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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…

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 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…

The Southwest Florida Water Management District (District) awarded $108,937 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…

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…

  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, 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…

During the dry season, many homeowners are tempted to over-water their lawns and gardens. The Southwest Florida Water Management District would like to remind homeowners that more water is not the answer to their landscaping dilemmas.“Proper irrigation will conserve water and maintain a beautiful Florida-friendly landscape,” said Lou Kavouras, District deputy executive director.Make sure your sprinklers are watering the lawn, not the driveway and street and…

The public is invited to attend a celebration focusing on the history, restoration and future preservation of Lake Panasofkee on Saturday, May 13, from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. The event, which is free to the public, is located at the Marsh Bend Outlet River Park on the north side of the bridge on County Road 470 in Sumter County.The celebration includes educational activities for adults and children, kids’ fishing activities, entertainment and a “Lake PanPal”…

WHO: Southwest Florida Water Management District (District) land management staff. WHAT: District land management staff will set prescribed fires in a controlled setting, which can reduce the risk of wildfires burning out of control, as many Floridians witnessed during the state's wildfire emergency last spring. WHERE: Jay B. Starkey Wilderness Park at Starkey Wilderness Preserve, located at 10500 Wilderness Park Blvd…

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 spring. That's why the Southwest Florida Water Management District (District) will be conducting prescribed burns March through September 2018 at Weekiwachee Preserve in Pasco County. Weekiwachee Preserve is located north of Hudson, west of U.S. Highway 19 and includes the Aripeka Sandhills…

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 early spring. That's why the Southwest Florida Water Management District (District) will be conducting prescribed burns during the next 12 months within the Green Swamp, including the Green Swamp East, Green Swamp West, Hampton and Upper Hillsborough properties. These properties are located in eastern…

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 early spring. That's why the Southwest Florida Water Management District (District) will be conducting prescribed burns October through January 2018 on the Green Swamp Hampton Tract property in Polk County. The Hampton Tract property is located north of Rock Ridge Road and east of U.S. Highway 98, north…

For the seventh year in a row, the Southwest Florida Water Management District's (District) Governing Board voted to decrease property taxes by adopting a rolled back millage rate of 0.3131 mill for the fiscal year 2018 budget. The millage rate is more than 5.6 percent lower than the current fiscal year adopted millage rate of 0.3317 mill, a savings to taxpayers of $6.7 million.For the owner of a $150,000 home with a $50,000 homestead exemption, the District tax would be $31…

Setting prescribed fires in controlled settings can reduce the risk of wildfires burning out of control, as many Floridians witnessed during the state's recent drought. That's why the Land Management Section of the Southwest Florida Water Management District (District) will be conducting prescribed burns during the months of July, August, and September on the Lower Hillsborough Flood Detention Area (LHFDA) in Hillsborough County. The LHFDA property is located in the area…

Setting prescribed fires in controlled settings can reduce the risk of wildfires burning out of control, as many Floridians witnessed during the state's recent drought. That's why the Land Management Section of the Southwest Florida Water Management District (District) will be conducting prescribed burns during the months of July, August, and September at the Conner Preserve in Pasco County. Conner Preserve is located south of State Road 52 and east of U.S. 41 near the…

The Land Management Section of the Southwest Florida Water Management District (District) will be conducting prescribed burns now through the month of March on the Halpata Tastanaki Preserve in Marion County. The property is located two miles east of Dunnellon and seven miles northeast of the City of Hernando and is bounded by County Road 484 on the north, State Road 200 on the southeast and the Withlacoochee River on the southwest. Approximately 1,000 acres will be burned…

The Land Management Section of the Southwest Florida Water Management District (District) will be conducting prescribed burns now through the month of March on the Potts Preserve in Citrus County. The property is located approximately two miles east of City of Hernando and 3.5 miles north-northeast of Inverness. Potts Preserve is east and southeast of State Road 200 and north of Turner Camp Road and is bounded by the Withlacoochee River on the east. Approximately 200 acres…