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The Southwest Florida Water Management District (District) awarded $107,969 in grants to 58 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 Southwest Florida Water Management District (District) awarded $107,969 in grants to 58 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…

Emergency Operations Center at Level 2 activation Southwest Florida Water Management District (District) officials are monitoring Tropical Depression 13 and have raised the activation level of the District’s Emergency Operations Center (EOC) to Level 2. The EOC provides direction regarding…

The Southwest Florida Water Management District (District) is gathering information to improve identification of flood prone areas in Polk County. The District will provide a virtual public comment period now through March 5 at WaterMatters.org/Floodplain…

Funding is available for a limited time for Dover/Plant City area growers who want to implement alternative frost-freeze protection practices through the federal "Agricultural Water Enhancement Program (USDA Agricultural Water Enhancement Program)":http://www.nrcs.usda.gov/programs/awep/ (AWEP). Applications are due Friday, July 23.The AWEP is providing $750,000 to cost-share tailwater recovery and high tunnels in the Dover/Plant City area. Interested growers in the project…

Emergency Operations Center at Level 2 activation Southwest Florida Water Management District (District) officials are monitoring Tropical Storm Ian and have raised the activation level of the District’s Emergency Operations Center (EOC) to Level 2. The EOC provides direction regarding District activities before, during and after an emergency event. The District is continuing to monitor potential impacts from the storm that could occur throughout its 16-county…

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 now through December at Annutteliga Hammock and Weekiwachee Preserve in Hernando County. Annutteliga…

The Southwest Florida Water Management District will be conducting "controlled, prescribed burns" during December, January and February on the Flatwoods Park and Oak Ridge Equestrian areas of the District's Lower Hillsborough Wilderness Preserve in Hillsborough County.The Lower Hillsborough Wilderness Preserve is located just south of Morris Bridge Road and just east of I-75, approximately three miles northeast of Temple Terrace. Approximately 700 acres of land will be…

Governor Charlie Crist recently reappointed Jack Bispham and Frank Strelec to the Southwest Florida Water Management District’s Manasota Basin Board.Paul J. “Jack” Bispham is the owner of Bayside Sod and lives in Sarasota. His term ends March 1, 2011.Frank E. Strelec is a retired attorney who lives in Sarasota. His term ends March 1, 2011.The Manasota Basin Board area includes Manatee and Sarasota counties.The District has seven regional Basin Boards that…

The Southwest Florida Water Management District will be conducting “controlled, prescribed burns” during June, July and August on the District’s Jack Creek property in Highlands County.The property, which is in the Leisure Lakes area, is approximately one mile west of U.S. Hwy. 27, three miles south of S.R. 66 and six miles northwest of Lake Placid. The scheduled, managed burns are a part of routine maintenance of lands managed by the District.…

The Southwest Florida Water Management District is reminding residents to check the timers on their irrigation system controllers this weekend, which is the beginning of Daylight Savings Time.Saturday night is when we will turn our clocks ahead one hour. The time change is also a good time to make sure your irrigation system timer is set correctly so you do not run the risk of receiving a water restriction citation because your system was set incorrectly.Unless your city or…

The Southwest Florida Water Management District honored Susan Kelly, director of the Sumter County Extension, for her role in promoting water resources education through the Lake Panasoffkee Celebration. A total of 26 projects were recognized Wednesday during the “Partners in Watershed Education Conference” at the Crowne Plaza Tampa East Hotel.Through a 2007 Community Education Grant, the Sumter County Extension held this one-day community event that focused on…

In preparation for Tropical Storm Fay possibly making landfall tomorrow, the Southwest Florida Water Management District has initiatedLevel 1 activation of its Emergency Operations Center in Brooksville and is closing all District offices and recreation areas on Tuesday.Level 1 activation is required when a situation has developed into an emergency. Under Level 1 activation, the EOC…

The Southwest Florida Water Management District Governing Board Tuesday approved the consolidation of three water use permits (WUP) for Hernando County Utilities.The consolidated permit includes an increase in quantities. The new permit is for a combined annual average quantity of 24,390,000 gallons per day (gpd), which is an increase of 3,360,000 gpd or 16 percent.Gross per capita use is projected to decrease by 12 percent, from 187 gallons per person per day to 164 gallons…

The Southwest Florida Water Management District Governing Board Monday renewed and modified a water use permit (WUP) for the Town of Lake Placid, which is located in Highlands County.The modified permit increases the permitted quantities. The previous annual average permitted quantity was 753,600 gallons of water per day (gpd.) The new permitted quantity is 1,192,000 gpd, which is an increase of 438,400 gpd.The increase in quantity is based on an estimated increase in…

A water conservation project funded by the Southwest Florida Water Management District and Pinellas County will reduce demand and conserve potable water.The project encourages the use of the surficial aquifer, Floridan aquifer, and surface water from lakes, ponds, rivers and streams for non-potable applications, such as lawn irrigation. Residents who live in portions of the county’s potable service area that will not be receiving reclaimed water service are eligible…

The Southwest Florida Water Management District will be conducting “controlled, prescribed burns” during the remaining days of August and September on the Deep Creek property in DeSoto County.The site is approximately three to four miles north of the Kings Highway on-ramp to Interstate 75. The parcel is east of the Kings Highway and north of the Deep Creek subdivision. Approximately 700 acres of land will be burned in small, manageable units. The scheduled,…

The Southwest Florida Water Management District will be conducting “controlled, prescribed burns” during the remaining days of August and September on the District’s Jack Creek property in Highlands County.The property, which is in the Leisure Lakes area, is approximately one mile west of U.S. Hwy. 27, three miles south of S.R. 66 and six miles northwest of Lake Placid. The scheduled, controlled burns are a part of routine maintenance of lands managed by…

The Southwest Florida Water Management District Governing Board Tuesday renewed and increased a water use permit for the City of Punta Gorda to meet the projected population growth through 2027.The previous annual average permitted quantity was 5,358,000 gallons of water per day (gpd.) The new permitted quantity is 8,088,000 gpd. However, the additional quantities will come from surface water, not groundwater. The surface water comes from the Shell Creek reservoir, located…

The Southwest Florida Water Management District will be conducting “controlled, prescribed burns” during January and February on the Prairie-Shell Creek property. The Charlotte County site is west of U.S. Hwy. 17 and east of the Peace River, approximately 8 miles northeast of Punta Gorda. Approximately 125 acres of land will be burned in small, manageable units.The scheduled, managed burns are a part of routine maintenance of lands managed by the District.According to…