Wary of summer discharges, governor pushes Corps to better manage Lake O water levels

DeSantis revisited a years-long battle over Lake O water levels, prompting concerns about toxic algal blooms.

Gov. Ron DeSantis is calling into question the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ management of Lake Okeechobee, as he pressed the Corps to lower the lake’s water levels ahead of hurricane season.

The newest comments could be seen as another front in the Governor’s battle with President Joe Biden, whose administration now oversees the Corps. DeSantis spoke Monday at Jonathan Dickinson State Park in Hobe Sound after a helicopter tour to survey the lake and the algae inside. DeSantis said the lake levels are higher than in recent years and that could prompt discharges from the lake that spread algae elsewhere.

“If you have a normal type of rainy season in the state of Florida, that very well may precipitate the Army Corps doing some of these harmful discharges this summer,” DeSantis said.

“We are seeing evidence of blooms in and around the lake, and because of these high levels, we are assuming that the Corps is going to be discharging some of this water with a lot of algae content.”

When asked to describe his assessment of the helicopter ride to survey the algae, DeSantis conceded he didn’t see quite as much algae as he expected.