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This is Severe Weather Awareness Week and while Florida residents are familiar with tropical storms and hurricanes, it doesn’t take a named storm to cause flooding.  Florida is vulnerable to flooding at any time of the year. Mostly surrounded by water, the abundant supply of moisture feeds the development of thunderstorms, which may produce heavy rains during a short period of time. When those heavy rains occur, the ground may not be able to absorb all of the…

Southwest Florida Water Management District staff water conservation restrooms are expected to be a “home run” with Threshers fans.The District is bringing its water conservation restrooms to Bright House Networks Stadium on May 6 when the Clearwater Threshers battle the Vero Beach Dodgers. This is the first time the District will bring the comforts of a private, water-conserving bathroom trailer to a baseball game.“Bringing the trailer to the ball field…

The Southwest Florida Water Management District is bringing its water conservation restrooms to a new venue, the Sharks Tooth Festival. The event is being held April 8-10 near Venice.Community festivals allow the District to spread the word about water conservation to a variety of audiences by bringing the comforts of a private, water-conserving bathroom to a variety of people.Last year more than 100,000 people visited the trailer during the 16 days it spent at festivals in…

The "Southwest Florida Water Management District(Southwest Florida Water Management District)":/ is gathering input needed to improve identification of flooding risks in North Port.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). The current FIRMs are 30 years old and are outdated because natural and physical changes caused…

The "Southwest Florida Water Management District(Southwest Florida Water Management District)":/ is gathering input needed to improve identification of flooding risks in Citrus County's Cardinal Lane watershed.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 Most of the current FIRMs are 10 to 30 years old and are outdated…

Editor's note: See last page for map of county and watersheds The Southwest Florida Water Management District is gathering input needed to improve identification of flooding risks in the county. The District is serving as a cooperating technical partner for the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) on their 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…

The Southwest Florida Water Management District and Pasco County are working together to gather input needed to improve identification of flooding risks in the county.The information will be used to update area floodplain information and develop preliminary Federal Emergency Management Agency (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…

WhoSouthwest Florida Water Management District staff, National Wild Turkey Federation (NWTF)/Wheelin’ Sportsmen representatives, disabled hunters and volunteer guidesWhatThe District has partnered with the NWTF/Wheelin’ Sportsmen to organize this gun hunt, which allows disabled men, women and young adults to experience the outdoors. Participants will use shotguns and rifles during the deer and hog hunt.WhenSaturday, Nov. 18, 11 a.m.WhereThe hunt will be held on the District’…

The Southwest Florida Water Management District’s Governing Board Tuesday approved a Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) with Polk County for the Lake Hancock Lake Level Modification Project. Polk County is scheduled to consider the MOA on Aug. 9.The MOA outlines what each party is responsible for and addresses the county’s North Central landfill. The county’s North Central landfill is located near the Lake Hancock Project. It was originally permitted in 1974…

At its June 5 meeting, the Southwest Florida Water Management District’s Northwest Hillsborough Basin Board adopted a proposed fiscal year 2009 (FY2009) millage rate of 0.2421 mill, which is the same as the current fiscal year. The Northwest Hillsborough Basin Board area includes the northwest portion of Hillsborough County.This millage rate, combined with a reduction in taxable property values as estimated by the county property appraiser, will result in an estimated…

The "Southwest Florida Water Management District(Southwest Florida Water Management District)":/ is gathering input needed to improve identification of flooding risks in the Polk City watershed.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…

The "Southwest Florida Water Management District(Southwest Florida Water Management District)":/ is gathering input needed to improve identification of flooding risks in the Tsala Apopka watershed.The District is serving as a cooperating technical partner for the "Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA)(Federal Emergency Management Agency)":http://www.fema.gov on its national effort to "update and modernize the FEMA Flood Insurance Rate Maps (FIRMs)(Federal Flood Map…

Four Hillsborough County projects expected to reach up to 73,000 people were awarded Community Education Grants from the "Southwest Florida Water Management District(Southwest Florida Water Management District)":/.This year the District approved 29 grants Districtwide for a total of $120,471. This is the 14th year "Community Education Grants(Community Education Grant program)":/business/communitygrants have been available. These grants offer reimbursement up to $5,000 to…

Three Citrus County projects expected to reach up to 167,000 people were awarded Community Education Grants from the "Southwest Florida Water Management District(Southwest Florida Water Management District)":/. This year the District approved 29 grants Districtwide for a total of $120,471. This is the 14th year "Community Education Grants(Community Education Grant program)":/business/communitygrants have been available. These grants offer reimbursement up to $5,000 to help…

The "Southwest Florida Water Management District(Southwest Florida Water Management District)":/ is gathering input needed to improve identification of flooding risks in DeSoto County's *Thornton Branch watershed*.The District is serving as a cooperating technical partner for the "Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA)(Federal Emergency Management Agency)":http://www.fema.gov on its national effort to "update and modernize the FEMA Flood Insurance Rate Maps (FIRMs)(…

Following Hurricane Milton, the Southwest Florida Water Management District (District) has deactivated the Tampa Bypass Canal System and the Hillsborough Flood Detention Area (HFDA), as water levels in the Hillsborough River have returned to normal. This marks a positive step as the region recovers from the heavy rainfall caused by the storm. To assist with flood control during the storm, the District activated the Tampa Bypass Canal System on October 8 to protect…

Water Wise Winners Two homebuilders each walked away with the equivalent of an “Academy Award” for incorporating water conservation landscaping into their designs. The Gibraltar Homes’ Caterina III model received the Water-Wise Landscaping Award in Manatee County and the Lee Wetherington Homes’ Opal model received the top prize for Sarasota County. The winners were each presented with a plaque at the 2004 Parade of Homes Awards Gala of the Home Builders…

Water Management on the Move A cooperative project between Pinellas County and the District has restored the natural flow of water between two back bays at Fort DeSoto Park near the mouth of Tampa Bay. Restoring the circulation will help improve water quality and habitats in the estuary. When the park was being developed during the late 1950s and early 1960s, a dredge-and-fill project connected a series of small mangrove islands from the mainland to a barrier…

This summer the District’s Land Resources Department assembled a group of people, all with a personal or professional interest in the availability of District lands for public use, to hear their input on how the District can maintain the balance between preservation and public access. The District’s Land Resources Department is tasked with balancing public access, recreation and other land uses with the management of more than 343,000 acres of District-owned land. The…

Brandt Henningsen, the District’s chief environmental scientist, shows off a freshly planted baby marsh at Cockroach Bay to students from the University of London. As student Bea Nagy inspected a freshly planted baby marsh or marveled at the water fowl dotting Cockroach Bay, she experienced a lesson not found in a textbook. Nagy was one of 17 students from the University of London to recently tour the District’s coastal ecosystem restoration projects such as…