© 2024 WLRN
MIAMI | SOUTH FLORIDA
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations
In South Florida, where the Everglades meet the bays, environmental challenges abound. Sea level rise threatens homes and real estate. Invasive species imperil native plants and animals. Pesticides reduce the risk of mosquito-borne diseases, but at what cost? WLRN's award-winning environment reporting strives to capture the color and complexity of human interaction with one of the most biodiverse areas of the planet.

Clearer View Of Irma's Impact Emerges As Lake Okeechobee Water Recedes

Amy Green
/
WMFE
The sun sets behind the lock and dam on Lake Okeechobee and St. Lucie Canal.

Lake Okeechobee’s receding water is offering a clearer view of Irma’s environmental impact.

The water is down by about a foot since the hurricane but remains high at more than 16 feet.

Paul Gray of Audubon of Florida says the water and muck stirred from the lake’s bottom prevent sunlight from reaching important plant communities.

And those plants serve as nurseries for fish.

“You have a huge loss in the lake. You lose the plant communities. You lose the bass fishery, and the crappie fishery tends to tank, too. And it may not come back for years because we just have to sit around and wait for a drought.”

He says the state’s largest lake could lose as many as 70 square miles of vegetation although the full scope of the hurricane’s impact won’t be known for months.

Lake Okeechobee serves as the hydrological heart of the Everglades, a watershed that supports the drinking water for more than a third of Floridians.

More On This Topic