WASHINGTON — There were a lot of calls 
for long-term solutions and plenty of passionate pleas, but no immediate relief to the algae crisis came from Lagoon-Gulf Action Day Thursday.
Dozens of Treasure Coast officials and residents who traveled to Capitol Hill heard from federal agencies that there’s research going on into ways to combat the algae in local waters. That NASA has taken satellite images to track the algae. And that U.S. Rep. Patrick Murphy filed a bill to help solve the issue, but it has a slim chance of becoming law as Congress has limited time to meet before the end of the year.
While in D.C., Martin County commissioners met with an Army Corps of Engineers representative to ask the agency to stop Lake Okeechobee discharges for seven to 10 days if current dry conditions persist. The corps, which plans to begin reducing discharges this weekend, said it would look into it but didn’t give the county an answer, Commissioner John Haddox said.
Murphy, D-Jupiter, and Republican U.S. Rep. Curt Clawson, who represents west coast areas impacted by discharges, organized Lagoon-Gulf Action Day so local leaders could have the chance to meet with federal agencies researching algae. The congressmen said they hope the event brings awareness in Congress about the crisis, and prompts President Barack Obama to sign a state of emergency declaration Gov. Rick Scott requested.
Asking for help
Murphy’s office said he’s asked for help or a visit to the Treasure Coast from the Army Corps of Engineers, the Environmental Protection Agency and Department of the Interior as well as Obama and Vice President Joe Biden. He said his office has talked to companies that could remove algae that’s fouling the St. Lucie River and nearby waters. He didn’t name those companies or where the money would come from, but Stuart-based Ecosphere Technologies demonstrated a method to suck up the algae last week.
“We are looking at some outside-the-box thinking,” Murphy said.
Yet only the Army Corps of Engineers is armed with the silver bullet: stop discharging polluted Lake Okeechobee water into the St. Lucie and Caloosahatchee rivers. Other agencies only provide input or scientific information on how the lake water will affect the proliferation of algae.
Locals heard from those agencies, which make up a task force that studies and attempts to control algae. Those agencies are: the Environmental Protection Agency, the U.S. Geological Survey, NASA and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
“What was being said were things I already heard,” said St. Lucie County Commissioner Kim Johnson. He added the meeting still was beneficial to hear about west coast issues.
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