Recent rainfall pushed Lake Okeechobee’s back over 16 feet this week. On Jan. 11, Lake O was 16.04 feet above sea level.

Rainfall throughout Florida has also made it more difficult to move water out of the big lake. For the 7-day period ending Jan. 11, flow through the Julian Keen Jr. Lock at Moore Haven averaged just 952 cubic feet per second. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) has set the target flow for the Caloosahatchee River at 2,000 cfs, measured at the W.P. Franklin Lock, which is 43 miles from Moore Haven. When there is local basin runoff, less water is released from Lake O. The 2,000 cfs target is within the beneficial flow range to keep the Caloosahatchee estuary at the optimal salinity range.

No lake water was released into the C-44 (St. Lucie) Canal in that 7-day period. No lake water has been released to the St. Lucie River for several years, but lake water is sometimes released into the St. Lucie Canal at Port Mayaca for water supply in that basin or to keep the canal at the optimal level for navigation.

Flow south for that period averaged just 25 cfs. Rainfall south of the lake meant additional water was not needed for farm irrigation or to replenish the water supply for urban areas.

Direct rainfall has also kept the water conservation areas (WCAs) above schedule. WCA-2A was more than 1 foot above schedule.

On Jan. 11, flow south from the WCAs under the Tamiami Trail averaged 1,801 cfs.

The Jan. 10 Environmental Conditions Report from John Mitnik of the South Florida Water Management District most of the Everglades Agricultural Area (EAA) stormwater treatment areas (STAs) are near or above target stage.