TBF joined many other recreational fishing organizations in calling on House Subcommittee on Energy and Water to approve $210 million dollars for the Army Corps of Engineers in support of South Florida Ecosystem Restoration projects in 2020.  The projects are part of the Everglades and Lake Okeechobee watershed restoration. The Everglades Agricultural Area Reservoir project is supported by both the State of Florida (Water Resources Law of 2017) and the federal Army Corps (America’s Water Infrastructure Act of 2018 (https://www.sfwmd.gov/our-work/cerp-project-planning/eaa-reservoir ).

Once the reservoir is complete, water can flow from Lake Okeechobee to the reservoir, once treated, then south into Everglades National Park and Florida Bay.  The successful functioning of the reservoir will be crucial in removing the need for the Corps to release huge amounts of nutrient-rich lake water into two rivers, Caloosahatchee and St. Lucie, where it has degraded water quality, caused algae blooms and decimates fisheries and recreational fishing opportunities.