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Mangroves are crucial to the health of the Charlotte Harbor estuary. They stabilize shorelines, prevent erosion during storms and provide perches for nesting seabirds. But their greatest contribution occurs when they shed their leaves, which sink and rot, supplying nutrients to a huge variety of microscopic creatures and forging links in a multitude of food chains. Falling at an average rate of 3.5 tons per acre, mangrove leaf litter sustains fungi, bacteria, protozoans…

The watershed includes a rich mosaic of natural habitats: hardwood swamps, pine flatwoods, sandhills, oak hammocks, salt barrens and cypress domes. Saw palmetto thrives in the watershed’s flatwoods and sandhills where the sandy soil is well-drained. It forms dense colonies with ground-hugging, serpentine trunks and clusters of green, fanlike fronds. A variety of trees also make their home here, including sweet gum, water locust, laurel oak, slash pine and the bald…

Polk County Utilities customers may be eligible for a $50 rain sensor rebate from the utility and the "Southwest Florida Water Management District(Southwest Florida Water Management District)":http://watermatters.org, which could save them up to 100 gallons of water per day. The District and Polk County Utilities have joined forces to offer rebates to Polk utility customers who add a rain sensor to their irrigation system. The rain sensor rebate is intended to help 1,295…

The "Southwest Florida Water Management District(Southwest Florida Water Management District)":/ and Pasco County are gathering input needed to address stormwater flooding in several subdivisions in the Cypress Creek watershed in southern Pasco County.The District and the county are in the initial stages of planning projects to help improve water quality and flood protection in the following areas:* Angus Valley* Circle Eight Acres* The Enclave* Fox Run* Foxwood* Lake…

According to the National Weather Service, parts of the Tampa Bay area are expected to have below freezing temperatures Sunday and Monday morning. This has prompted the Southwest Florida Water Management District to advise residents who live near Plant City and Dover and who have well pumps without automatic cutoff switches to turn off the pumps before temperatures dip. During a freeze or near-…

The "Southwest Florida Water Management District's(Southwest Florida Water Management District)":/ "Governing Board(Governing Board)":/about/governingboard Monday appointed Blake C. Guillory to serve as the District's executive director.Guillory replaces David L. Moore, who resigned on May 26. District General Counsel William S. Bilenky has been serving as interim executive director."This was a unanimous choice by the Board. Blake is the right person at the right time for…

The Southwest Florida Water Management District (District) received more than $2.4 million in funding from the Florida Department of Environmental Protection (FDEP) to assist with aquifer testing, feasibility, and preliminary design for the planned Southeast and West Polk Lower Floridan Aquifer (LFA) wellfields in Polk County. The projects are cooperatively funded between the District and the Polk Regional Water Cooperative (PRWC). Traditional water sources are nearing their…

Four rivers impressively emerge from the Green Swamp. They are the Hillsborough, Withlacoochee, Ocklawaha and Peace rivers. These rivers provide much of central Florida’s water supply. Check out these stats and visit our other virtual watershed excursions to learn more about these rivers.Hillsborough River 

• Total length: 55 miles
• …

h2. Project Will Improve Water Quality and Restore HabitatWork is under way to restore habitat and repair erosion along the banks of the Palm River in Tampa.The Palm River is part of the Tampa Bypass Canal, and flows from the District's S-160 Flood Control Structure, located just north of the Selmon Expressway, to the mouth of McKay Bay. During the construction of the Tampa Bypass Canal in the 1960s, the Palm River required significant dredging. In the 1970s, areas of…

h2. District to Answer Homeowner, Grower Questions on Freeze Management PlanThe "Southwest Florida Water Management District(Southwest Florida Water Management District)":/ will answer questions about new water use permitting rules for the Dover/Plant City area at a public open house 6 p.m. Tuesday, Aug. 23, 2011, at the Hillsborough Community College Trinkle Center, 1206 N. Park Road, Plant City.The District will present its "frost/freeze management plan and associated…

The "Southwest Florida Water Management District(Southwest Florida Water Management District)":/ is inviting the public to comment on proposed minimum levels for Lake Carroll in northwest Hillsborough County at a public workshop on *Wednesday, Nov. 16*. The workshop will be held from *6:30 to 8 p.m.* at the *Carrollwood Recreation Center*, 3515 McFarland Road, Tampa.The state Legislature requires the District to set minimum flows and levels (MFLs) for priority water bodies…

The Southwest Florida Water Management District (District) is gathering information to improve identification of flood prone areas in Marion County. The District will provide a virtual public comment period now through Jan. 1, 2026, at …

The "Southwest Florida Water Management District(Southwest Florida Water Management District)":/ is inviting the public to an informational meeting on the Chassahowitzka Headsprings Restoration Dredging project. The meeting will be held from 5 to 7 p.m. Monday, June 13, 2011 at Citrus County's Lecanto Government Building, 3600 W. Sovereign Path in Lecanto.The District is preparing to conduct a restoration dredging project on the Chassahowitzka Headsprings. The project is…

The "Southwest Florida Water Management District(Southwest Florida Water Management District)":/ has begun a nationwide search for a new executive director today following the resignation of "David L. Moore":/about/staff/moore.php last month.The District's "Governing Board(Governing Board)":/about/governingboard accepted Moore's resignation on Friday and appointed the District's General Counsel "William S. Bilenky":/about/staff/bilenky.html to serve as interim executive…

On Thursday, November 5, six Hidden Creek community families will receive the keys to their new water-conserving, affordable homes they helped to build.The Southwest Florida Water Management District has partnered with non-profit builder Florida Home Partnership, Inc. to certify these homes as part of the Florida Water StarSM Gold program. This voluntary certification program for builders encourages water efficiency in household appliances, plumbing fixtures, irrigation…

The "Southwest Florida Water Management District(Southwest Florida Water Management District)":/ is inviting the public to comment on proposed "minimum flows and levels(Minimum Flows and Levels)":/mfl (MFLs) for the Homosassa River and associated springs at a public workshop on Wednesday, Oct. 13. The workshop will be held from 6:30 to approximately 9 p.m. at the Homosassa Civic Club, 5530 S. Mason Creek Road in Homosassa.The state Legislature requires the District to set…

The "Southwest Florida Water Management District(Southwest Florida Water Management District)":/ is inviting the public to comment on proposed "minimum flows and levels(Minimum Flows and Levels)":/mfl (MFLs) for the Chassahowitzka River at a public workshop on Wednesday, Oct. 6. The workshop will be held from 6 to 8 p.m. at the "District's headquarters(Google map)":http://maps.google.com/maps?oi=map&q=2379+Broad+Street,+Brooksville,+FL+34604, 2379 Broad Street in…

h2. District's Cooperative Funding Initiative to Continue In order to increase efficiency of operations and reduce costs, the "Southwest Florida Water Management District's(Southwest Florida Water Management District)":/ "Governing Board(Governing Board)":/about/governingboard approved a resolution today to merge the budgets of "the District's eight Basin Boards(Basin Boards)":/about/basinboards/ into the Governing Board, while keeping a reduced "Cooperative Funding…

The "Southwest Florida Water Management District(Southwest Florida Water Management District)":/ is inviting the public to comment on proposed "minimum flows and levels(Minimum Flows and Levels)":/mfl (MFLs) for the Chassahowitzka River at a public workshop on Thursday, Dec. 16. The workshop will be held from 6 to 8:30 p.m. at Citrus County's Lecanto Government Building, 3600 W. Sovereign Path in Lecanto.The District has already held one public workshop on the Chassahowitzka…

The "Southwest Florida Water Management District(Southwest Florida Water Management District)":/ is inviting the public to comment on proposed minimum flows and levels (MFLs) for Gum Slough Spring Run and associated springs in northwestern Sumter County and southwestern Marion County at a public workshop on *Thursday, Nov. 17.* The workshop will be held from *6 to approximately 8:30 p.m.* at the *Marion Oaks Community Center,* 294 Marion Oaks Lane, Ocala.The state…