OKEECHOBEE -- The C-43 reservoir was officially opened in July 2025. When will the Caloosahatchee River receive the benefit of the water storage there?
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![FORT DENAUD -- The pumps were turned on at the new C-43 reservoir following the ribbon cutting ceremony on July 15. The timing for test fills of the reservoir will be depend on when and where rain falls. [Photo by Katrina Elsken/Lake Okeechobee News]](/uploads/original/20250716-142832-7f6-C-43 pump on.jpg)
OKEECHOBEE -- The C-43 reservoir was officially opened in July 2025. When will the Caloosahatchee River receive the benefit of the water storage there?
It will take about three years to incrementally fill and monitor the water storage feature, designed to remove excess flow from the Caloosahatchee River in the wet season and release it back to the river in the dry season, Jennifer Reynolds of the South Florida Water Management District (SFWMD) explained at the Dec. 5 meeting of the County Coalition for the Responsible Management of Lake Okeechobee, the St. Lucie and Caloosahatchee Estuaries and the Lake Worth Lagoon.
“Part of the issue with putting water in the C-43 reservoir is there isn’t a lot of water available,” Reynolds added. The 2025 wet season was drier than normal. In July, when the reservoir was finished, Lake Okeechobee’s level was below 12 feet with no excess water to release.
Reynolds said when the water is available, they will fill the reservoir up slowly, holding the stages at incremental levels.
The same process was used for the C-44 reservoir, which holds excess water from the C-44 basin east of Lake Okeechobee. During that testing process, they found the reservoir could safely hold water up to 10 feet but had some seepage with higher water levels. The reservoir was designed to hold water up to 15 feet. Remediation plans are underway, but meanwhile, that reservoir is in use. As of Dec. 5, the C-44 reservoir water level was 7.68 feet.
SFWMD Executive Director Drew Bartlett said the C-44 reservoir is providing benefits to the basin. “For example, in past wet season no water from that basin was released (to the St. Lucie River). It all went into the reservoir,” he explained.
During the dry season, the water stored in the C-44 reservoir will be used to keep the accompanying stormwater treatment (STA) area hydrated. Water from that STA flows into the C-44 canal and helps maintain the water level for navigation.
The 10,700-acre C-43 reservoir will be used to store excess water from the Caloosahatchee River during the wet season and release freshwater to the river when needed during the dry season. The reservoir is connected to the Caloosahatchee River near Fort Denaud and has the capacity to pump up to 1,500 cubic feet per second (using four pumps with a capacity of 375 cfs each).
