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At the park dedication, Bo Rooks, Withlacoochee River Basin Board member, talked of how the partnership between the District and the civic association benefits everyone. Citrus County residents have a new park to visit thanks to a partnership between the District and the Withlapopka Civic Association. The Withlapopka Community Park, which is located within the District’s Flying Eagle Preserve in Floral City, was dedicated in April. During the dedication, Bo…

 Left: Jim W. Veal, Sr., George L. Buhmeyer and Phyllis Hanson-Moffitt unveiled the plaque that recognizes Evan A. “Billy” Merritt, David C. Hanson and the other Lake Panasoffkee Restoration Council members. Right: Attendees set off on a lake tour following the ceremony. District Board members and staff, as well as members of the Lake Panasoffkee Restoration Council, recently celebrated the completion of a ten-year project to restore Lake Panasoffkee. The…

A Southwest Florida Water Management District project will help a Hillsborough County farm reduce groundwater pumping.The project involves the use of an integrated irrigation system at Balaban Farms, LLC, located in the Hillsborough River watershed. The property drains predominantly to the west, where surface water enters Flint Creek and flows into the Hillsborough River. Hillsborough County is part of a designated water use caution area because it is experiencing…

The City of Clearwater is a step closer to producing almost all of its own water supply with the ground breaking of another reverse osmosis facility. District Governing Board member Todd Pressman joined city leaders this week at the ground breaking ceremony for the city’s second reverse osmosis water treatment plant. The new facility will treat up to 6.25 million gallons per day of brackish water using state-of-the-art technology to produce additional drinking water…

The Southwest Florida Water Management District and Pasco County recently signed an agreement for a project that will expand Pasco County’s reclaimed water system customer base and potentially save nearly 400,000 gallons of potable water per day.This project will connect the Shady Hills wastewater treatment facility to the Pasco County State Road 52 East/West Regional Reclaimed Water Interconnect, which is being designed to transport excess volumes of reclaimed water…

A devastating weather year led to the creation of the District and weather continues to guide the District’s policies and procedures during the last six decades. As the District celebrates its 60th anniversary this year, today’s water management decisions are strongly guided by the floods, freezes and droughts of the past. The District was founded in response to a destructive year of flooding in 1960 caused by a spring rainfall event that brought 27 inches of rain…

The "Southwest Florida Water Management District's(Southwest Florida Water Management District)":/ "Governing Board(Governing Board)":/about/governingboard Tuesday renewed a water use permit for the Tampa Bypass Canal Harney Canal Pump Station.The renewed permit allows "Tampa Bay Water(Tampa Bay Water)":http://www.tampabaywater.org to withdraw an average of 20 million gallons per day from the "Tampa Bypass Canal(Tampa Bypass Canal)":http://www.swfwmd.state.fl.us/recreation/…

The Southwest Florida Water Management District's Pinellas-Anclote River Basin Board has teamed up with the Tampa Bay Estuary Program, Pinellas County Animal Services, and the Humane Society of Pinellas to sponsor "Pooches for the Planet," which kicks off with an event this weekend.Started by the Tampa Bay Estuary Program, the campaign promotes proper disposal of dog waste to prevent water pollution. Just like human waste, dog waste poses a threat to both public health and…

The Southwest Florida Water Management District approved today an additional $2 million to complete an existing project that will maximize the use of reclaimed water resources in Pasco County.The Pasco County Wet Weather Reclaimed Water Reservoir project involves constructing a reservoir on 35 acres next to the Land O’ Lakes wastewater treatment facility. The reservoir will have the capacity to store up to 100 million gallons of reclaimed water.An extensive geological…

The District’s Governing Board voted today to declare a Phase II Water Shortage and implement one-day-per-week watering restrictions in the Tampa Bay area due to reduced river levels and increasing water supply concerns. The Governing Board enacted Phase II restrictions for lawn watering throughout Hillsborough, Pasco and Pinellas counties. The tighter restrictions begin Dec. 26 and take into account that the C.W. Bill Young Regional Reservoir is currently under…

When the Friendship Village Apartments recently were built in north Tampa, Carlene Dillard jumped at the chance to live there. “It is so nice and I’m just so happy here,” she said.  The new affordable housing for low and moderate-income residents was built by the Florida Home Partnership and is Hillsborough County’s first Florida Water Star℠ community. That means the entire complex met the requirements of the Florida Water Star℠ certification program by…

The Southwest Florida Water Management District (District) awarded $119,000 in grants to 65 schools within the District as part of the Splash! school grant program. The program provides up to $3,000 per school to enhance student knowledge of freshwater resources in grades K-12. Splash! grants encourage hands-on student learning through STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) activities as well as engagement of the greater school community through…

WhoThird- and fourth-grade Wildwood Elementary School students; Louise Ross, Director of Elementary Education for the Sumter County School Board; and Southwest Florida Water Management District Youth Education staffWhatDistrict Youth Education staff will visit a third- and fourth-grade class at Wildwood Elementary School to observe water education projects funded through its Splash! mini-grant program.Ms. Benachoice Caruthers third-grade students will demonstrate their…

At its August 19 meeting, the Southwest Florida Water Management District’s Peace River Basin Board adopted a fiscal year 2006 (FY2006) millage rate of 0.195 mill, which is the same as the current fiscal year.The budget for FY2006 is $13,321,519, which is an increase of $3,126,709 from the approved FY2005 budget. The increase in the budget is primarily due to an increase in property values, increases in funding from local governments for Cooperative Funding projects, and…

Citrus and Marion county residents will be treated to clean water events from Ocala to Crystal River during the upcoming Springs Awareness Week. The following events taking place during Springs Awareness Week are aimed at raising awareness about the health of the local springs and what people can do to protect them: h3. March 13–14, Ocala table(webalert). |What:|16th Annual Marion County Master Gardeners' Spring Festival. More than 140 plant-related vendors come together to…

2007 marks the 20th Anniversary of the Surface Water Improvement and Management ActThe Southwest Florida Water Management District Governing Board today passed a resolution announcing October 2007 “Surface Water Improvement and Management (SWIM) Month” to recognize 20 years of improving water quality and restoring habitats in 10 priority water bodies.In 1987, the Florida Legislature created the SWIM Act to protect, restoreand maintain Florida’s surface water bodies…

The Southwest Florida Water Management District (District) invites the public to a workshop on Wednesday, Jan. 8, 2020, at 5 p.m. at Polk’s Nature Discovery Center located at the Circle B Bar Reserve at 4399 Winter Lake Road in Lakeland. The purpose of the workshop is to allow for public comment on the proposed water reservation for Lake Hancock and Lower Saddle Creek. A water reservation defines a quantity of water set aside from the water use permitting process for the…

As the Southwest Florida Water Management District (District) continues its efforts to protect the Weeki Wachee River, the public should be aware they may see District staff and contractors working in and along the river, including the portion deemed a springs protection zone. …

The Southwest Florida Water Management District’s Governing Board last week adopted interim rules for water use permits in the Central Florida Coordination Area.The Coordination Area has limited traditional groundwater supplies that will not be adequate to meet all future demands, necessitating the need to develop alternative water supplies.The rules are part of the Action Plan that coordinates efforts among the Southwest Florida, South Florida and St. Johns River…

Jay Yingling, senior economist, Planning Department A District employee with more than 23 years of experience in water resource economics has taken the helm of the Florida Section of the American Water Resources Association (AWRA). Jay Yingling, a senior economist in the District’s Planning Department, was elected president of the Florida Section last year. “I became involved with the AWRA Florida Section because I was looking for an…