Under current conditions, the primary limiting nutrient for pelagic phytoplankton in Lake Okeechobee is N, with P acting only as a co-limiting factor in certain sheltered bays at the south end of the lake (Aldridge et al., 1995). If P loading to this lake is substantially reduced, one might expect these conditions to change, as lowered inputs of P lead to a decreased frequency of N limitation and an increase of P-limited conditions. As the P-limited phytoplankton sequester soluble P, there should be a corresponding reduction in the percent and quantity of P that occurs in that fraction in the water column, and an increased fraction of the total water column P that is susceptible to loss by sedimentation. That response might be accelerated if there is improvement of underwater irradiance along with lowered phytoplankton biomass, because rates of P uptake by freshwater phytoplankton are directly influenced by light availability ( Nalewajko and Lee, 1983). Under present conditions, the phytoplankton in Lake Okeechobee are often light-limited due to a combination of abiotic turbidity and a relatively high lake stage. Future management of the lake may include (depending on feasibility) both a lower average lake stage and removal of mud sediment materials that contribute to the high turbidity ( USACE, 1999). Those actions could be complementary to P load reduction, in terms of improving the water quality of the lake, if they result in greater net P assimilation.

在目前情况下，首要的养分限制上层浮游植物为在奥基乔比湖是氮，在海湾南端湖在某些保护磷只能作为共同的制约因素，（Aldridge et al.,1995）。若这个湖的磷负荷大为降低，则可以预期这些条件了改变，氮的频率限制了降低磷负荷的降低并增加磷限制的条件。作为浮游植物有限磷螯合的可溶性磷，应该有发生在水中的小部分磷的比例和数量的相应减少，并增加了易受泥沙淤积影响而损失的小部分磷。如果改进水下照度和随着浮游植物的降低生物量，这种反应可能会加速，
由淡水浮游植物吸收磷的比率是直接受到光照可用性的影响（Nalewajko和Lee, 1983）。目前的情况下，在奥基乔比湖的浮游植物往往受到光照的限制，这是因为非生物混浊度和相对较高的湖水位共同造成的。
未来湖泊的管理可能包括（视系统的可行性）较低的湖水位及助于形成高浊度湖淤泥沉积物质（USACE,1999）。在改善湖的水质方面，如果它们造成更大的磷的净量的吸收，这些行为可以是磷减少的补充。