Environmental groups ask DeSantis to declare state of emergency over Lake O algal blooms Published: May 10, 2021 11:19 AM EDT Updated: May 10, 2021 6:54 PM EDT Recommended Some Florida groups concerned about water quality are asking Gov. Ron DeSantis to declare a state of emergency over algal blooms. “Harmful algal blooms are again threatening public health, local economies and ecosystems of Florida. Lake Okeechobee has become the Florida epicenter of algal blooms, and discharge of these toxic blooms from the Lake is contaminating the Caloosahatchee and St. Lucie Rivers and associated waterways,” states a May 8 letter to the governor. The groups cite recent health alerts warning of blue-green algae in the Okeechobee Waterway, Lake Worth Lagoon and other water bodies in South Florida. There was also a presence of the toxin microcystin, produced by blue-green algae, in Lake Okeechobee, which feeds the Caloosahatchee and St. Lucie rivers.