St. Lucie Canal

The St. Lucie Canal (C-44) is a man-made canal built in 1916 in Martin County, Florida to divert floodwaters from Lake Okeechobee via the canal to the South Fork of the St. Lucie River and into the St. Lucie Estuary, a component of the Indian River Lagoon, which connects to the Atlantic Ocean. Resulting from this connection, restoration projects in the St. Lucie River are the northernmost component of the Comprehensive Everglades Restoration Plan.

The St. Lucie Canal (C-44) can also be referred to as the St. Lucie Canal, the C-44, and the C-44 Canal. It is a part of the Okeechobee Waterway, and sometimes also is referred to by that name.

The C-44 has been a source of contention since its construction in 1916.

The St. Lucie Canal (C-44) connects to Lake Okeechobee at Port Mayaca, Florida. The St. Lucie Canal (C-44) is 8 feet deep (2.4 meters) deep – the result of its second deepening in 1949 – and has a rate of flow of 9,000 cubic feet per second; . In 1933, 16 fixed spillways were approved for construction to reduce shoaling.

The C-44 has a drainage basin of 185 square miles (470 square kilometers), equivalent to 117,000 acres (47,348 hectares).

In 1924, the canal′s original flow capacity was 5,000 cubic feet (141.5 cubic meters) per second. In 1937, the canal was deepened to 6 feet (1.8 meters) increasing its flow capacity. In 1949, it was deepened to 8 feet (2.4 meters) , which increased the flow capacity to 9,000 cubic feet (254.8 cubic meters) per second.

According to the Florida Department of Environmental Protection, the St. Lucie Canal (C-44) flows both east to the St. Lucie Estuary and west to Lake Okeechobee "on about an equal basis."

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