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Sixteen Pasco County teachers are among the record number of educators who applied for and received Splash! mini-grants through the Southwest Florida Water Management District.This year the District awarded Splash! mini-grants to 209 educators totaling more than $413,000. That’s 72 more grant recipients than last year.Mary Margaret Hull, lead communication coordinator, attributes the increase in awardees to an increase in promotion among the District’s school… Read more

At its June 5 meeting, the Southwest Florida Water Management District’s Northwest Hillsborough Basin Board adopted a proposed fiscal year 2009 (FY2009) millage rate of 0.2421 mill, which is the same as the current fiscal year. The Northwest Hillsborough Basin Board area includes the northwest portion of Hillsborough County.This millage rate, combined with a reduction in taxable property values as estimated by the county property appraiser, will result in an estimated… Read more

Clay Black, District senior professional engineer, prepares students for the estuary test. For this high school field trip, students were asked to define anoxic, cite the life cycle of an oyster and know the salinity of brackish water. And that was just for starters. Those were a few of the topics covered when more than 270 high school students and teachers from Citrus, Hernando, Pasco and Sumter counties swarmed the Anclote River Park in… Read more

 Community leaders flip the switch on the new phase of the pipeline project. The Peace River Manasota Regional Water Supply Authority has completed another connection in its regional loop system, which greatly benefits the City of Punta Gorda. The agency recently dedicated the completion of the Phase 1A Interconnect Pipeline Project. The project spans the Peace River and includes nine miles of pipeline, a high-service pump station, and water storage to… Read more

The Southwest Florida Water Management District and the City of Crystal River recently signed an agreement for another project that will improve water quality within Kings Bay.The project will construct a stormwater treatment system for runoff from Crystal Center, a large commercial center located just west of the intersection of U.S. 19 and S.E. 5th Terrace. Untreated stormwater runoff from the center currently enters a canal that discharges directly into Kings Bay, which… Read more

The Southwest Florida Water Management District honored four outstanding Polk County water resources education projects. A total of 26 projects were recognized Wednesday during the “Partners in Watershed Education Conference” at the Crowne Plaza Tampa East Hotel.

• Johnna Martinez was recognized for her work with the Lakes Education/Action Drive program, which informed Polk County residents about water resource and water quality issues, as well as lake…

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Who: Stewart Middle School teachers and students, Tampa Mayor Pam Iorio, Councilwoman Linda Saul-Sena, former Southwest Florida Water Management District Governing Board member Sally Thompson and Southwest Florida Water Management District Board members and staffWhat: A ribbon-cutting ceremony will mark the beginning of a unique project between the District and Hillsborough County Public Schools at Stewart Middle School, which is located on… Read more

The Southwest Florida Water Management District is expanding the availability of reclaimed water to new residential developments through a new grant program aimed at builders and developers.The goal of the Grants for Reclaimed Irrigation Projects (GRIP) program, which was developed from a recommendation by the District’s Reclaimed Water Task Force, is to help offset the cost of installing reclaimed water distribution lines in new residential developments. Transmission… Read more

A multimillion-dollar cooperative project among three government entities is cleaning up a watershed that eventually empties into Tampa Bay. The creation of McIntosh Park began when Hillsborough County purchased the 400-acre plot through its Environmental Lands Acquisition and Protection Program (ELAPP) for Plant City. The land is adjacent to the downstream segment of the Eastside Canal, which was built in the late 1930s to drain the 6,000-acre Eastside Canal… Read more

The Southwest Florida Water Management District’s Governing Board today celebrated two District projects that received an Award of Excellence at the Hillsborough County Planning Commission 26th Annual Community Design Awards. The Community Design Awards recognize projects that contribute to the quality of life in Hillsborough County.Both projects were managed by the Surface Water Improvement and Management (SWIM) Program.Newman Branch Creek Habitat Restoration… Read more

Gov. Charlie Crist recently reassigned one member and appointed two new members to the Governing Board of the Southwest Florida Water Management District.

• Judy Whitehead of Brooksville was reassigned to succeed Patsy C. Symons. Last year the state legislature reassigned Symons’ seat to represent Hernando and Marion counties and added two new seats to the Governing Board for a total of 13 members. Whitehead, the owner of Residential Appraisal Service, was first…

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Funding will help restore water quality and natural systems, and create sustainable water supplies in the Southern Water Use Caution AreaGovernor Charlie Crist and Lieutenant Governor Jeff Kottkamp released their 2008-09 budget recommendations today, which included $25 million for the Southwest Florida Water Management District’s West-Central Florida Water Resource Action Plan (WRAP.)The WRAP is a long-term water resource protection, restoration and water… Read more

Who:Representatives from the Southwest Florida Water Management District’s Alafia River Basin Board, the District’s Surface Water Improvement and Management (SWIM) program, Tampa Electric Company, Protecting the Environment through Ecological Research (PEER,) the Pinellas County Environmental Fund and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)What:Volunteers will participate in planting 6,000 marsh grass and upland plants before a tree planting… Read more

Tampa Mayor Pam Iorio is planning to proclaim March 10 “Florida-friendly Landscaping Day.”This proclamation will take place in the Mayor’s office on Monday, Feb. 5 at 2:30 p.m. It is being made in conjunction with the Florida Yard Fandango, a Florida-friendly gardening event being held March 10, from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.This is the second year homeowners and gardening enthusiasts are invited to “play in the dirt” at the Museum of Science and… Read more

In celebration of Water Conservation Month, the Southwest Florida Water Management District is bringing its water conservation restrooms to the Sharks Tooth Festival. The event is being held April 7-9 near Venice.Community festivals allow the District to spread the word about water conservation to a variety of audiences by bringing the comforts of a private, water-conserving bathroom to a variety of people.“The water conservation restroom trailer is a practical and… Read more

Hotels and motels in both Hillsborough County and the City of Tampa saved 35 million gallons of water during 2004 while participating in the Southwest Florida Water Management District water conservation program known as Water C.H.A.M.P. or Water Conservation Hotel and Motel Program.Based on City of Tampa and Hillsborough County potable water rates, that translates into more than $180,000 in savings per year to participating hoteliers.The Water C.H.A.M.P. is a “linens… Read more

The Southwest Florida Water Management District (District) Governing Board recognized Earnie Olsen of Citrus County as one of this year’s springs community partners at its May Governing Board meeting. Olsen is the supervisor of the Marine Science Station in Crystal River and has taught at the center since 2008. Olsen and his staff lead daily field trips, taking Citrus County students by… Read more

Who: Representatives from the Southwest Florida Water Management District and the City of InvernessWhat: The city is holding a groundbreaking ceremony to celebrate the start of construction on a reclaimed water transmission line. This $2 million project is being funded by the District’s Withlacoochee River Basin Board and the city.When: Monday, Feb. 4, 5 p.m.Where: The Inverness Wastewater Treatment Plant, located at 3900 S. Florida Ave., Inverness.Why: The District and the… Read more

Expansion will protect natural resources from rapid growthThe Southwest Florida Water Management District Governing Board approved a rule amendment on Tuesday that will expand the Northern Tampa Bay Water Use Caution Area (NTBWUCA) into the portions of Pasco and northeastern Hillsborough counties not currently in the WUCA to address increasing water use due to rapid growth and development in the area.In 1989, the Governing Board declared portions of northern… Read more

The Southwest Florida Water Management District Governing Board today approved a project that will reduce groundwater pumping and stormwater runoff at Parke Family Hydrofarm.The project involves building a half-acre tower hydroponic section. Tower hydroponics is a farming method that involves planting crops in containers and using drip irrigation to deliver water and nutrients to the center of the stacked containers so each plant’s roots are sufficiently saturated.… Read more