OUR WATER & ENVIRONMENT

Clean water is essential to enjoying the sport of sailing and boating in general. At Edison Sailing Center, the safety and enjoyment of our sailors is our top priority. 

Like many excellent watersport destinations throughout the world, Southwest Florida has its share of water quality challenges and impacts from pollution. In addition to localized activities, the Caloosahatchee River has historically been used by water managers as a primary “outlet” to discharge excess quantities of water from Lake Okeechobee, far up-river from Fort Myers. This has the effect of transporting much more water and pollution from other parts of the state then would naturally be here. Major weather events like Hurricanes Irma and Ian drive these decisions that contribute to harmful algal blooms in Southwest Florida. As a result, we have had to postpone and cancel an event in the past, namely during the summer and fall of 2018. We’re hopeful that’s behind us.

River Romp 2018 Canceled

Over the last several decades, an unprecedented amount of funding and projects have been authorized throughout South Florida to address water quality concerns. In general, we live in paradise and enjoy great access to the Caloosahatchee River!

Learn More About Water Quality

Understanding the dynamics of our water quality and management is a complex issue. There are many non-profit groups doing great educational and advocacy work in this area, and several of our favorites include the Sanibel-Captiva Conservation FoundationCaptains for Clean Water and Calusa Waterkeeper.

Local Resources & Dashboards

conditions report

SCCF Caloosahatchee Conditions

From salinity to flow rates, and much more data, the weekly Conditions Report from SCCF is a great way to keep tabs on what's happening on the Caloosahatchee River.

hab dashboard

FDEP Algae Bloom Dashboard

Algal bloom sampling is performed by the Florida Department of Environmental Protection (FDEP) and bloom status can be found in this on-demand dashboard and interactive map.

healthy beaches

FDOH Healthy Beaches

The Florida Department of Health (FDOH) and Lee County monitor many public beaches for bacteria, including our location at North Shore Park.