North, South, East, West….
You know I have really just about had it. I know you have too.
I am so tired of posting and writing about the sad state of affairs of our state waters. Every direction one turns!
This weekend many photos showed up on Facebook reporting an enormous fish kill in the Central Indian River Lagoon near Melbourne and Cocoa Beach. These photos of hovering and floating fish are very disturbing.
What is even more upsetting is when one considers the state of just about all of Florida’s waters. Is this the same state I grew up in as a child. Really?
To summarize a few recent, ongoing situations:
CENTRAL INDIAN RIVER LAGOON-experiencing “brown tide” and fish die off…
NORTHERN LAGOON: 2011-2013 Super Bloom, morality events (both north and central), 60% seagrass die off…
Florida Today: http://www.floridatoday.com/story/news/local/2016/03/18/report-fish-kill-brevard-county/81992006/ or http://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/environment/os-florida-water-catastrophe-statewide-20160304-story.html
–ST LUCIE RIVER/S. INDIAN RIVER LAGOON: repeated discharges from Lake Okeechobee and area canals have destroyed the heath of the river. It was declared “impaired by the state in 2002. State of Emergency due to Lake O called in Feb. 2016).
(Article: TC Palm: http://www.tcpalm.com/news/indian-river-lagoon/health/lake-okeechobee-discharges-to-st-lucie-river-begin-2a945729-88d4-59b9-e053-0100007fc4eb-367103911.html)
—-CALOOSAHATCHEE RIVER (The western outlet for lake Okeechobee discharges, the river has been straightened, and connected to Lake O. Sometimes suffers from too little fresh water/high salinity. State of Emergency due to Lake O called in Feb. 2016)
(Article: Tampa Bay Times http://www.tampabay.com/news/environment/water/lake-okeechobee-flood-control-creates-environmental-disaster/2270032)
—FLORIDA BAY: over the past few years has lost massive amounts of sea-grasses due to high salinity. When I was just there with my UF NRLI class this year, the bay looked murky. This bay historically received the fresh waters from Lake O.
(Article: Miami Herald http://www.miamiherald.com/news/local/environment/article37583577.html)
—FLORIDA SPRINGS– Some have gone dry and others are lacking sufficient flow due to aquifer withdrawal. Many have experienced algae blooms. Photographer John Moran has documented their decline.
(Site: http://springsforever.org) or (http://springseternalproject.org)
–LAKE OKEECHOBEE–deluged with water from the mostly straightened Kissimmee River and others. It has been dammed and directed to the northern estuaries.
(State BMAP plan to improve: http://www.dep.state.fl.us/water/watersheds/docs/bmap/LakeOkeechobeeBMAP.pdf)
–BISCAYNE BAY has also had seagrass die off and water quality issues/high human impact)
(Article: http://www.sun-sentinel.com/local/broward/fl-noaa-biscayne-bay-20150118-story.html)
Keep documenting. Keep posting. Keep reading. Keep learning…Keep writing your elected officials…
Keep pushing for a better state. A better state of Florida’s waters.
(Thank you to Ms Bobbi Blodgett for getting me the details on the fish kill photograph.)
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3-25-16: I am adding this follow up article on the fish kill by Florida Today. The blog was written on 3-21-16. http://www.floridatoday.com/story/news/local/environment/2016/03/23/what-we-know—-and-dont-know—-fish-kill/82163574/