ALVA — The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is releasing water from Lake Okeechobee into the Caloosahatchee River, but officials say less water will be released compared to previous years.
The lake currently sits about two feet lower than it was last year, partly due to a new release schedule implemented last winter that allowed more water to be released during the dry season.
Watch Fox 4's Allie Kaiser speak with people enjoying the river about the water releases:
Local fisherman Trey Airy was at Caloosahatchee on Thursday and was curious about the potential impact these releases can have on water quality.
"Whenever I have time, I'm fishing," Airy said.
The Army Corps says these releases are important for the overall health of the Caloosahatchee River system.
They say "last year releases were being made out of the lake to achieve 2,000 cfs target at W.P. Franklin Lock and Dam," but this year they are "increasing the 250 cfs to 350 cfs at the W.P. Franklin Lock and Dam."
Some longtime residents of Southwest Florida, like Bill Haul, trust the process.
"It's been that way for years. I've been here since '86 - they seem to know what they're doing," Haul said.
However, many people have criticized past releases because blue-green algae from the lake can flow downstream. This algae can be dangerous for wildlife and pose health risks to certain groups of people.
"Personally, as a fisherman, you can't really like anything like that, that's going to kill fish," Airy said about the algae.
The Army Corps says the risk of algae blooms is currently low.
In an email, the US Army Corps of Engineers said they "have not visually observed any blooms near our three locks along the river recently and satellite imagery and water testing of Lake Okeechobee water indicates that bloom conditions are low."
The Army Corps says they are monitoring conditions and will make changes to the release schedule if needed.
You can find more information here.
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