The Southwest Florida Water Management District recently signed an agreement with Pinellas County for a project to improve water quality and restore habitat in Sutherland Bayou.
Pop Stansell Park is a 4.5-acre park that sits on Sutherland Bayou. Approximately 57,000 people visit the park each year, which is also used for marine access to St Joseph Sound and the Gulf of Mexico. Years of unrestricted public access as a launching point for boating, canoeing, kayaking and fishing has led to severe erosion and pollution associated with vehicle and boat use. Untreated stormwater from the site flows directly into the bayou.
Public use has also led to severe damage to tidal areas, mangroves and the small portion of longleaf pine uplands.
The Pop Stansell Stormwater Treatment and Habitat Restoration project will construct a stormwater pond at Pop Stansell Park, remove invasive plants and restore the area’s habitat.
A stormwater pond will be built on a 1.5-acre of county-owned land across the street from the park to treat runoff. This pond will hold the stormwater until pollutants and sediments are removed. The treated water will discharge into an existing ditch immediately to the north and eventually into Sutherland Bayou. The treatment pond will be planted with native plants, including appropriate Spartina species.
Extensive habitat restoration at the site includes removing the invasive, non-native plants and replacing them with native vegetation. Environmental education interpretive signage will also be placed at appropriate locations on the site.
This project is estimated to cost $390,378, with funding being evenly divided between the District’s Pinellas-Anclote River Basin Board and Pinellas County. The county is independently funding other improvements at the park such as parking areas, a new fishing pier, a boardwalk and fencing. Future plans include a boardwalk to direct visitors toward nature observation points and to protect sensitive areas.
Construction is expected to be complete by the end of December 2009.