Southwest Florida Water Management District (District) Executive Director Brian Armstrong has received the Florida Association for Water Quality Control (FAWQC) 2022 Wade Hopping Leadership Award.

Named for a true leader and pioneer in the development of Florida water policy, the award is presented annually to recognize an outstanding professional who oversees policies and/or personnel in the area of water resources and is dedicated to managing, improving, and protecting the quality of Florida’s waters. The award was presented at FAWQC’s 2022 Annual Conference in Naples, Florida, Thursday, June 16.

"It's humbling to be recognized with this award," said Brian Armstrong, District executive director. "It's truly been a privilege to devote my career to protecting Florida's water resources. However, I owe much of my success to the talented and hard-working staff at the water management district."

Under Armstrong's leadership, the District invests millions of dollars each year in water quality initiatives, including seagrass mapping, springs protection, habitat restoration, National Estuary Program support, properly plugging abandoned wells, agricultural cost-share projects, and data collection and analysis. 

Armstrong was appointed as the executive director of the District in June 2016. He brings more than 20 years of water resources experience to his role and his focus is on overseeing the District’s extensive environmental and water resource recovery efforts, promoting a regional approach to water supply planning and development, and guiding efforts to investigate and implement innovative solutions to water resources challenges.

Armstrong previously served as the District’s assistant executive director where he oversaw the day-to-day operations of three divisions and more than 400 staff. He facilitated the development of the District’s first Business Plan, which outlines the people, funding and assets needed to carry out the District’s Strategic Plan. Armstrong also served as the District’s negotiator for the historic development of the Polk County Regional Water Cooperative, involving Polk County and 15 separate municipalities.

Previously, Armstrong served as the assistant director for the Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) Southwest District, which oversees environmental protection for eight counties. Before working at DEP, Armstrong served as the Water Supply and Resource Development manager for the District.

Armstrong is a licensed professional geologist, who earned his bachelor’s degree in Geology and his master’s degree in Hydrogeology from the University of South Florida.

The Southwest Florida Water Management District's Governing Board will hold its monthly meeting Tuesday, June 21, at 9 a.m. at District Headquarters, located at 2379 Broad Street in Brooksville.

To view the Governing Board meeting online, click on the live video stream link. The video stream link becomes active and the live video feed begins approximately 15 minutes before the scheduled meeting time.

Public comment will be taken only at the meeting location. Public input for issues not listed on the published agenda will be heard shortly after the meeting begins.

The meeting agenda and materials are posted one week before the meeting and can be found online at WaterMatters.org by clicking on the “Meeting & Events Calendar.”

Based on guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) regarding fully vaccinated people, wearing masks and social distancing will be optional at the meeting.

Governor Ron DeSantis has reappointed Ed Armstrong and William Hogarth to the Southwest Florida Water Management District’s Governing Board. Both Armstrong and Hogarth represent Pinellas County and were both reappointed for a term ending March 2026.

Armstrong, of Dunedin, currently serves as treasurer of the Governing Board and was recently elected vice chair. He is a shareholder with Hill Ward Henderson in Clearwater. He received his bachelor’s degree from the University of Maryland in College Park, Maryland and earned a juris doctor from Vanderbilt University School of Law in Nashville, Tennessee. Armstrong was originally appointed to the Governing Board in June 2014 and reappointed in October 2020.

Hogarth, of Treasure Island, is the former director of the Florida Institute of Oceanography at the University of South Florida. He earned his bachelor’s and master’s degrees in biology from the University of Richmond and his doctorate degree in marine fisheries from North Carolina State University. Hogarth was originally appointed to the Governing Board in May 2021.

The appointments are subject to confirmation by the Florida Senate.

Governing Board members are unpaid, citizen volunteers who are appointed by the Governor and confirmed by the Florida Senate. The Governing Board sets policy for the District, whose mission is to manage the water and related resources of west central Florida to meet the needs of current and future water users while protecting the environment.

The Southwest Florida Water Management District (District) will hold an independent, scientific peer review of wetland-based criteria for use in establishing minimum wetland and lake levels beginning this month. A minimum level is the level of groundwater in an aquifer or the level of surface water at which further withdrawals would be significantly harmful to the water resources or ecology of the area.

The review will be conducted by a three-member panel virtually via Microsoft Teams, teleconference and a web board established specifically for the peer review.

The meetings will take place:

• May 23 at 9 a.m.
• May 31 at 1 p.m.
• June 6 at 1 p.m.
• July 11 at 1 p.m.
• July 18 at 1 p.m.

Members of the public can join the meetings virtually and register to use the web board to post comments regarding the peer review process. Links to the Teams meetings can be found on the District’s Boards, Meetings and Events calendar at WaterMatters.org/calendar. The web board will be open for posting comments through July 19, 2022, and open for viewing through June 30, 2023.

The draft documents on the wetland-based criteria to be considered by the panel will be made available on the District’s website at WaterMatters.org/documents-and-reports. Based on findings of the peer review panel, District staff anticipate using the wetland criteria to support development of minimum levels that will be recommended to the District’s Governing Board for rule adoption to support water use regulation and water supply planning.

For more information regarding the scientific peer review, please contact Doug Leeper, MFLs Program Lead with the District’s Environmental Flows and Assessments Section at 1-800-423-1476, ext. 4272.

The Southwest Florida Water Management District (District) is hosting career fairs to recruit people seeking a rewarding career protecting the region’s water resources. The career fairs are open to the public and attendees are encouraged to bring current resumes.

The District is a government agency that employs a diverse workforce from across a wide variety of disciplines, including administrative, business and finance, trades work, mechanical, heavy equipment operation, well drilling, natural sciences and engineering, and many more.

• The Brooksville career fair will take place Saturday, May 14, from 9 a.m. to noon at District Headquarters, located at 2379 Broad Street in Brooksville.
• The Tampa career fair will take place Saturday, May 21, from 9 a.m. to noon at the District’s Tampa Service Office located at 7601 US Hwy. 301 in Tampa.

The District maintains a supportive and inclusive work culture that fosters success through teamwork and collaboration. The District offers generous time off, health, dental and vision plans, continuing education opportunities and a 6.38% contribution to the Florida Retirement System. Remote work and flexible work schedules are available for many positions. District offices are located in Brooksville, Tampa, Sarasota and Bartow.

Visit WaterMatters.org/Careers to view and apply for current openings.