Photo taken at the Pahokee Marina 4-26-21 by the Lake Worth Waterkeeper.

On April 26, 2021 the Florida Department of Environmental Protection reported the microcystin concentration at the Lake Okeechobee Pahokee Marina had reached 860 parts per billion — 107 times more toxic than the EPA recreational guideline for safe human contact.

Just five days later, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration reported that the Lake Okeechobee blue-green algae bloom had expanded to an estimated 300 square miles as indicated by satellite imagery.

These blooms present a direct public health threat to communities living around and downstream of Lake Okeechobee and waterways impacts by toxic Lake Okeechobee discharges. The near-term outlook for the co-occurring blue-green algae and red tide blooms is potentially catastrophic.

Now is the time to act.

Friends of the Everglades joined representatives from 14 organizations requesting Gov. DeSantis to issue an emergency order related to the ongoing toxic algal blooms concentrated in south Florida including Lake Okeechobee and along the southwest Florida coast.

The letter sent to Gov. DeSantis can be read in full by clicking the button below.