SFWMD seeks $64 million to finish EAA reservoir’s STA to cut Lake Okeechobee discharges
Canal Construction to help reduce Lake O Discharges
Photo: SFWMD
Written by Tyler Treadway, Treasure Coast Newspapers, November 12, 2020
The reservoir project to cut Lake Okeechobee discharges to the St. Lucie and Caloosahatchee rivers got $64 million closer to completion Thursday.
The South Florida Water Management District board agreed to officially ask for a transfer of the $64 million the Legislature and Gov. Ron DeSantis set aside earlier this year for the Everglades Agricultural Area Reservoir Project.
That money gives the district the $174 million needed to complete the 6,500-acre stormwater treatment area, or STA, on schedule in 2023.
“This project is a priority of Governor DeSantis,” said board Chair Chauncey Goss, “and I’ll be happy to report that we’re proceeding full speed ahead.”
The district expects to send out requests for bids to build the rest of the STA this month and bring the results to the district board for approval in February.
When completed, discharges from Lake Okeechobee are expected to be cut by 63 percent.
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