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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 Most of the current FIRMs are 10 to 30 years old and are outdated because of natural and physical changes caused by land use, development and…

To see how staff are cleaning up District managed properties click here: https://youtu.be/Ir-hYWT1biQ Feel free to use this video on your website or newscasts. The Southwest Florida Water Management District (District) has reopened the majority of District-managed lands throughout its 16-county region. The Districted closed all District-managed lands in September in…

The Southwest Florida Water Management District (District) awarded $108,304 in grants to 51 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 awareness…

Setting prescribed fires in controlled settings can reduce the risk of wildfires burning out of control. That’s why the Southwest Florida Water Management District (District) will be conducting prescribed burns January through March on the Lower Hillsborough Wilderness Preserve in Hillsborough County. The Lower Hillsborough Wilderness Preserve is located south of Cross Creek Boulevard between U.S.…

According to the National Weather Service, parts of the Tampa Bay area may see freezing temperatures during early morning hours on Sunday. This has prompted the Southwest Florida Water Management District to advise residents who live near Plant City and Dover to switch off the pumps on their wells Saturday night and leave the pumps off until the temperatures warm up in the morning. Temperatures are expected to drop below 34 degrees for several hours early Sunday morning.…

Nineteen Pasco County teachers are among the educators who were awarded Splash! school grants through the "Southwest Florida Water Management District(Southwest Florida Water Management District)":/.This year 206 "Splash! grants(Splash! School Grants)":/education/schoolgrants were awarded to educators across "the District's 16-county region":/data/map.Mary Margaret Hull, lead communications coordinator, attributes the effectiveness of the grant program in Pasco County to the…

Eight Hillsborough County projects expected to reach more than 175,000 people were awarded Community Education Grants from the "Southwest Florida Water Management District(Southwest Florida Water Management District)":http://watermatters.org. These grants offer up to $5,000 to help fund projects that provide communities an opportunity to learn about water resources. This year the District awarded "35 grants Districtwide(2010 Community Education Grant Projects)":http://www.…

The Southwest Florida Water Management District recently approved an agreement to continue to help fund the St. Petersburg Sensible Sprinkling Program, which focuses on outdoor water conservation.As part of the program, approximately 300 residents may participate at no charge. Those who participate will receive an irrigation system evaluation, site-specific recommendations, rain sensor installation if an operable sensor is not present, Florida-friendly landscaping…

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 in 2017. That’s why the Southwest Florida Water Management District (District) will be conducting prescribed burns January through March on the Deep Creek Preserve in DeSoto County. Deep Creek Preserve is located at 10797 Peace…

Eileen Hart recently received special recognition from the Southwest Florida Water Management’s Northwest Hillsborough Basin Board for her commitment to water resources.Hart received a special recognition award for her role as a citizen advocate for the protection of water resources. Hart has regularly attended the Governing Board meetings to speak out about the issues impacting the wellfields, lakes and wetlands in her neighborhood.Her advocacy played a role in the…

Setting prescribed fires in controlled settings can reduce the risk of wildfires burning out of control. That’s why the Southwest Florida Water Management District (District) will be conducting prescribed burns now through March on Starkey Wilderness Preserve, Conner Preserve and Cypress Creek Preserve.Starkey Wilderness Preserve is located east of New Port Richey, west of the Suncoast Parkway, north of State Road 54 and south of State Road 52. Approximately 500 acres will…

Setting prescribed fires in controlled settings can reduce the risk of wildfires burning out of control. That’s why the Southwest Florida Water Management District (District) will be conducting prescribed burns October through December on the Lower Hillsborough Wilderness Preserve. The Lower Hillsborough Wilderness Preserve is located south of Cross Creek Boulevard between U.S. Highway 301 and Morris Bridge Road near…

Setting prescribed fires in controlled settings can reduce the risk of wildfires burning out of control. That’s why the Southwest Florida Water Management District (District) will be conducting prescribed burns October through December on the Starkey Wilderness Preserve. Starkey Wilderness Preserve is located east of New Port Richey, west of the Suncoast Parkway, north of…

Carlos Beruff Newly appointed Governing Board member Carlos Beruff took his oath of office in August. Beruff was appointed by Governor Charlie Crist to succeed Patricia Glass and represents Manatee County on the Board. His term ends March 1, 2013. Beruff also serves as the co-chair of the District’s Manasota Basin Board, which covers Manatee and Sarasota counties. The native Floridian lives in Parrish and is owner and…

Polk County's Local Governments No Longer Need to Go It Alone Guest Editorial How to meet the water needs of a growing region when your main water source is reaching its limits? That's the challenge facing Polk County. Developing new water supplies is costly and can be especially difficult for smaller communities. It makes sense for the various local governments in the county to work together, share the cost and ensure a water supply for future…

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 in 2017. That’s why the Southwest Florida Water Management District (District) will be conducting prescribed burns July through September on the Lake Panasoffkee property in Sumter County. The Lake Panasoffkee property is located…

  Left: Kaylee Meadows, a student from Wiregrass Ranch High, plants longleaf seedlings; center: Sheila Hollahan helps volunteer Felix Renta. How long does it take to plant 1,000 trees? Only an hour if you are the 51 volunteers who recently came out to Conner Preserve to plant longleaf pine seedlings. The District donated the thousand trees, which were planted on an 11-acre restoration site in the preserve to help restore the ecosystem. Volunteers were…

Beltran Appointed New Assistant Executive Director Assistant Executive Director Robert Beltran Robert Beltran recently joined the District as the new assistant executive director. Beltran will report to Executive Director Blake Guillory and oversee the District’s Regulation, Resource Management, and Operations, Maintenance & Construction divisions. Beltran is a professional engineer and has worked for 16 years as a…

Setting prescribed fires in controlled settings can reduce the risk of wildfires burning out of control. That’s why the Southwest Florida Water Management District (District) will be conducting prescribed burns June through September at Myakka River - Deer Prairie Creek Preserve and Myakka River - Schewe Tract in Sarasota County. Myakka River - Deer Prairie Creek Preserve and Myakka River - Schewe Tract…

The Southwest Florida Water Management District (District) will host career and student internship fairs to share information about the many career fields and employment opportunities at the District.The fairs will take place from 9 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Aug. 23 at the District’s Tampa Service Office, located at 7601 U.S. Hwy. 301 N. in Tampa and Aug. 30 at the District’s Brooksville Headquarters, located at 2379 Broad Street in Brooksville.The District offers a wide variety of…