Glyphosate Ban Necessary Call for Lake Okeechobee

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Glyphosate Ban Necessary Call for Lake Okeechobee

While officials admit that glyphosate is only a small part of the problem with algae blooms on Lake Okeechobee in Florida, they do believe that their decision to temporarily suspend the use of aquatic plant killers was a “necessary call.”

Glyphosate is widely used in Lake Okeechobee to kill invasive species and leaves deposits of phosphorus in the waters. The plants that have been killed by the herbicide treatment sink to the bottom where it turns into sediment and release additional phosphorus. This phosphorus feeds the blue-green algae blooms that have choked the waters in recent years.

Research suggests that the phosphorus deposited as a result of Roundup sprayed by the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission is 2,943 pounds plus the phosphorus contributed by the decaying aquatic vegetation; a drop in the bucket compared with the 2.3 million pounds finding its way into the lake. However, without the ability to find a “big” solution to the phosphorus problem, small remedies such as the herbicide suspension, are the only available remedies.

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Fertilizer Ordinances Protect Lakes - When fertilizer is used near the lake, phosphorus enters the waterbody in storm runoff. Phosphorus is a nutrient for milfoil and other aquatic plants. In addition, it can create algae blooms, turn the water green, cloud the water, cause odor problems, and deplete the oxygen for fish and other species, effectively suffocating them.

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