Water Quality

Focusing on Water Quality

The 1991 federal Settlement Agreement was written as a road map for reversing the decline of the ecosystem in Everglades National Park and the Loxahatchee National Wildlife Refuge from phosphorus loading.

In 2005, the Technical Oversight Committee, a panel of state and federal scientists, established by the Settlement Agreement to provide technical advice on the cleanup, acknowledged that Florida has consistently achieved the interim and long-term water quality goals required by the 1991 Settlement Agreement ahead of the December 31, 2006 effective date for the long-term levels.

No other government in the world has invested as much time or money in improving the quality of one single waterbody or natural system, setting aside an unprecedented $1.8 billion for water quality improvements alone.

• Since 1994, Florida has built 36,000 acres of stormwater treatment areas to naturally filter phosphorus from the water. During the last decade, these man-made wetlands, along with improved farming practices, prevented approximately 2,500 tons of phosphorus from entering the Everglades. Inflow phosphorus levels have been reduced from as high as 300 parts per billion (ppb) to as low as 12 ppb. During the next four years, the State will voluntarily build on this success by constructing an additional 18,000 acres of stormwater treatment areas – providing 60 percent more treatment capacity.
• In 2003, Florida established a stringent, science-based water quality criterion of 10 ppb for phosphorus to protect the sensitive balance of the ecosystem. After strengthening the measurement methodology used in the Loxahatchee to be more protective than the Consent Decree requires, the rule was approved by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Upheld by state court, no other water quality standard in Florida’s history has ever been so thoroughly researched.
• Authorized by Section 528 of the 1996 Water Resources Development Act, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) is charged with developing specific water quality related projects that are essential to the restoration of the Florida Everglades. These projects are called Critical Projects . The State of Florida is charged with securing the land for all of these projects.

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Lake Okeechobee Water Quality

In October 2005, Florida unveiled the Lake Okeechobee and Estuary Recovery plan (LOER) - a comprehensive action plan to help restore and recover the ecological health of Lake Okeechobee and the St. Lucie and Caloosahatchee Estuaries. LOER is a response to identified water resource needs, legislative directives and demands of Florida citizens.

• Under the recovery plan, $200 million over 4 years will be invested in expanding water storage areas and constructing treatment marshes which will result in phosphorus reductions of 65 to 75 metric tons and provide 48,000 acre-feet of water storage.

• The plan also calls for modifying current programs that will increase protection for Lake Okeechobee, St. Lucie Estuary and Caloosahatchee Estuary. These programs include:
  •  Modify the Lake Okeechobee water level requirements (called the regulation schedule)
  • Establish science-based limits for pollution
  • Address the land use in the area
  • Reduce the use of fertilizer in the Lake Okeechobee, St. Lucie and Caloosahatchee watersheds
  • Strengthen the criteria for stormwater permits
  • Implementing innovative growth management tools to reduce pollution