July 8, 2007
http://www.palmbeachpost.com/state/content/gen/ap/FL_Okeechobee_Pollution.html
FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. — A muck removal plan intended to breath new life into Lake Okeechobee is creating new pollution headaches on shore.
Scientists found elevated levels of arsenic and other pesticides in thousands of truckloads of muck recently scooped from the bottom of Lake Okeechobee when a drought drained the 730-square-mile lake to a historic low.
Muck removal restores the natural sandy bottom and allows plants and animals to flourish.
Tests conducted by the South Florida Water Management District and the South Florida Sun-Sentinel show high levels of arsenic in muck taken from the northern and eastern parts of the lake bed. That means the muck cannot be spread on residential land.
The Sun-Sentinel's independent tests found some of the muck is too polluted for use on agricultural or commercial lands, the newspaper reported Sunday. The district declined to comment on the independent tests.
"We are evaluating how and where we dispose of it ... so we don't create a new problem someplace else," said Chip Merriam, the district's deputy executive director.
Options include using the muck as the base for nearby lakeside parking lots.
"A pesticide is a poison," said Herb Zebuth, a former scientist for the Florida Department of Environmental Protection, who has worked on Everglades restoration. "These are very complex chemical compounds. These things need to be taken seriously."
It took about six weeks to scrape off the top 2 feet of muck. It amounted to about 1.9 million cubic yards — enough to fill roughly 950 backyard swimming pools. Most of the muck was taken from the northern and western edges of the lake.
Environmentalists are concerned that the muck will be distributed too close to the lake.
"There is a concern that, 'Oh great, it will just flow right back into the lake,'" Paul Grey, a scientist for Audubon of Florida. "If they do it wrong, it will be a problem."