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The Southwest Florida Water Management District (District) is planning to perform maintenance on the S-353 water control structure located in northern Citrus County on the Tsala Apopka outfall canal, between the northern extent of the Hernando pool of the Tsala Apopka Chain-of-Lakes and the Withlacoochee River. The work will begin December 21 and will continue through June 1, 2017. During that time, public access to the structure will be limited for safety reasons. As part…

The Southwest Florida Water Management District (District) in cooperation with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission will be treating hydrilla on Lake Panasoffkee June 5, weather permitting. This treatment is being performed to maintain boating access within an area of the lake that is important for navigation. The aquatic herbicide Aquathol K will be…

Setting prescribed fires in controlled settings can reduce the risk of wildfires burning out of control, as many Floridians witnessed during the state’s wildfire emergency last year. That’s why the…

Setting prescribed fires in controlled settings can reduce the risk of wildfires burning out of control, as many Floridians witnessed during the state’s wildfire emergency last year. That’s why the…

The Southwest Florida Water Management District (District) Governing Board  Cheryl Paradis as one of this year's springs community partners, while declaring April Springs Protection Awareness Month. Paradis has served as the director and lead teacher at the Springs Coast Environmental Education Center on the…

ORLANDO, Fla., Sept 18, 2013 – The St. Johns River, South Florida and Southwest Florida water management districts are working with the Florida Department of Environmental Protection, Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services and regional utilities to address near and long-term water supply needs in the central Florida region.Through the "Central Florida Water Initiative ":http://cfwiwater.com/ (CFWI), the agencies are engaging stakeholders in the development…

The Land Management Section of the "Southwest Florida Water Management District":http://www.swfwmd.state.fl.us/ (District) will be conducting prescribed burns during the months of July, August and September on lands acquired by the District known as the Chassahowitzka River and Coastal Swamps property. The location of this tract of land is approximately 1.5 miles west of U.S. 19 in southwest Citrus County. Close to 400 acres will be burned, in small, manageable units…

A project funded by the Southwest Florida Water Management District and the City of Zephyrhills will expand the use of reclaimed water in Zephyhills.The project includes the construction of approximately 6,000 feet of transmission and distribution line from an existing reclaimed water transmission line to irrigate landscaping along the city’s streets.This project will provide approximately 8,000 gallons per day (gpd) of reclaimed water for irrigation, which is expected…

The Southwest Florida Water Management District and Hernando County are holding a series of workshops to ask developers, engineers and the general public to review and comment on 22 watershed management plans.A watershed is an area of land that water flows across as it moves toward a common low point, sinkhole complex, or a body of water, such as a stream, river, lake or coast.During the workshops, preliminary models and floodplain information will be presented for review…

The Southwest Florida Water Management District and Pasco County are holding a series of workshops for review and comment from developers, engineers and the general public on 13 watershed management plans.A watershed is an area of land that water flows across as it moves toward a common body of water, such as a stream, river, lake or coast.During the workshops, preliminary models and floodplain information will be presented for review and comment. After addressing the…

The Southwest Florida Water Management District will be treating water hyacinth and water lettuce on the shoreline and canals of Lake Panasoffkee April 11-14.Treatment involves using the aquatic herbicide Reward. Treatment areas will be posted with warning signs displaying treatment dates and applicable water use restrictions. Restrictions on Reward include no livestock watering for one day, no irrigation of turf or ornamental plants for one day or crops for five days and…

The Southwest Florida Water Management District is gathering input needed to improve identification of flooding risks in Citrus county. The District is serving as a cooperating technical partner for the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) on its national effort to update and modernize the FEMA Flood Insurance Rate Maps (FIRMs). Most of the current FIRMs are 10 to 30 years old and are outdated because of natural and physical changes caused by land use, development and…

A cooperative project between the Southwest Florida Water Management District, Pinellas County and the City of Dunedin will reduce flooding and improve water quality entering St. Joseph Sound.The project involves conducting a survey and the design, permitting and construction of a box culvert to connect Curlew Creek Channel A to an existing detention pond owned by the county. Curlew Creek, which is located in the Spanish Oaks Diversion improvement area, flows into St.…

When visitors arrive at the Brooker Creek Preserve, their education begins the minute they leave their vehicles. A series of interpretive signage now lines the main trail between the parking lot and the environmental education center. Additional signs are located at key locations, including the butterfly garden and a mini wetland. The Brooker Creek Preserve Environmental Education Center is located within the Brooker Creek watershed, which covers 39 square miles in…

The Southwest Florida Water Management District (District) awarded $104,941.81 in grants to 48 educators within the District as part of the Splash! school grant program. The program provides up to $3,000 per school to enhance student knowledge of freshwater resources in grades K-12. Splash! grants encourage hands-on student learning through STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) activities as well as engagement of the greater school community through…

The public is invited to share ideas concerning potential water resources restoration projects when the Citrus/Hernando Waterways Restoration Council and the Hernando County Task Force meet on Oct. 20.The Citrus/Hernando Waterways Restoration Council will meet at 3 p.m. in Conference Rooms A & B, 1st Floor, at the Southwest Florida Water Management District Headquarters, 2379 Broad Street, Brooksville. The Hernando County Task Force will meet in the same location at 3:…

A national program sponsored by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) calls the District’s Water Conservation Hotel and Motel Program (Water C.H.A.M.P.) a “Gulf Guardian.” The District’s water conservation program took second place among government programs at the Gulf Guardian Awards in Corpus Christi, Texas. Water C.H.A.M.P. began in September 2002 as a two-year pilot program in the Pinellas-Anclote River Basin of the Southwest Florida Water Management…

Patsy Nathe, the District’s Withlacoochee River Basin Board vice chair, was recently named “Woman of the Year in Agriculture” for 2008. The award, which is sponsored by the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services and the Florida State Fair Authority, recognizes outstanding contributions to Florida agriculture. Charles H. Bronson, the state’s agriculture commissioner, will present the award to Nathe on Feb. 5 during the opening day…

Nine Citrus 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…

The Southwest Florida Water Management District will be conducting “controlled, prescribed burns” during April on the District’s Weekiwachee Preserve. The property is approximately 1 mile west of Spring Hill. The scheduled, managed burns are a part of routine maintenance of lands managed by the District. Approximately 200 acres of land will be burned in small, manageable units.According to District Land Manager Kevin W. Love, burns are implemented to…