Search Content

The District is restoring an area of the Weeki Wachee Springs State Park canoe launch in Hernando County. The restored area will benefit the Weeki Wachee spring system by reducing stormwater pollutants and sediment loading entering the Weeki Wachee River.  For more information about the District’s springs projects, visit WaterMatters.org/Springs.

Governing Board Secretary Doug Tharp, left, awards the Florida Water StarSM certification to Kenneth D. Colen, president of On Top of the World Communities, Inc. The developer of a major community in Marion County was recently certified as a builder of Florida Water StarSM (FWS) homes. Governing Board Secretary Doug Tharp presented the certification to On Top of the World Communities during the community’s conservation expo in September. The…

Sarasota County students at eight schools will study the issues surrounding our freshwater resources thanks to "Splash! school grants":http://www.swfwmd.state.fl.us/education/schoolgrants/ from the Southwest Florida Water Management District.The Sarasota County awardees are:* Celestine Campbell, *Emma E. Booker Elementary*, was awarded $1,070. On a field trip to Emerson Point Preserve, students will learn about the habitats and wildlife adaptations of an estuary. They will…

Don’t allow your water bill to drain additional money from your restaurant’s profits. Many water-saving tips take little effort or expense, while some require a financial investment that often pays back over time. Regardless of your restaurant’s size, there are simple low-cost steps to save water and money.Educate Your Staff and GuestsConservation at your restaurant starts with you, but management can’t do it alone. It is important to share best management practices with…

Education Goes Outdoors A watershed education program is giving Pasco County middle school students and teachers the opportunity to learn about Florida’s watersheds, including the Springs Coast Watershed. The program is called the Wetlands Ambassadors Program. The District sponsors the Wetlands Ambassadors Program by funding the transportation, materials and supplies, and by assisting with the corresponding teacher training. The program began during the 2002–…

Florida-Friendly Landscaping 101 A watershed education program is giving Pasco County middle school students and teachers the opportunity to learn about Florida’s watersheds, including the Springs Coast Watershed. The program is called the Wetlands Ambassadors Program. The District sponsors the Wetlands Ambassadors Program by funding the transportation, materials and supplies, and by assisting with the corresponding teacher training. The program began during the…

The Southwest Florida Water Management District amended its agreements with the cities of Sebring and Avon Park to include annexed land into each city’s comprehensive watershed management plan.The plans will be used to determine feasible drainage alternatives that may be constructed to enhance and restore water quality and natural systems, or for flood protection. The plan will also assist local governments with their land management responsibilities and further the local…

Thirteen Sumter County teachers are among the record number of educators who applied for and received Splash! mini-grants through the Southwest Florida Water Management District.This year the District awarded Splash! mini-grants to 209 educators totaling more than $413,000. That’s 72 more grant recipients than last year.Mary Margaret Hull, lead communications coordinator, attributes the increase in awardees to an increase in promotion among the District’s school…

Winning runners earn gator heads for running fast through the swamp. The race course wound through, not just near, the water. Right: Louis Rufo crosses the finish line for his team, Riot. Some people like to camp on District land, some like to ride horses, some like to hike and some like to fish. Then there are those people who like to run 50 miles through river and swamp in the dead of winter. More than 300 of those running-through-the-river types invaded the…

An expanse of peaceful campgrounds, wooded trails and cypress and hardwoods rise to pine flatwoods nestled in Pasco County’s Land O’ Lakes. The District’s Cypress Creek Preserve is an oasis of natural systems that stretches north from SR 54 between US 41 and I-75. Cypress Creek’s floodplain helps filter nutrients in runoff waters. The property was purchased to preserve Cypress Creek Swamp, provide flood protection, protect and improve water quality and serve as a…

Top: Students show off their “Water Cycle in a Bag” projects. Above: Toi Basso, District senior administrative assistant, and Patty Williams, District senior revenue compliance coordinator, sign up students for a water conservation pledge at the Earth Day Expo at Challenger K–8 School of Science and Mathematics. In April, District volunteers fanned out across the region, from kindergarten classes to college campuses and from community festivals to corporate…

Eight Pinellas County projects were awarded Community Education Grants from the Southwest Florida Water Management District. These grants provide up to $5,000 to help fund projects that provide communities an opportunity to learn about water resources.This year the District awarded 38 grants Districtwide for a total of $136,598. This is the 11th year Community Education Grants have been available.The overall goal of the Community Education Grant Program is to actively…

Homeowners in South Venice have long touted water quality as a top neighborhood issue, and they recently celebrated a project that will create additional habitat and help improve water quality in their local waterways.  Residents and other community leaders celebrated the South Venice Beach Waterway Restoration Project, a culmination of the work to restore about 7,500 linear feet of the Siesta and Briarwood waterway banks in South Venice Beach. By creating a…

Projects expected to inform nearly 300,000 people in Pinellas County about water conservation and water quality issues were recently awarded Community Education Grants from the "Southwest Florida Water Management District":http://www.watermatters.org. This year the District awarded 12 grants Districtwide for a total of $50,319. This is the 15th year "Community Education Grants":http://www.swfwmd.state.fl.us/business/communitygrants/ have been available. These grants…

Public meetings scheduled this monthThe Southwest Florida Water Management District will begin monthly audible testing in October of three sirens installed near the Edward Medard Park reservoir in southeast Hillsborough County.The sirens were installed as an additional safety procedure for the unlikely event of an emergency that could result in the failure of the reservoir’s dam. The 700-acre reservoir is part of Edward Medard Park, a popular recreation area located…

The Southwest Florida Water Management District is joining forces with the Hillsborough River Watershed Alliance to celebrate the Hillsborough River and its watershed by declaring Nov. 15 through 22 as “Watershed Awareness Week.”The District’s Hillsborough River Basin Board is co-sponsoring Watershed Awareness Week in an effort to foster good watershed stewardship.The Hillsborough River Watershed Alliance is a public-private, non-profit organization that…

On a stifling hot July morning, Paul Elliott, a senior land manager with the District, and Robert Jarrard, a local outdoor enthusiast, traveled deep into the Green Swamp to place a new grave marker at the site of a shocking and gruesome double murder that happened almost 90 years ago. The bodies of Isham and Sarah Stewart were discovered in May of 1918. The coroner’s report stated they were killed in their beds with an ax, at least a week before they were found.…

The Southwest Florida Water Management District (District) is prohibiting campfires and other sources of open flames on District conservation lands in conjunction with numerous county burn bans and dry conditions. Lack of rainfall this spring has made grasses and other light vegetation extremely dry and volatile, increasing the potential for wildfires. Burning is thereby prohibited on these District properties with camping until sufficient rains occur and county burn bans…

The Southwest Florida Water Management District's (District) draft 2020 Regional Water Supply Plan (RWSP) is now available on the District’s website for review and comment by stakeholders and the public. The plan identifies existing and projected water demands across all water use categories, available potential water sources, and projects and funding sources to meet those demands within the District’s four planning regions over the next 20 years. Two online webinar…

Citrus and Marion county residents will be treated to clean water events from Ocala to Crystal River during the upcoming Springs Awareness Week. The following events taking place during Springs Awareness Week are aimed at raising awareness about the health of the local springs and what people can do to protect them: h3. March 13–14, Ocala table(webalert). |What:|16th Annual Marion County Master Gardeners' Spring Festival. More than 140 plant-related vendors come together to…