Jenna Buzzacco-Foerster
Adam Putnam was met by a crowd of angry Treasure Coast residents during a stop in Martin County last week.
Putnam, the state’s agriculture commissioner, was greeted by protesters calling on the state and the Army Corps of Engineers to stop discharges from Lake Okeechobee into the Indian River Lagoon and the Caloosahatchee River. In a five-minute video uploaded to YouTube on Feb. 11, protesters could be heard shouting at Putnam as he makes his way through the crowd.
“We just want clean water,” a man is heard shouting.
“Why are they back pumping, why are they back pumping?” another person shouts.
Putnam is shown trying to talk to the crowd, but can barely be heard over their shouts.
Putnam was in Martin County on Thursday for a Economic Development Council of Martin County dinner. He was the featured speaker.
“I get it. I get why people are so upset,” he told WPBF 25.
Citing high lake levels, the Army Corps of Engineers began pumping water out of the lake on Jan. 30. The Corps further increased the flows on Feb. 5, saying the lake levels continued to rise.
According to WPBF 25, the Corps said in a media call Thursday it had no choice but to pump water out of the lake, saying if it didn’t pump now the water could breach the Herbert Hoover Dike and cause flooding when rainy season begins.
Lawmakers have called for action in recent weeks. Gov. Rick Scott last week called on the Corps to take swift action to stop the releases. On Monday, the Corps approved Scott’s request to deviate from its water control plan.
The deviation raises water levels in the L-29 canal, which runs along the north side of U.S. 41 between Water Conservation Area 3 and Everglades National Park.
