePaolis said. “We’re hoping that the Army Corps will be responsive to changing conditions in the estuary, especially as we’re heading into oyster spawning season.”