By Katrina Elsken
Lake Okeechobee News
BASSINGER — Managing flood waters in the Kissimmee Chain of Lakes impacts the people and the ecology in the Kissimmee River Basin.
According to the U.S. Geological Survey, before the Kissimmee River was channelized, rainfall from in the Orlando/Kissimmee area took about six months to slowly sheetflow south to Lake Okeechobee.
After Hurricane Ian, to alleviate flooding in Orlando/Kissimmee, water managers used massive pumps to speed billions of gallons of water rapidly through the Kissimmee Chain of Lakes, down the river to the big lake in just a few weeks.
At a Sept. 5 meeting at the Alton Chandler Civic Center in Bassinger, people who live along the river spoke of the damages caused by that rapid flow.
The purpose of the public meeting was to discuss the Kissimmee River Headwaters Revitalization, a plan to improve the hydrology of the restored portion of the Kissimmee River. The South Florida Water Management District (SFWMD) and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) plan to hold more water in Lakes Kissimmee, Hatchineha and Cypress during the wet season so the water is available to hydrate the river’s restored flood plain closer to the pre-drainage conditions year round.
As part of the Central & South Florida (C&SF) Flood Control project, between 1962 and 1971 the USACE channelized the Kissimmee River, cutting a 30-foot deep, 300-foot wide, 56-mile-long drainage canal (C-38 canal) through the bends of the 103-mile winding river. As a result, water from the Kissimmee Chain of Lakes could move rapidly south. As a flood control project, it was a success, but it created an environmental nightmare, damaging the watershed’s ecology. This project drained approximately 31,000 acres of wetlands.
Peter Francissen, planning lead for USACE Kissimmee River Restoration project, said in the federal government authorized the restoration project in 1992. In 1999, work began to restore the central portion of the river, filling in sections of the channel to force water back into the old oxbows.
The project backfilled 29 miles of the C-38 channel in five phases to divert the river back into its original path. The project also including excavating 11.6 miles of new river channel, removing two water control structures (S-65B and S-65C), and modifying other water control structures to handle the flow.
Francissen said lots of real estate has been acquired and canals have been widened to create more storage north of the restored portion of the river.
“Since the beginning of the restoration project, the goal has been to restore the ecological integrity of the Kissimmee River ecosystem,” said Francissen.
Work on the restored portion was complete in 2021.
“Now we’re transitioning to the hydrological restoration,” he explained, “sending the right amount of water at the right time to inundate the flood plain.
The plan to hold more water north of the restored portion in order to have water to keep the flood plain hydrated in the dry season started with phased-in changes to the water management plan for Lakes Kissimmee, Hatchineha and Cypress. Updates to the water management operation plans should be complete in 2027. This will be followed by a 5-year monitoring plan. Operation of the project will be transferred to SFWMD for management and monitoring in 2032.
The upper basin component of the Headwaters Revitalization will provide the same flood protection as the original C&S Project, he said.
The state purchased land around Lakes Kissimmee, Hatchineha and Cypress so more water can be stored in those lakes.
He said the project enhance the ecosystem around Lakes Kissimmee, Cypress and Hatchinhea.
He said the modifications to operating criteria at water control structures S-65, S-65A and S-65D will optimize flows in the restored Kissimmee River while maintaining all federally authorized project purposes.
Tim Gysan, USACE project manager, said the goal of the restoration is to deliver historic, prechannelization flows to the restored river when possible.
He said they are changing the release schedule in increments “as we move to where we want to be.”
The first increment raises the top level about half a foot.
“We want to make sure we have conditions in the flood plain right for that time of year,” he explained. “What we will see is more water in the flood plain, and improved quality of the habitat.
“We’re also going to be looking at how we operate S-65D to enhance the restoration as well,” he said.
He said they welcome feedback from people who live along the river.
Members of the public at the meeting seemed to welcome the plan to hydrate the restored floodplain, but were concerned about what flood control for Orlando/Kissimmee means for the river in the future.
“Back when (Hurricane) Ian hit, we had high water at Hidden Acres estates,” said Rip Ballard. “It tore up our electrical and our floating docks and damaged the sea wall.
“That high water caused the park a lot of money,” he said.
“We couldn’t use the docks for two months,” he continued. “When the water did go down, it went way down – we couldn’t even get boats out of our marina.”
“Our issue is the D structure,” said Roger Butler. “We own property below the D structure. Things I saw in the original plan for the restoration were never implemented. He said the structure can move water at 1,000 cubic feet per second (cfs), but downstream property will be damaged at flows over 500 cfs.
Butler said he is also concerned about the sediment that is moving down the river.
“When B was taken out, all the sediments that were held for 30 years got flushed down to C,” he explained. “When C was removed, all the sediments were flushed down to D.”
He said the velocity the water was moving has made the top of the river wider as the rushing water eroded the banks.
“Captain Steve” Tipurt of Kissimmee River Shores said they welcome a plan to keep more water in the river, but are concerned about high flows after a storm.
“Our marina has less than a foot of water and most of that is silt from the backwashes of the high waters,” he said. “Boats are in the mud. We just want to see it managed well. Everybody wants to see the water back up.”
Phil Holden of Lorida said the velocity of the water that came down the river after Ian, along with the height of the water, damaged the flood plain.
“Oaks that had been there for 100 years and cypress that had been there for 100 years are laying in the river now,” he said.
Surveys and aerials show that bank hadn’t changed in 100s of years, he said. In three years, it changed 10 feet.
“When you open that valve and you flush water down so fast, you couldn’t paddle a canoe against it,” he said.
“We rebuilt our seawalls in 2018,” said Todd Bledsoe of Hidden Acres Estates. “USACE and SFWMD gave us height requirement.”
He said the water was 5 feet higher than the sea wall and eroded the ground under the sea wall.
“It would have been a lot easier if we hadn’t dug the ditch in the first place,” said Dr. Paul Gray of Florida Audubon. “We know Ian was an extraordinary event,” he added.
Flows coming out of the Kissimmee Valley are much higher than they were in the 1940s due to the development in that area, he added. (The C&S Flood Control project was developed in response to the Great Florida Flood in 1948.)
Rapid flow of flood water also decreases the oxygen level in the water. Those who live on the river also said thousands of fish were killed when the flood water was rapidly pumped down the river after Ian.
Public comment on the Kissimmee Headwaters Revitalization Project can be mailed to: Richard Skinker, Planning Division, US Army Corps of Engineers, 701 San Marco Boulevard, Jacksonville 33207; or emailed to
KRRHeadwaters@usace.army.mil.
