OKEECHOBEE, Fla. — Republican lawmakers from across Florida toured Lake Okeechobee by airboat Tuesday, discussing ongoing and future efforts to revitalize one of the state's most important waterways.
Lake Okeechobee — dubbed by many as the liquid heart of Florida — provides drinking water to more than 6 million South Floridians.
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Matt Nelson, president of the Florida Sportsman's Conservation Association, summed up the lake's significance.
"Lake Okeechobee is the liquid heart of the Everglades," Nelson said.
The tour brought lawmakers and conservation groups onto the water for a firsthand look at the challenges and progress surrounding the lake. Among those on the tour was Rep. Toby Overdorf of Martin County.
"This is an area that then everything else flows from. We have nutrient issues, we have overall vegetation issues, with management issues, and all of these things are coming together at this one particular area," Overdorf said.
Rep. Meg Weinberger, who represents western Palm Beach County, also joined the tour.
"This is where we live. This is, we are surrounded by water, we are peninsula, you know. Our kids need to understand the science, the history. This is the most important. If you're living in Florida, we need to learn, we need to teach our kids, and many Floridians really have no clue what goes on in Okeechobee and Lake Okeechobee, and it's very important," Weinberger said.
Congressman and gubernatorial candidate Byron Donalds also participated in the tour. He said the focus should be on completing long-planned restoration projects and looking ahead to what comes next.
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"There is a series of projects — we all know what they are — it's about just getting them completed. One of them is a potential reservoir. It's a reservoir north of the lake, on the Kissimmee River Basin, to be able to hold back some of that water to continue to manage lake levels," Donalds said.
Donalds also addressed what he sees as a priority going forward.
"The key thing going forward is, what are we going to do with some of the sediment in the bottom, be very creative about how we're going to get that out," Donalds said.
Friends of the Everglades acknowledged the value of state leaders seeing the lake up close, but argued the next governor should focus on water storage and treatment projects south of Lake Okeechobee.
Executive Director Eve Samples pointed to the lake's pollution levels and an urgent deadline.
"Unfortunately, Lake Okeechobee is one of the most polluted lakes in North America, and in addition to that, the Southern Everglades are on track to fail phosphorus pollution limits that the deadlines are kicking in for this year. So, there's a real urgent need for the next governor to take the bull by the horns," Samples said.
Samples argued that investment south of the lake would deliver the greatest return for taxpayers.
"The greatest bang for Floridians' bucks, for our taxpayer dollars, is storage for water and treatment for water south of Lake Okeechobee, not north of Lake Okeechobee. Storage north can be a part of the puzzle, but if you store and clean water south of the lake, then it can be sent to the Southern Everglades, which still does not receive enough fresh clean water," Samples said.
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