A Southwest Florida Water Management District project will help a Hillsborough County farm reduce groundwater pumping.
The project involves the use of an integrated irrigation system at Balaban Farms, LLC, located in the Hillsborough River watershed. The property drains predominantly to the west, where surface water enters Flint Creek and flows into the Hillsborough River. Hillsborough County is part of a designated water use caution area because it is experiencing environmental impacts due to decades of groundwater over pumping.
The project will create three surface water reservoirs and install the pump stations, filtration, and the piping needed to connect them to the existing irrigation system.
Balaban Farms will re-use surface water recovered from the fields, which will reduce the amount of ground water needed resulting in a reduction in pumping from the upper Floridan aquifer. This project is expected to reduce pumping by about 50 percent, or approximately 127,500 gallons-per-day (gpd).
According to the farm’s District-issued water use permit, the 55-acre citrus grove was permitted to use an average of 255,000 gpd for irrigation. The citrus grove was destroyed by disease and is being converted to strawberries and row crops. The farm’s water use permit is currently being modified to reflect the new uses.
This project is part of the District’s Facilitating Agricultural Resource Management Systems (FARMS) program, which is a cost-share reimbursement program that conserves water and protects water quality.
The FARMS program is jointly funded by state appropriations, the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services and the District’s Governing Board and Basin Boards and is expected to reduce groundwater pumping by 40 million gallons per day by 2025.
Because the project involves best management practices to improve water quality, the project qualifies for a 50 percent cost-share reimbursement under the FARMS Program.
The project is expected to cost $625,000, of which up to $312,500 will be funded by the District. The remaining will be paid by the farm. The District’s funding will be shared by the Governing Board, $78,125, the Hillsborough River Basin Board, $78,125 and state appropriations, $156,250.