The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers currently determines when to discharge water to the east and west of Lake Okeechobee using a document called the Lake Okeechobee Regulation Schedule (LORS). This outdated and harmful regulation schedule is based on data from more than a decade ago and causes serious damage to our community through frequent discharges of toxic water. As you know, these discharges threaten our community's health, environment and economy.

As a result, I wrote a law forcing them to update the discharge schedule with the goal of stopping harmful discharges to the estuaries!

Now, the Army Corps has narrowed down their selection of a new regulation schedule to six potential plans and will select the final schedule this July: 

  • Plans AA and CC would substantially reduce discharges from Lake Okeechobee to the St. Lucie.
  • Plan BB would actually increase discharges!
  • You can learn more about the other plans here.

I have teamed up with environmental groups and community leaders east, west and south of Lake Okeechobee to fight for a plan that will stop toxic discharges to both the east and west coasts while sending as much fresh water south into the Everglades as possible!

Share Your Opinion

Public comments are a critical part of this process that will help determine when and how many discharges happen for the next decade.  You can share your opinion on which plan you support (plans "AA" and "CC" to substantially reduce discharges to the St. Lucie or plan "BB" that would increase discharges to the St. Lucie) by emailing the Army Corps at LakeOComments@usace.army.mil.