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The Southwest Florida Water Management District’s Governing Board Tuesday concurred with an executive order issued earlier this month allowing Tampa Bay Water to augment the Hillsborough River Reservoir with water from the middle pool of the Tampa Bypass Canal.The Hillsborough River Reservoir is the City of Tampa’s main resource for providing potable water to approximately 520,000 residents. As of May 4, the reservoir was at 18.5 feet, a level that is normally… Read more

The Southwest Florida Management District’s Governing Board agreed to increase funding for a cooperative funding project with the city of Belleair Beach to reduce flooding and improve water quality.The project’s budget has been increased from $100,000 to $192,000 because the bids the city received for the project exceeded the available funding. The cost will be divided equally between Belleair Beach and the District’s Pinellas Anclote River Basin Board… Read more

The Southwest Florida Water Management District and Winter Haven recently signed an agreement to begin a master plan that will identify ways to use reclaimed water and conserve the groundwater supply.“The master plan will ultimately recommend how the City of Winter Haven should focus its efforts to best accomplish its goals and use its reclaimed water reuse resources from its two wastewater treatment plants,” said Tammy Antoine, District staff water conservation… Read more

A cooperatively funded project between the Southwest Florida Water Management District and Pinellas County will determine how much pollution is entering Pinellas Countys impaired waters.The study, which will estimate pollutant loads and yields discharged to impaired Pinellas County waters, will help the District and the County with efforts to improve the water quality in Pinellas County watersheds and ultimately Tampa Bay. To compute estimates of annual pollutant loads,… Read more

The Southwest Florida Water Management District will be conducting “controlled, prescribed burns” during March and April 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 300 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… Read more

The Southwest Florida Water Management District (District) is offering six easy ways to prepare for your holiday meals and parties without running up your water bill. During the holidays, water plays a role in everything from food preparation to the cleanup process. Here’s how to incorporate water conservation into your holiday preparations:

• Defrost frozen foods in the refrigerator or the microwave instead of running hot water over them.
• …

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The deadline to apply for the Southwest Florida Water Management District’s Community Education Grant program is near. The grants, which offer funding up to $5,000 each, will be used for projects that provide adults with an opportunity to learn about water-related issues pertaining to conservation, protection and preservation.Government agencies, private individuals, educational facilities, business and industry, neighborhoods, homeowner and service organizations,… Read more

The Southwest Florida Water Management District is inviting the public to participate in a workshop aimed at updating the management plan for the Cypress Creek Preserve property in Pasco County.The workshop will be held at the Land O’ Lakes Community Center on U.S. 41 (5401 Land O’ Lakes Boulevard) on Thursday, September 29, at 6 p.m.The Preserve property encompasses approximately 7,400 acres and protects an extensive area of floodplain along an 8-mile length of… Read more

Butterfly lovers will have a weekend to explore the Museum of Science and Industry’s (MOSI) Bio Work’s Butterfly Garden at no charge.Butterfly Weekend at MOSI is being held Saturday, Sept. 24 and Sunday Sept. 25. The Bio Works Butterfly Garden will be open to the public, free of charge, on both days from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.Besides exploring the Bio Works Butterfly Garden, attendees will also be able to participate in several hands-on activities on Saturday, Sept. 24.… Read more

Applications for the Southwest Florida Water Management District’s Community Education Grant program are now available. The grants, which offer funding up to $5,000 each, will be used for projects that provide adults with an opportunity to learn about water-related issues pertaining to conservation, protection and preservation.Government agencies, private individuals, educational facilities, business and industry, neighborhoods, homeowner and service organizations, research… Read more

The Southwest Florida Water Management District is inviting the public to participate in a workshop aimed at updating the management plan for the Chassahowitzka Riverine Swamp Sanctuary property.The workshop will be held at the Homosassa Springs State Wildlife Park visitor center on U.S. 19 (4150 South Suncoast Blvd.) on Tuesday, July 26, at 6 p.m.The Sanctuary property encompasses approximately 5,700 acres, which protects an extensive area of coastal floodplain and… Read more

The Southwest Florida Water Management District (District) awarded $119,000 in grants to 65 schools 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… Read more

The Southwest Florida Water Management District’s Governing Board approved additional funding Tuesday for a project that will connect the Town of Longboat Key to the City of Sarasota’s water supply.The project is funded between the District and the Town of Longboat Key. The District’s Manasota Basin Board’s 2005 budget included $50,000 for the project. Now Longboat Key will receive an additional $200,000 in financial assistance from the District… Read more

A project funded by the Southwest Florida Water Management District and Hillsborough County will bring reclaimed water to the Lithia-Pinecrest area.The Lithia-Pinecrest Reclaimed Water Transmission Line Project includes the construction of 12,000 linear feet of 24-inch reclaimed water transmission main line along Lithia Pinecrest Road from Bloomingdale Avenue to the entrance road to the Riverhills Golf Course. The project also includes the related controls and telemetry… Read more

Spring has sprung in Florida and that means gardeners and proud homeowners are busy sprucing up their lawns and gardens.By following Florida-friendly lawn and garden practices, “weekend warriors” can spend less time working on their lawns and more time enjoying the fruits of their labor.Fertilizers applied improperly can run off lawns into local springs, streams, lakes, rivers, and, ultimately into the gulf or ocean and harm our water resources. Proper… Read more

The Southwest Florida Water Management District will be conducting “controlled, prescribed burns” during the months of October through December on the District’s Myakka River Project property. The property is located between I-75 and U.S. Hwy. 41 and between Myakka River and the North Port. The scheduled, managed burns are a part of routine maintenance of lands managed by the District. Approximately 1,000 acres of land may be burned in small, manageable… Read more

The Southwest Florida Water Management District will be conducting “controlled, prescribed burns” during January and February on the District’s Myakka River Project property. The property is located between I-75 and U.S. Hwy. 41 and between Myakka River and the North Port. The scheduled, managed burns are a part of routine maintenance of lands managed by the District. Approximately 1,000 acres of land may be burned in small, manageable units.According to… Read more

Groups and individuals interested in applying for a Southwest Florida Water Management District community education grant are invited to attend a grant advisory session for residents with questions about the grants.The advisory session will be held Wednesday, Aug. 25, from 9 a.m.- 3 p.m. at the Tampa Service Office in Conference Room B. The Service Office is located at 7601 U.S. Hwy. 301, Tampa.This “open-house style” session is aimed at answering questions… Read more

Groups and individuals interested in applying for a Southwest Florida Water Management District community education grant are invited to attend a grant advisory session for residents who live in the area represented by the District’s Pinellas-Anclote River Basin Board. The area includes Pinellas County and the southern portion of Pasco County.The advisory session will be held Wednesday, Aug. 18, from 12 p.m.- 5 p.m. at the Countryside Library, which is located at… Read more

Cockroach Bay is located in Tampa Bay, the District’s highest priority SWIM water body, and is one of the largest, most complex ecosystem restoration projects ever developed for the Tampa Bay estuarine ecosystem. The 1980s was a decade of added responsibility for the District. A number of environmental programs were created by the Legislature during these years and, as a result, staff realigned priorities to accomplish multiple significant undertakings.… Read more