THE GREAT ST. LUCIE RIVER MUCK-UP

Silently and relentlessly, tons of nasty ooze from inland settle into our historic St. Lucie Estuary.

The incredibly large sedimentation will be explored in a special program on May 28 at Stuart City Hall. Persons concerned about our river won't want to miss this presentation. It will feature new data and other information.

Brief but fascinating minutes from a TV broadcast aired a decade ago will be shown. The footage depicts an alarming buildup of land (muck) south of the Palm City bridge. Findings will be presented by the Rivers Coalition's own Kevin Henderson, with reports from Bob Voisinet. 

In the years of high discharges from Lake Okeechobee (e.g. '95, 98, 03, 04, 05) particles from inland sink to the river bottom and have actually reduced depths from 20 to 2 feet in places.

We'll be waiting for you at the 11 a.m. meeting. Plenty of free and easy parking (and no admission). Coffee and donuts on tap.

The state's plan to buy 73,000 acres of U.S. Sugar cane fields should be highly beneficial to our estuary. The Rivers Coalition supports the purchase all the way.

It will take another decade to get the public's hands on the sugarland and covert it to storage and treatment, but that's the price we must pay to recover from a half-century of scandalous drainage, waste and damages to the coasts and historic River of Grass.

Meanwhile, the Rivers Coalition Defense Fund's federal lawsuit attacking the estuary discharges as unconstitutional continues to add pressure for a new outlet to move excess lake water south from the lake.

In 2006, the Rivers Coalition spotlighted the need for a storage-flowway, known as Plan Six in a Corps of Engineers report, and the coalition's work has been cited as a factor leading to the sugar purchase.

A pivotal hearing in the lawsuit is expected this summer in the Court of Federal Claims in Washington.

Thursday May 28, 2009
11am to 12:30pm at:
City of Stuart Commission Chambers
121 SW Flagler Ave, Stuart, Fl 34994

Business Matters
*  Chairman's Comments - Leon Abood
*  Special Presentation - Kevin Henderson/Bob Voisinet
    The Great St Lucie River Muck-Up
*  Legal Update - Karl Wickstrom
*  Fundraising - Karl Wickstrom
*  WRAC - Ted Guy/Ed Fielding

Coalition Committee Reports
*  Water Quality - Mark Perry
*  Local Issues - Mark Perry/Ed Fielding
*  State/Federal Issues - Kevin Henderson/Paul Gray
*  IRL/CERP - Kevin Henderson/Paul Gray
*  Martin County Updates - Paul Millar

Progress Reports
*  South Florida Water Management - Deena Reepen/Kim Shugar
*  DEP - Jerilyn Krug