OKEECHOBEE, Florida -- After decades of being dammed, tapped, channeled and pulled in dozens of different directions, Florida's once-mighty Lake Okeechobee is sick and tired.
Lake Okeechobee, the backup reservoir for the state's heavily populated east coast, has dropped to just 9 feet above sea level -- the lowest level on record -- and keeps falling with every passing day. The previous record of 9.79 feet was set in 1981 was broken in late April.
Water levels typically reach 12 to 13 feet during the winter dry season and top off at 13 to 15 feet during the rainy summer months.
The four-year drought that has reduced the water level is only the latest stress on the nation's second-largest freshwater lake.
Over the years, ranches, farms and irrigation canals along the 120-mile perimeter have allowed fertilizer and animal waste to wash into the 730-square-mile lake, turning its water murky and killing plants that sustain fish and other wildlife. A huge dike that was built in 1928 to prevent flooding also caused plants to drown. And with fewer fish, the wading birds have all but vanished.
"When I was a kid, back 10, 11, 12 years old, I used to drink this water -- my hand to God," said Alvis Davis, 57, pointing out from the Pahokee fishing pier toward where he used to swim. "But I wouldn't drink this stuff now."
Davis said he realizes that the lake he remembered from his childhood will never be the same again, especially with so many demands placed on it.
"How many people are living south of us? Five, six, seven million?" he asked. "Theoretically, every time they flush the toilet, they drop the level of this lake."
Environmental officials have identified the problems, but fixing them could take generations and will require balancing competing demands.
Farmers and South Florida's population want to keep the lake level high, since the vast sugar cane fields and other farms nearby use it for irrigation, and some 5 million people indirectly get their drinking water from the lake.
The lake, which forms the headwaters of the Everglades, also attracts thousands of fishermen from around the country, an important part of the area's economy. And fishing guides and environmentalists want lower water levels, which tend to keep the lake healthier.
"It's going to be a real challenge to maintain the lake for water supply, maintain it for flood control and to maintain it as a natural lake and to maintain a healthy population of desirable critters," said Richard Harvey, director of the Environmental Protection Agency's South Florida office. "If push comes to shove, the priority is going to be maintain it as a water supply."
Randy Smith, a spokesman for the South Florida Water Management District in West Palm Beach, said his short-term concern is that the rainy season will be drier than usual. "The lake is not a source for pumping to agricultural or to urban areas when it gets down to 7 feet," he said.
Gov. Jeb Bush on Tuesday called the drought "very perilous."
"It's really a tough time for the state," Bush said. "I literally pray for rain when I do my prayers in the morning. I hope others do the same."
Florida's Legislature last year appropriated $38.5 million for programs to help control phosphorus entering Lake Okeechobee from farm and ranch runoff. The state also plans to create marshes to filter runoff before it enters the lake.
But researchers say the farms are not the only problem. Many new homes are popping up along the lake, joining the fishing camps and RV parks that dot its shores. With more people comes more lawn fertilizer and septic systems.
The lake's condition has upset many people who have lived along the lake for years or rely on it to make a living.
"You used to be able to come out here in 4 feet of water and see fish at the bottom," said Rick Martinez, president of a marina in Clewiston. "Now you get out here and it's a foot deep and you can't see nothing."
