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Basin Board: Manasota Basin Board Term: First appointed March 26, 2001. Currently in her third term, which expires March 1, 2010 Occupation: Land Planner Current residence: Manatee County Hometown: Saginaw, Michigan Reason you applied to be a Basin Board member: Opportunity to get involved in one of the most important planning issues…

Judy Whitehead, Governing Board chair, presents the outgoing chair, Jerry Rice, with a plaque honoring his service to the District. The District’s Governing Board recently recognized the outgoing chair, Talmadge G. “Jerry” Rice, for his dedication to public service as a member of the Governing Board and the Withlacoochee River Basin Board. “Throughout the years I worked with Jerry on the Board, I had the pleasure of spending a lot of time…

 Photo left: Monica Dorken is ready with a bucket as Susan Harris, Hill-Gustat Middle School seventh- and eighth-grade teacher, holds a puffer fish she captured during their wading tour as Liz Abell, Sun ’n Lake Elementary fourth-grade teacher, looks on. Photo right: Monica Dorken, Charlotte Harbor Environmental Center educator/program coordinator, checks to see what Dorothea Strickland, K–12 science resource teacher, caught in her net. Highlands County…

The Southwest Florida Water Management District, St. Johns River Water Management District and South Florida Water Management District have scheduled a virtual joint public meeting at 10 a.m. on Friday, September 1, to solicit stakeholder input on each District’s annual update of their priority list and schedule for the establishment of minimum flows and water levels as well as water reservations.Participants can join the virtual meeting at…

To see how staff are cleaning up District managed properties click here. Feel free to use this video on your website or newscasts. The Southwest Florida Water Management District (District) has reopened the majority of District-managed lands throughout its 16-county region. The Districted closed all District-managed lands in September in anticipation of flooding and other…

Above left: A certified custom riverfront home in Hernando County. Right: Governing Board Member Ron Oakley, right, and Pasco County Commissioner Ted Schrader, left, help Ricky Chiles break ground on a Florida Water Star℠ Gold home. The Florida Water Star℠ Gold (FWSG) program is certifying more homes and getting more builders involved in the…

Sebring Homeowners Get Irrigation Recommendations The District’s Peace River Basin Board partnered with the Highlands Soil and Water Conservation District to help homeowners improve the efficiency of their irrigation systems. The pilot project brought a mobile irrigation lab to homeowners residing in the city of Sebring. The lab is evaluating residential irrigation systems and developing customized recommendations on irrigation equipment, management…

Parcels With No Water Resource Benefits May Be Offered for Sale The District is hoping to increase efficiencies and save taxpayer dollars by returning surplus parcels of land to the private sector. The Governing Board asked staff members to assess the District’s land holdings, looking for properties that may not be needed. The District protects more than 436,000 acres of land within its boundaries. District lands include natural floodplains, aquifer recharge areas…

Students at All Saints Academy in Polk County got to experience the water cycle first-hand on a recent rainy-day field trip to Circle B Bar Reserve in Lakeland. The rain didn’t prevent the fourth- and fifth-grade students from enjoying their field trip. And instead, they used the opportunity to set up their rain gauges. The field trip is funded by the District.  Students also hiked through the property stopping to test water quality and use dip nets to examine…

*WHO:* Secretary Herschel T. Vinyard, Jr., Department of Environmental Protection State Representative Jimmie T. Smith, District 43 Chairman Carlos Beruff, Southwest Florida Water Management District Dennis Damato, Citrus County Commission, District 1*WHAT:* The Chassahowitzka Springs sediment removal project began in May 2013 and resulted in the removal of approximately 3,000 cubic yards of material from the…

About 70 volunteers recently spent a morning cleaning invasive algae out of Weeki Wachee Springs in Hernando County. The volunteer event was a coordinated effort by the District and local rotary clubs to remove a blue-green algae known as Lyngbya. This event was part of a long-term maintenance plan for a District restoration project completed in 2009 designed to help keep the river healthy. While not all algae are bad, this quick spreading species can rapidly invade…

Public meetings scheduled this monthThe Southwest Florida Water Management District will begin monthly audible testing in October of three sirens installed near the Edward Medard Park reservoir in southeast Hillsborough County.The sirens were installed as an additional safety procedure for the unlikely event of an emergency that could result in the failure of the reservoir’s dam. The 700-acre reservoir is part of Edward Medard Park, a popular recreation area located…

Who: Approximately 100 children from the Boys & Girls Club of Hernando County and Southwest Florida Water Management District staffWhat: The District is coordinating a field trip at the Weekiwachee Preserve for children who attend the Boys & Girls Club of Hernando County. The youth will learn about land management techniques by seeing staff demonstrate a variety of equipment they use in the field.They will also participate in a guided hike, a watershed education…

The Citrus County Task Force is inviting the public to a stakeholders conference to discuss Citrus County water resources.The conference is being held Saturday, May 19, from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. in the Citrus Springs Community Center, located at 1570 W. Citrus Springs Blvd. in Citrus Springs.During the conference representatives from the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, Florida Department of Environmental Protection, Florida Department of Transportation, Citrus…

In an effort to promote increased water conservation during the ongoing drought, the Southwest Florida Water Management District will bring its water-conserving restroom to several area festivals and events.The first event will be this weekend’s Tampa Bay Black Heritage Festival, which is being held at Al Lopez Park in Tampa.“The District encourages year-round water conservation,” said Melissa Roe, project manager for the District. “But as the region…

Who: Approximately 70 children from the Boys & Girls Club of Hernando County and Southwest Florida Water Management District staffWhat: The District is coordinating a field trip at the Weekiwachee Preserve for children who attend the Boys & Girls Club of Hernando County. The youth will learn about land management techniques by witnessing a controlled burn demonstration and seeing staff demonstrate a variety of equipment they use in the field.They will also…

Funding will help restore water quality and natural systems, and create sustainable water supplies in the Southern Water Use Caution AreaThe Florida Legislature passed the 2008-09 budget, including $15 million for the Southwest Florida Water Management District's West-Central Florida Water Restoration Action Plan (WRAP.)More than 1.5 million people in this region will benefit from water supply development and environmental restoration in the Southern Water Use…

A project funded by the Southwest Florida Management District and the city of Belleair Beach will reduce flooding and improve water quality.The project will upgrade the city’s stormwater management system near 12th Street. The roadways and stormwater infrastructure in the area were built before current water quality programs so the area experiences heavy sediment and pollution loading from Gulf Boulevard. The sediment-laden runoff flows directly into an outfall pipe…

The Southwest Florida Water Management District is seeking public input about the order in which minimum flows and levels (MFL) for lakes, rivers, streams and aquifers in the District will be determined.A minimum flow or level is the limit at which further water withdrawals will cause significant harm to the water resources and/or environment. The District Governing Board sets these limits as part of achieving the delicate balance between meeting human water needs and those…

The Southwest Florida Water Management District recently recognized four Manatee County projects as outstanding school, community grant or volunteer programs that focus on water resources education. A total of 52 projects were recognized during the October 7 Reflect, Connect, Celebrate Water Resources Education Conference at the Brooker Creek Preserve Environmental Education Center in Tarpon Springs.To select the awardees, District staff reviewed grants applied for by…