Tammy Hall: Caloosahatchee River serves as lifeblood of Southwest Florida

The excellent series recently published by The News-Press, “River at Risk,” by Amy Bennett-Williams should help the community to not lose sight of the key critical water resource issues facing federal, state and local governments alike.
 
Water resources and particularly the protection and preservation of the Caloosahatchee have been key policy priorities of the Lee County Commission.
 
I think most understand that the health of our river and estuary are directly linked to the ecological and economic viability of our county.

 
Although the current health of the river and estuary needs improvement, there have been significant gains made that directly are attributable to the efforts of Lee County government and its citizen advocates.
 
One such gain occurred earlier this month when the Governing Board of the South Florida Water Management District went against a staff recommendation, and instead, adopted a policy that will provide more water for the Caloosahatchee from Lake Okeechobee when it needs it, in the dry season.
 
This is essential for freshwater grasses to survive, providing nursery and feeding grounds for many species of fish, not to mention an important food source for the manatee.
Led by Governing Board member and Lee County resident Charles Dauray, the decision made to adopt adaptive protocols that supply more water to the estuary is a culmination of an effort that Lee County and other stakeholders have been engaged in for more than a year.
 
While not a silver bullet to alleviate the long-established, institutional inequities that have plagued the management of the river and estuary it was a step in the right direction.
 
The next major objective insisted upon by the county is the establishment of a statutory reservation for the Caloosahatchee — a reservation that, by rule of law, would provide an adequate supply of water to the Caloosahatchee.
 
Our message to the state and the South Florida Water Management District is clear; the people of Lee County are frustrated and have had enough. A reservation to protect our river is long overdue.
On the federal front, the county has strongly lobbied our federal legislative delegation to ensure that the Caloosahatchee Reservoir project be included in any Water Resources Development Act that may come out of Congress.
Additional water storage is critical to long-term improvements to the Caloosahatchee.
The land for the reservoir is purchased and all the permits are in hand. We now need our federal representatives to authorize and then appropriate the funding to begin construction.
 
Another “behind-the-scenes” accomplishment was a culmination of a major initiative of Lee County to engage the state regulatory agencies and the Florida legislature to adopt laws that would lead to greater protection and restoration of the Caloosahatchee Estuary.
 
In 2007 the Northern Everglades/Estuaries Protection Act was passed.
 
This landmark piece of environmental legislation provides a mandate to the agencies to implement plans and programs that are needed to protect and restore the Caloosahatchee and the St. Lucie Estuaries. Plans have been written and adopted by the legislature, and implementation of programs is starting to begin.
 
Lee County is a partner with the state and the South Florida Water Management District to carry out these plans that include watershed construction projects, pollution control programs, and water quality monitoring.
 
There have been incredible strides made to identify the problems with and solutions to the Caloosahatchee issues.
 
The News-Press should be lauded for heightening the profile of the Caloosahatchee and engaging the community to take a stance to protect this critical resource.
 
Likewise, the Lee County Commission stands shoulder-to-shoulder with the community to ensure this most valued precious resource is protected and preserved.

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— Tammy Hall chairs the Lee County Commission and represents District 4.
http://www.news-press.com/article/20100929/OPINION/100928046/1015/opinion/Tammy-Hall--Caloosahatchee-River-serves-as--lifeblood-of-Southwest-Florida