Lake Okeechobee water releases begin
into Caloosahatchee River
January 27, 2010
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers started freshwater
pulse releases this morning from Lake Okeechobee to the Caloosahatchee Estuary.
During the dry season, water managers release fresh
water from the lake to maintain the balance between salt and fresh water in the
estuary.
This release will be an average flow over 11 days
of 650 cubic feet (4,855.5 gallons) per second measured at the W.P Franklin
Lock and Dam.
A recent release that ended Jan. 20 did not reduce
salinity to target levels in the upper estuary of 10 parts per thousand — the
upper estuary extends from the lock and dam to Interstate 75.