Friends of my husband, pilots Dave Stone and Scott Kuhns, took these aerials yesterday, 11-8-17 around 5 pm. When I asked Scott about the plume, he relayed that it went 15 miles south almost all the way to Jupiter Inlet, and since there is also rain driven, fresh, dark- stained water flowing out of the Jupiter Inlet (not over-nutrified, black-sediment water from Lake O) there was no clear delineation of blackened plume to aqua ocean water, like usual–rather, the waters are all dark….
“How far did the plume go east from the St Lucie Inlet?” I asked. “From the coast, as far as the eye could see…”

*The ACOE has been discharging from Lake O since Hurricane IRMA hit on Sept 2oth, 2017. The rate of discharge has gone up and down, however increasing over recent weeks. Word is the St Lucie could be dumped on for many more months, possibly through the end of the year. So don’t count on taking your visiting relatives out fishing this holiday season even though you moved here for the water. This ecological disaster is finally seeing light at the end of the tunnel as Senator Joe Negron, alongside the public, and “River Warrior” groups, particularly Bullsugar, has pushed so hard that the SFWMD and ACOE are finally working towards building an EAA Reservoir that will begin the long journey of changing water drainage culture in South Florida, and “sending the water south.” Please get involved and learn more by viewing this SFWMD EAA RESERVOIR website:https://www.sfwmd.gov/our-work/cerp-project-planning/eaa-reservoir
*Thank you to the people, and the children, groups such as the C4CW, Rivers Coalition, grandparents’ HOA email chains, leadership at Martin Health System, and to the those working for the agencies trying to help the St Lucie. As the River Kidz say:
Thank you for these updates Jacqui🙏
Thank you for all the photos and explanation of current happenings to create the much needed reservoir to restore the flow of water south to end the on life support status of Everglades National Park.
Keep up the great work. The Florida Legislature is corrupted. Members get millions from Big Sugar. and Everglades National Park suffers it only get 50& of the water it needs. A huge Man made lake is needed to capture the pollution from Big Sugar. And restore the southern flow from Lake O.
Thanks for your comments!!!!
Excellent photos of the pollution plume.
Thank you!
I met a chemist who said he new you guys at our lagoon house. I showed him how a 50 lb bucket of fine calcium beach sand turn to liquid right away in our lagoons water. I believe he understood the significance of what he was seeing. It was calm and your could see the liquid calcium creep out across the bottom. Within seconds the solid sand was all liquid.. All the life in our estuary depends on what I have saying is the truth. It is kind of a relief that someone else might actually help me.
Our county commissioner recently faxed a letter I had written to a Virginia Barker and asked if what I was saying was true. She sent back a reply that said rip rap bags of concrete should do the same as the coquina . I replyed that if you put a 50lb bag of fine calcium BEACH sand anywhere in our lagoon it will turn to liquid right away —When acid is strong enough to desolve rip rap bags of concrete it is strong enough to damage concrete sea walls and bridges. She was the one responable for putting miles of fine calcium sand on our beachs that has since turned to liquid and drifted out to sea. From the concrete i saw lineing the shore in stuart I would say your concrete bridges have all ready been damaged. I think barnicals protect concrete pilings because acid will react with them first.
You’re doing a great job on your blog informing the masses.
On Thu, Nov 9, 2017, 6:15 AM Jacqui Thurlow-Lippisch wrote:
> Jacqui Thurlow-Lippisch posted: ” I am very fortunate to have a small army > of people helping me document the Lake Okeechobee discharges this year. > Presently, it is the tremendous rate of government sponsored discharge > from Lake O that is destroying the regions’ economy and ecolo” >
Thank you!
Keep up the great work Jacqui, The children are right, we do need to change the world.
🙂