Water discharges from Lake Okeechobee into two Florida estuaries have grabbed the attention of Governor Rick Scott.
He sent a letter to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Thursday morning to relieve flooding of the Everglades Water Conservation Areas and the water releases from the lake into the St. Lucie and Caloosahatchee estuaries.
The Corps began moving water out of the lake because of heavy January rainfall as well as backpumping.
The flow of water into the St. Lucie Estuary has caused ecological and economic problems.
In his letter Governor Scott asks the Corps to take immediate action to relieve the flooding and move the water south.
His letter reads in part, "Moving water south out of the Water Conservation Areas will prevent the die off of wildlife whose habitat is currently flooded due to the heavy rainfall and also allow us to move more water from Lake Okeechobee south, relieving pressure from discharges to the Estuaries."
