Gov. DeSantis on hand for ribbon cutting of first Lake Okeechobee treatment cell
PALM BEACH - It was a ribbon cutting, decades in the making.
On Thursday, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis along with members of the South Florida Water Management District unveiled the stormwater treatment area considered the crown jewel of Everglades restoration.
"Why we are here is to get the water right in the Everglades," said SFWMD Chairman Chauncey Goss.
Getting it right means cleaning billions of gallons of polluted water from Lake Okeechobee.
The pollution is largely from farming runoff. The dirty water is filtered through a maze of plants within the stormwater treatment area.
The treatment area is miles inward from US 27 and lies due south of Lake Okeechobee.
The treatment area will eventually have three cells to clean the water.
The polluted water has contributed to devastating algae blooms in adjacent communities that threatened Florida's tourism industry and economy.
The clean water will travel South through the Everglades National Park and end up in Florida Bay, saving the delicate ecosystem and our drinking water supply because Everglades water recharges the aquifer.
Governor Ron Desantis, in his first appearance since suspending his presidential campaign, said he's delivered on his promise.
"Clearly, you see the impact. Florida Bay salinity is down for first time in decades," he said.
In conjunction with the treatment area, the Army Corps of Engineers is building a 240,000-acre reservoir next door.
"Today is a great day. My grandfather was a game warden," said Ron Bergeron, who is one of the most recognizable faces of Everglades preservation and restoration.
"It's very important to move the water so we don't destroy the seagrass in the bay. If we can send a man to the moon, we can save the Everglades," he said.
