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Above left: Governing Board Chair Neil Combee congratulates former Governing Board Chair Joe Davis on his Lifetime Achievement Award. Above right: District Executive Director David Moore presents Fritz Musselmann, the District's recently retired land resources director, with a Lifetime Achievement Award. The State of the Water Resources workshop was also an opportunity for the District to honor two men who were influential in the District’s growth and development… Read more

The Southwest Florida Water Management District (District) is gathering information to improve identification of flood prone areas in Plant City. Residents living in the Plant City watershed are invited to attend an open house Tuesday, Feb. 15, at 4 p.m. The meeting will take place at Sadye Gibbs Martin Community Center, located at 302 South Maryland Avenue in Plant City. District representatives will present preliminary data for flood prone areas, explain the… Read more

The Southwest Florida Water Management District (District) is releasing additional water from the Medard Reservoir into the Alafia River to protect the structural integrity of the reservoir.In preparation for potential impacts from Hurricane Milton, the District released water and the Medard Reservoir was below normal operating level. However, the Medard Reservoir received nearly 7 inches of rainfall in the watershed and the reservoir rose 6.5 feet as a result of Hurricane… Read more

The Southwest Florida Water Management District (District) is gathering information to improve identification of flood prone areas in Sumter County. Residents living in the Little Jones Creek/Wildwood watershed are invited to attend an open house Thursday, Jan. 13, at 4 p.m. The meeting will take place at Wildwood Community Center, located at 6500 Powell Road in Wildwood. District representatives will present preliminary data for flood prone areas, explain the… Read more

The District recently restructured the Regulation Division to increase the quality of service. Resource Regulation evaluates Environmental Resource, Water Use and Well Construction permit applications and is responsible for addressing permitting compliance. Regulation Division duties include reviewing permit applications, monitoring permitted activities, enforcing District rules and permit conditions, and maintaining regulatory records for the District. The… Read more

Emergency Operations Center at Level 1 Activation Southwest Florida Water Management District (District) officials have raised the activation level of the District’s Emergency Operations Center (EOC) to Level 1 as they continue to monitor Tropical Storm Elsa. The EOC provides direction regarding District activities during an emergency weather event. The District is evaluating potential impacts from the storm that could occur throughout its 16-county region… Read more

The Southwest Florida Water Management District (District) will hold a virtual meeting at 6 p.m. Thursday, May 27, to share the results of the 2020 Dover/Plant City Water Use Caution Area Assessment and staff recommendations. District staff will give a presentation followed by a chance for the public to give comments and ask questions. Members of the public may join the workshop via Microsoft Teams at… Read more

Safety First  Gary Kuhl, left, Operations Department Director, accepted an award from Stephen H. Partney, P.E., Association of State Dam Safety Officials (ASDSO) Program Administrator at a recent banquet in Arizona. The District’s Operations Department has been recognized on a national level for its commitment to safety. The Association of State Dam Safety Officials (ASDSO) recently presented the District with the Southeast Region Award of Merit for… Read more

 During the holiday season, Morra shows off her Christmas spirit. In many ways, Joyce Morra, senior administrative assistant in the District’s Finance Department, serves as a translator or “go-between.” She’s someone who works with information, or finds out about a certain need, and relays the important details to those who need it or can do something about it. For instance, as a member of the department’s budget section, Morra works closely with each… Read more

More than 300 volunteers broke a record last weekend at the Rock Ponds Ecosystem Project when they planted 40,000 plugs of marsh grass, making it the largest installation of marsh plants in Tampa Bay.  The event was a collaboration between the District’s SWIM program and Tampa Bay Watch, Hillsborough County and the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.  “In just an hour, this has gone from looking like a desert to all this green. It’s amazing… Read more

The "Southwest Florida Water Management District":http://www.swfwmd.state.fl.us/ (District) has launched a contest on the social media site Instagram to raise awareness of springs throughout the District. Springs sites are a popular hot spot with both local residents and tourists during the summer months and especially holiday weekends. This summer, whether you are tubing, kayaking, swimming or just relaxing near one of the many springs in our District, you can share those… Read more

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 June through September at the following Pasco County properties:

• Cypress Creek Preserve
…

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The Southwest Florida Water Management District Governing Board Tuesday adopted its fiscal year 2012-13 (FY2012-13) millage rate and budget.The "Governing Board":http://www.swfwmd.state.fl.us/about/governingboard/ adopted a FY2012-13 millage rate of 0.3928 mill, which is the same as the current fiscal year. FY2012-13 will run from Oct. 1, 2012, through Sept. 30, 2013. With taxable property values declining by 2.9 percent, this rate will result in a $3 million reduction in ad… Read more

*Emergency Operations Center at Level 2 Activation*Southwest Florida Water Management District officials are preparing for "Tropical Storm Isaac":http://www.WaterMatters.org/EOC and have raised the activation level of the District's Emergency Operations Center (EOC) to Level 2. The EOC provides direction and controls District activities during an emergency weather event.The District is monitoring Tropical Storm Isaac and preparing for the effects depending on its path.… Read more

Projects expected to inform more than 100,000 people in Sarasota County about water conservation and water quality issues were recently awarded Community Education Grants from the "Southwest Florida Water Management District":http://www.watermatters.org. This year the District awarded 12 grants Districtwide for a total of $50,319. This is the 15th year Community Education Grants have been available. These grants currently help fund projects that provide communities an… Read more

Engineer Matt Preston keeps watch from the boat, while swimmers Stephanie Powers and Mary Szafraniec, District environmental scientists, survey seagrass. Vital Marine Habitat Shows Improvement in Six Water Bodies Increases in seagrass presence in the Tampa Bay and Charlotte Harbor regions have given District scientists encouraging signs that the health of some important water bodies is continuing to improve. The Surface Water Improvement and Management… Read more

 The Lower Hillsborough Wilderness Preserve (LHWP) contains one of the largest premier contiguous recreation areas in Hillsborough County. Within the LHWP are park sites managed by the Hillsborough County Conservation and Environmental Lands Management Department: Dead River Park, Flatwoods Park,… Read more

Where do you think most of the water pollutants in our region come from? Did you know that about half of them come from septic tanks? That’s according to Dr. Mary Lusk, faculty in the Soil and Water Science Department at the University of Florida-Gulf Coast Research and Education Center. She spoke at this year’s “Florida Water: Decade for Decisions” seminar and said conventional septic tanks do not remove much nitrogen (about 30 percent) and are greatly contributing to… Read more

The Southwest Florida Water Management District will be conducting "controlled, prescribed burns" during November and December for two District sites in Sarasota County – the Schewe Tract and the Deer Prairie Creek Preserve. Both properties are located to the north and south of I-75 between mile markers 186 and 190, with US 41 as the preserve's far southern boundary. The properties are also located between the Myakka River and the cities of North Port and Warm Mineral… Read more

Three reappointed members of the Southwest Florida Water Management District’s Peace River Basin Board took their oaths of office during the Basin Board’s August meeting.Rufus Lazzell, Paul Samuels and Fred Trippensee were all reappointed by Governor Charlie Crist in June.Lazzell is from Punta Gorda. He is a retired US Army Brigadier General and former mayor of Punta Gorda. His term ends March 1, 2012.Trippensee is from Avon Park. He is the president of… Read more