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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 January through March on Potts Preserve, Flying Eagle Preserve and Chassahowitzka River and Coastal Swamps in Citrus… Read more

Citrus County residents recently benefited from a grass giveaway.  About 50 people left with more than 1,000 peat pots of eelgrass grown as part of the District’s Hunters Cove Revegetation Project.  The District has been growing mats of eelgrass in ponds at the Duke Energy Mariculture Center in Crystal River. After the mats were grown, they were rolled up and transported to Hunters Cove in Crystal River and placed on the bottom in sections, similar to… Read more

Wetland and upland areas in Manatee County's new Tom Bennett Park are being restored thanks to a partnership between the county and the "Southwest Florida Water Management District(Southwest Florida Water Management District)":/.Manatee County began construction of the 180-acre park, located just east of Bradenton, in May 2010, and the park is scheduled to open Nov. 12. The county turned former pasture and woodlands into a passive park, offering residents a tranquil place to… Read more

Six Pinellas County projects expected to reach more than 18,000 people were awarded Community Education Grants from the "Southwest Florida Water Management District(Southwest Florida Water Management District)":http://watermatters.org. These grants offer up to $5,000 to help fund projects that provide communities an opportunity to learn about water resources. This year the District awarded "35 grants Districtwide(2010 Community Education Grant Projects)":http://www.swfwmd.… Read more

**Yankeetown School's Genie Sturtevant was among the educators who were awarded Splash! school grants through the "Southwest Florida Water Management District(Southwest Florida Water Management District)":/.This year 206 "Splash! grants(Splash! School Grants)":/education/schoolgrants were awarded to educators across "the District's 16-county region":/data/map.For the past seven years, the "Withlacoochee River Basin Board(Withlacoochee River Basin Board)":/about/basinboards/… Read more

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… Read more

DeSoto County ranchers can learn how to use soil testing to more effectively fertilize pastures through a Community Education Grant from the "Southwest Florida Water Management District(Southwest Florida Water Management District)":http://watermatters.org.The *Range Cattle Research and Education Center* received a $5,000 grant to offer free soil and tissue testing and educational materials to regional beef and forage producers. Reductions in the amount of fertilizer applied… Read more

Charlotte County ranchers can learn how to use soil testing to more effectively fertilize pastures through a Community Education Grant from the "Southwest Florida Water Management District(Southwest Florida Water Management District)":http://watermatters.org.The *Range Cattle Research and Education Center* received a $5,000 grant to offer free soil and tissue testing and educational materials to regional beef and forage producers. Reductions in the amount of fertilizer… 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 October through December on Potts… Read more

The "Southwest Florida Water Management District(Southwest Florida Water Management District)":http://watermatters.org will be treating water hyacinth and water lettuce on "Shell and Prairie creeks(Prairie-Shell Creek)":http://www.swfwmd.state.fl.us/recreation/areas/prairie_shell_creek.html during the week of March 8–12. District workers will treat portions of the creeks upstream of the Henderson Dam. Workers will apply the aquatic herbicide Reward to scattered infestations… Read more

The Southwest Florida Management District recently signed an agreement with Hillsborough County to move forward on a project that will reduce flooding near Lake June.The Lake June Wetlands Restoration and Wee Lake Outfall Improvements project will improve conveyance and provide additional storage within the watershed by relocating and upgrading existing ditches and culverts, and removing an earthen land bridge built across Lake June for peat mining. Lake June and Wee Lake… Read more

Four Polk County projects that are expected to reach approximately 6,000 residents were awarded Community Education Grants from the Southwest Florida Water Management District. These grants provide up to $5,000 to help fund projects that provide communities an opportunity to learn about water resources.This year the District awarded 38 grants Districtwide for a total of $136,598. This is the 11th year Community Education Grants have been available.The overall goal of the… Read more

The Southwest Florida Water Management District Governing Board Tuesday unanimously approved the fiscal year 2008 (FY2008) budget and reduced millage rates. The total FY2008 budget for the District is $395 million, which is an $11.7 million increase over the FY2007 budget of $383.3 million. $1.4 million of the budget increase is due to additional ad valorem tax revenue. The balance of the increase includes additional state funding, interest earnings and balances available… Read more

Who: Highlands County teachers and administrators, Southwest Florida Water Management District and Charlotte Harbor Environmental Center (CHEC) staff.What: Approximately 12 science teachers and school administrators are participating in a field study that focuses on the Peace River Basin. The two-day excursion includes a guided wading tour of the Charlotte Harbor Estuary, a discussion about the watershed led by a CHEC scientist, and a boat tour on the Peace River to conduct… Read more

Three Highlands County projects expected to reach up to 2,200 people were awarded Community Education Grants from the "Southwest Florida Water Management District(Southwest Florida Water Management District)":http://watermatters.org. These grants offer up to $5,000 to help fund projects that provide communities an opportunity to learn about water resources. This year the District awarded "35 grants Districtwide(2010 Community Education Grant Projects)":http://www.swfwmd.… Read more

Left: Maritza Rovira-Forino, Governing Board member and co-chair ex officio of the Hillsborough River Basin Board, joined students in the ribbon-cutting ceremony. Right: Tampa Mayor Pam Iorio spoke at the ribbon-cutting ceremony for the restoration project. In November, members of the District’s Governing Board and the Hillsborough County School Board joined Tampa Mayor Pam Iorio and Stewart Middle Magnet School students and faculty in celebrating a shoreline… Read more

Rainfall deficits remain in all 16 countiesThe Southwest Florida Water Management District’s Governing Board voted today to extend all Phase II and Phase III water restrictions.Despite some instances of short-term heavy rainfall this summer that caused temporary, localized flooding, all of the counties within the District still have rainfall deficits and water levels are already declining.The Board voted to continue the… Read more

The Southwest Florida Water Management District Governing Board Tuesday adopted Fiscal Year 2007 (FY2007) millage rates. The District’s millage rate remains the same as last year for the District’s General Fund. The millage rates for seven District Basin Boards also remain the same. The Coastal Rivers Basin Board lowered its millage rate.Downloadsample projects by county.For the… Read more

The "Southwest Florida Water Management District's(Southwest Florida Water Management District)":http://www.swfwmd.state.fl.us "Peace River Basin Board(Peace River Basin Board)":/about/basinboards/peace.php has partnered with the "Highlands Soil and Water Conservation District(Highlands Soil and Water Conservation District)":http://www.highlandsswcd.org/ to help homeowners improve the efficiency of their irrigation systems.The pilot project involves bringing a "mobile… Read more

table(webalert). |Who:|Conservation-minded volunteers and Southwest "Southwest Florida Water Management District(Southwest Florida Water Management District)":/ staff.||*What:*|"National Public Lands Day(National Public Lands Day)":http://www.publiclandsday.org/ volunteer cleanup event of the District's "Potts Preserve(Potts Preserve)":/recreation/areas/potts.html in Citrus CountyVolunteers will trim branches from walking trails and pick up trash in and around the River… Read more