cerp project lake okeechobee watershed

Cerp ProjectLake Okeechobee

Watershed

Amanda DominicisPeriod: 5

Purpose

• Increase aquatic/wildlife habitat

• Control extreme highs/lows in lake performance

• Increase storage capacity for runoff

• Improve water quality

Advantages• In 1926 and 1928, 2 hurricanes

produced storm surges that killed 2,400 people.

• To prevent it from happening again, the lake provides a home for many plants and animals

• The lake is a major economic and recreational resource

Impact

• Most of the land was converted to agriculture land

• Water quality challenges due to large increases in the rate of nutrients in the land

Cost• The cost of this project is unknown because the project is still in the process and under construction.

Disadvantages

• There has been an increase in phosphorus

• Widespread blue-green algae blooms (covering 100 square miles)

• Phosphorus-rich sediments, over 198,000 acres, at the bottom of the lake