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The Southwest Florida Water Management District's Hampton Tract, which is part of the Green Swamp Wilderness Preserve, will be temporarily closed to the public for hog hunts Dec. 8-10.Only permitted hunters will be allowed on the property during these dates. All of the permits for these hunts have been sold.The Green Swamp Wilderness Preserve Hampton Tract's entrance is at the intersection of Rock Ridge Road and Deen Still Road in Polk County.The hunt is one of a series of…

About 120 volunteers helped plant 9,000 marsh plugs at Cockroach Bay, provided by the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission About 120 volunteers recently got messy and muddy for a marsh. The volunteers helped plant 9,000 marsh plugs at Cockroach Bay as part of the final phase of restoration of the tidal lagoon borrow pit. The project is part of the Cockroach Bay Ecosystem Restoration Project, one of the most complex coastal ecosystem projects…

The Southwest Florida Water Management District will be treating water hyacinth and water lettuce on portions of the Peace River during the weeks of June 8-12 and June 15-19.District staff will treat the portion of the river from Bartow to Ft. Meade during June 8-12. The portion of the river from Ft. Meade to Zolfo Springs will be treated during June 15-19.Treatment involves the spot application of the aquatic herbicide Reward to scattered infestations. Treatment areas will…

table(webalert). |Who:|"Southwest Florida Water Management District(Southwest Florida Water Management District)":/ and volunteers.||*What:*|The District has organized volunteers to plant *several hundred trees*, including *long leaf pines* and *live oaks*, at the District's "Lake Panasoffkee property(Lake Panasoffkee property)":/recreation/areas/lakepanasoffkee.html located in Sumter County west of Wildwood.Volunteers will *break ground at 10 a.m.*, planting saplings in and…

Gov. Charlie Crist recently appointed a new member to the Governing Board of the Southwest Florida Water Management District.Henry Paul Senft of Haines City was appointed to a newly created seat. The Governing Board was previously made up of 11 seats. Last year the State Legislature added two new seats for a total of 13.His term began March 7 and ends March 1, 2011. Senft is the owner of Townsend-Senft Consulting and Insurance Inc. He will also be appointed by the…

Scientists with the "Southwest Florida Water Management District's Surface Water Improvement and Management (SWIM) Program(SWIM)":/projects/swim/ recorded an 11 percent increase in seagrass growth in "Tampa Bay(SWIM Priority Water Body: Tampa Bay)":/projects/swim/tampabay.php since 2008, the largest increase in seagrass growth since the District began the seagrass mapping program. The "District(Southwest Florida Water Management District)":/ study also shows gains in St.…

Left: Brenda Kerrick, District senior human resources generalist, displays the Corporate Plus Award presented to the District. Below: Daryl Pokrana, District finance director; David Otto, District buyer; and Dave Moore, District executive director, with the Lorian Williams Award. The District recently received three top honors for efforts to improve diversity among its employees and vendors. INROADS Corporate Plus Award The…

The Southwest Florida Water Management District’s Governing Board Tuesday approved a revised agreement with the St. Johns River Water Management District to provide uniform lawn and landscape irrigation measures throughout unincorporated Marion County and the City of Ocala during both temporary drought and normal year-round conditions.Marion County and Ocala are divided between the two water management districts, with the boundary roughly being the path of Interstate…

The Southwest Florida Water Management District Governing Board Tuesday approved the purchase of a parcel of land in connection with the Lake Hancock Project. The property is an important part of the creation of a greenway link.The parcel is approximately 590 acres of land and is located along the eastern shore of Lake Hancock. Located west of Thornhill Road, south of the Polk Parkway and State Road 540, the property is being purchased for $5,225,000 from Tom and Tham…

The Southwest Florida Water Management District, in cooperation with the Florida Department of Environmental Protection and Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, will treat hydrilla on selected areas of Lake Panasoffkee.Approximately 200 acres of the 4,000-acre Lake Panasoffkee will be treated May 9-11. Treatment involves applying the aquatic herbicide Aquathol K from the air.Maps of the treatment areas will be posted at local fish camps as well as on floating buoys…

The Southwest Florida Water Management District Governing Board approved the purchase of a 153-acre parcel of land in Hillsborough County. This acquisition will be added to the 4,367 acres that the District owns within the Tampa Bay Estuarine Ecosystem project.The property, commonly known as the Fulkerson Road shell pit, is located about one mile north of the Hillsborough/Manatee County line and just west of U.S. Hwy. 41.The property is being purchased for $828,000 from…

Who:Representatives from the Southwest Florida Water Management District’s Land Resources Department, Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, Hernando County Planning Department, Hernando County Audubon Society and volunteersWhat:As part of the 15th Annual National Public Lands Day, the District’s Land Resources Department is coordinating a volunteer work day at the Weekiwachee Preserve, which is located along the Hernando County Coast, west of the…

Who:Canterbury School of Florida teachers and students, Southwest Florida Water Management District staff, U.S. Geological Survey, U.S. Coast Guard, the Pinellas County Science Center and Tampa Bay WatchWhat:The Canterbury School of Florida is celebrating the grand opening of the Marine Studies Education Center at its Knowlton campus.District staff will be among the guest speakers. The school received a Splash! mini-grant for a project that focused on learning about native…

The Southwest Florida Water Management District (District) has closed all District managed campgrounds throughout our 16-county region during Florida's wildfire emergency event.The following District managed campgrounds are closed until further notice:•Cypress Creek Preserve•Deep Creek Preserve•Flying Eagle Preserve•Green Swamp – East Tract•Green Swamp – Hampton Tract•Green Swamp – West Tract•Lake Panasofkee•Lower Hillsborough Wilderness Preserve•Potts Preserve•Starkey…

The Green Swamp Wilderness Preserve West Tract is an ideal place for visitors to explore some of central Florida’s flora and fauna in their natural state. Rainwater drains across the Green Swamp region’s 560,000 acres of wetlands, flatlands and low ridges to form the headwaters of four major rivers: Withlacoochee, Ocklawaha, Hillsborough and Peace. The West Tract’s 37,350 acres of unspoiled habitat is transected by the Florida National Scenic Trail. More than…

The Southwest Florida Water Management District’s Governing Board will hold its monthly meeting Tuesday, Feb. 24 at 9 a.m. at District Headquarters, located at 2379 Broad Street in Brooksville. To view the Governing Board meeting online, click on the live video stream link. The video stream link becomes active and the live video feed begins approximately 15 minutes before the scheduled meeting…

The Southwest Florida Water Management District's Governing Board recently approved minimum flows (or MFLs) for both the Rainbow River and the Crystal River/Kings Bay systems. A minimum flow is the limit at which withdrawals will cause significant harm. Some recent guest editorials and letters have suggested the water management district arbitrarily sets these limits and offers a "blank check" to pump unlimited amounts of water out of the aquifer. In fact, MFLs are an…

The Southwest Florida Water Management District (District) will be holding a feral hog management hunt on the Lower Hillsborough Wilderness Preserve in Hillsborough County Jan. 29-31. The property will be closed to the public from dusk until dawn during the hunts. Normal daytime operations in the park will not be affected. Only permitted hunters will be allowed nighttime access on the property during these dates. All permits for these hunts have been sold.…

The "Southwest Florida Water Management District ":http://www.swfwmd.state.fl.us/ (District), Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission and NOAA's National Weather Service will host a public information meeting about Lake Panasoffkee on Thursday, October 24, from 6 to 8 p.m. The meeting will take place at the Lake Panasoffkee Recreation Center, located at 1582 County Rd. 459 in Lake Panasoffkee.The District will present information about the lake levels and the…

Tara Poulton has joined the Southwest Florida Water Management District as a Government Affairs program manager. Poulton will serve as a liaison between the District and the constituents of Sarasota, Manatee, Charlotte and DeSoto counties. She will work closely with county governments, municipalities and utilities staff.Prior to joining the District, Poulton was the communications manager at the Bradenton Area Convention and Visitors Bureau, a department of Manatee County…