The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Jacksonville District began making releases from Lake Okeechobee to the Caloosahatchee Estuary from the W.P. Franklin Lock and Dam at a seven-day average pulse release of 1,200 cubic feet per second beginning Saturday. No lake releases are planned for the St. Lucie Estuary. The target is right in the middle of the Restoration Coordination & Verification optimal flow envelope for the Caloosahatchee. Water from the lake will only be released in amounts needed to supplement local basin runoff to meet the downstream target of 1,200 cubic feet per second, and the target is consistent with South Florida Water Management District’s position statement from last week. Lake Okeechobee rose more than 2.5 feet in the month since Hurricane Ian brought historic rainfall to the Kissimmee Chain of Lakes.