Growers south of Lake Okeechobee failed for the first time last year to meet their target for reducing phosphorus flowing toward the Everglades, a lapse that water managers blamed on the 2004-5 hurricanes and this year's drought.

The growers still cut their phosphorus output by an estimated 18 percent below what would have flowed if they hadn't improved their watering and fertilizing practices, the South Florida Water Management District reported today.

A 1994 law sets a 25-percent goal, but the farms don't run afoul of it unless they miss the target three years in a row. On average, they've reduced their phosphorus output by 50 percent in the past 12 years.