$800M in bonds? For a new reservoir “which is intended to help” and “potentially reduce” algae outbreaks?

Is this theory even going to be tested prior to asking the Federal government for another $800M in matching funds, $1.6B [billion] total?

Do we know with any degree of certainty another “new” reservoir south of Lake Okeechobee will even work sending more ‘clean’ water into the Everglades? A journalist wrote recently this project will “potentially” reduce outbreaks of algae (see below).

How many reservoirs do we need? What about the Herbert Hoover Dike? Read more about that at the end of this blog post.

And we learned recently from Lake Worth Vice Mayor Scott Maxwell that “CDBG money may not be around for long.” And remember, even an expert on Everglades restoration said to Craig Pittman at the Tampa Bay Times, “this whole thing is part science and part what you can get politically.”

We know CDBG money works. Know one knows for certain another reservoir will work. But spend $1.6B, sit back, wait and see?

Journalist Jim Turner at the News Service of Florida has this article (reprinted in The Palm Beach Post) titled, “Army Corps needs more time on Negron’s Lake Okeechobee cleanup plan”; an excerpt (with emphasis added):

“The Senate bill allows Florida to bond up to $800 million as a way to speed construction of the reservoir, which is intended to help clean South Florida waterways and potentially reduce the recurrence of toxic algae outbreaks that have recently affected Negron’s district, which encompasses the Treasure Coast and northern Palm Beach County.”

Can someone please explain how $800M in bonds squares with these facts about the Indian River Lagoon (IRL)?

“To say that the reservoir will save the Everglades and prevent coastal discharges [into IRL] is wishful thinking that can’t be backed by science.”
—Quote by Melissa Meeker, CEO, Water Environment & Reuse Foundation and former executive director, governing board member of the South Florida Water Management District.

and. . .

“Scientists, county leaders looking to solve Treasure Coast bacteria issues”
—Recent news segment by WPTV/NBC5 reporter Alex Hagan. Brian Lapointe from FAU was interviewed about septic tanks, “Poor soil conditions and in the wet season, high water tables that in many cases infiltrate the drains fields of septic tanks”.

What about the Herbert Hoover Dike?

Remember this report from the Lloyd’s of London “Emerging Risks Team Report”?

“The current condition of Herbert Hoover poses a grave and imminent danger… … [The dyke] needs to be fixed. We can only add that it needs to be fixed now, and it needs to be fixed right. We firmly believe that the region’s future depends on it.”