As damaging Lake Okeechobee water discharges to the coast increase this week, a chance to reroute more lake water south to help the Everglades could be slipping away, according to environmental advocates.
Fishermen, business owners and others Thursday stepped up their push for the state to buy more South Florida sugar cane land that could be used to restore Lake Okeechobee water flows to the Everglades.
They called for the South Florida Water Management District to start pursuing a land deal before missing a deadline this year to buy 46,800 acres of U.S. Sugar Corp. land south of Lake Okeechobee.
That land could be used to move more Lake Okeechobee water south to the Everglades, as an alternative to draining lake water to the east and west coasts for flood control.
Draining Lake Okeechobee water out to sea wastes water that could help the Everglades and boost South Florida water supplies. Also, millions of gallons of Lake Okeechobee discharges can damage coastal fishing grounds and foul water quality, which scares away tourists.
Without more land to store water south of Lake Okeechobee, the draining to the coasts will continue and "the Everglades restoration will never be completed," said Newton Cook, of United Water Fowlers.
Everglades advocates are warning that if the South Florida Water Management District doesn't start pursuing the land deal now, the Florida Legislature won't consider approving the money during its spring session. If that doesn't happen, then the state risks missing an October deadline to try to buy the land.
"We have been met with silence and ignoring the issue," said Lisa Interlandi, of the Everglades Law Center, one of the dozens of people who Thursday called for the water management district to take action.
District officials say they are considering new water storage options north and south of the lake. But Thursday they again balked at committing to holding a public meeting and a vote on the U.S. Sugar land deal.
"We are trying to do the right thing and find the right answers," said Dan O'Keefe, the district board's chairman.
Amid the land deal controversy, the Army Corps of Engineers Thursday announced that high water levels in Lake Okeechobee are prompting a 22 percent increase in lake draining to the east and west.
That could mean discharging as much as 1.4 billion gallons per day of lake water west through the Caloosahatchee River and east through the St. Lucie River. That's enough water to fill about 2,000 Olympic-sized swimming pools a day.
The St. Lucie and Caloosahatchee estuaries are still recovering from lake discharges in 2013 that killed marine habitat and also fueled water quality problems that made some areas unsafe for swimming.
"Our estuaries are dying" said William Taylor, a fisherman from Jupiter who objects to more lake draining to the coast. "Every year ... the catches are getting smaller."
Lake Okeechobee water used to naturally flow south, before decades of draining to make way for South Florida farming and development.
The latest chance to buy more land for Everglades restoration comes because of a 2010 deal where the South Florida Water Management District spent $197 million to buy 26,800 acres from U.S. Sugar.
That deal also included a 10-year option for the district to buy some or all of the U.S. Sugar's remaining 153,200 acres. Under the terms of that deal, the state has until October 2015 to remain first in line to buy the remaining U.S. Sugar land.
Buying all 46,800 acres would cost about $350 million, if purchased at the same per-acre price as the 2010 deal. But that price could go up or down based on current real estate market values.
Florida voters in November endorsed buying more land for environmental restoration and preservation. Voters approved a constitutional amendment that commits a portion of the fees levied on real estate sales to help pay for buying land for environmental projects.
A chance to buy so much sugar industry land for Everglades restoration may not come again if the state doesn't follow-through on the U.S. Sugar deal, according to the Everglades Coalition.
"This could be a game changer," Manley Fuller, of the Florida Wildlife Federation, said about the potential land deal. "It's a great opportunity."
District officials say buying more sugar land isn't necessarily the right move for restoration efforts. The state is exploring all options for storing more water to lessen lake discharges, said Blake Guillory, the water management district's executive director.
Winning support in Tallahassee for another U.S. Sugar land buy could be difficult.
State lawmakers in recent years have slashed the South Florida Water Management District's budget and put limits on the agency's land buying potential.
Also, Gov. Rick Scott opposed the U.S. Sugar land deal when he was running for governor in 2010. Under Scott, the state has prioritized using land it already owns for Everglades restoration.
State and district officials so far have shown "no interest" in buying more U.S. Sugar land, company spokeswoman Judy Sanchez said.
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