Commissioners from the city of Sanibel and Lee County are tired of the ongoing algae problem. So officials voted today/yesterday to commit to another study…but this one they hope will prove that the algae is indeed caused by run-off from lake Okeechobee.

It was a unanimous vote by both city and county officials. They want to prove that there is a link between the runoff from agriculture into Lake Okeechobee and the runoff that eventually makes it down the Caloosahatchee River into the coastal estuaries. Ray Judah, county commissioner for District 3 says this problem is hurting the beaches and the economy.

“We’re having tremendous problems with red drift algae building up on coastal beaches. And we’re also having problems with red tide in our coastal estuaries.”

Judah says some people point out that due to the drought, right now there are no releases from the Lake down the river – but there is still a lot of algae. Judah says he hopes the new study will find the link between the lake and algae – even in the dry season. Officials are pursuing grants to pay for the study.