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The "Southwest Florida Water Management District(Southwest Florida Water Management District)":http://www.swfwmd.state.fl.us and the "City of St. Petersburg(St. Petersburg)":http://www.stpete.org are offering city water customers a free sprinkler system checkup.City of St. Petersburg water customers who have an operating in-ground sprinkler system with a timer are eligible for the free program. Customers who irrigate with reclaimed, well or drinking water can apply for the… Read more

On Tuesday, the "Governing Board of the Southwest Florida Water Management District":http://www.swfwmd.state.fl.us/about/governingboard/ adopted a FY2014-15 millage rate of 0.3658 mill, four percent lower than the current fiscal year. For the owner of a $150,000 home with a $50,000 homestead exemption, the District tax would be $36.58 a year, or about $3.05 per month. The fiscal year runs from Oct. 1, 2014, through Sept. 30, 2015. The total FY2014-15 budget for the District… Read more

Discovering the District Members of the District’s Peace River Basin Board and District staff recently toured the Lake Placid wastewater treatment facility and saw firsthand where the town’s first reclaimed water lines will be installed. The District approved funding for this cooperative project between the District and the town of Lake Placid, which will ensure beneficial use of the town’s wastewater. The project is intended to supply highly treated wastewater for… Read more

State Sen. J.D. Alexander presented the Southwest Florida Water Management District’s Governing Board with a ceremonial check for $15 million for the District’s West-Central Florida Water Restoration Action Plan (WRAP.)Gov. Charlie Crist included WRAP in his budget request to the Legislature and Sen. Alexander and Rep. Bill Galvano carried the budget request successfully through the legislative process.“Without the support of the Governor, Senator Alexander… 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’s Governing Board approved minimum and guidance levels for six lakes in Pasco County.A minimum 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 a balance between meeting human water needs and those of Florida’s natural systems.Guidance levels are used to describe expected… Read more

At its August 11 meeting, the Southwest Florida Water Management District’s Alafia River Basin Board adopted a fiscal year 2006 (FY2006) millage rate of 0.240 mill, which is the same as the current fiscal year.The budget for FY2006 is $6,713,164 which is an increase of $2,151,447 from the approved FY2005 budget. The increase in the budget is primarily due to an increase in property values and revenue from the state’s newly created Water Protection and Sustainability Program… Read more

The Southwest Florida Water Management District’s Governing Board Tuesday concurred with an executive order issued earlier this month allowing Tampa Bay Water to augment the Hillsborough River Reservoir with water from the middle pool of the Tampa Bypass Canal.The Hillsborough River Reservoir is the City of Tampa’s main resource for providing potable water to approximately 520,000 residents. As of May 4, the reservoir was at 18.5 feet, a level that is normally… Read more

Governing Board member Todd Pressman recently attended the ribbon cutting ceremony for the City of Oldsmar’s reverse osmosis treatment plant. In 1998, the District provided financial support to the City of Oldsmar to investigate various alternative water supply projects so that it could reduce the water quantities imported from regional wellfields via Pinellas County Utilities and the City of St. Petersburg. The goal was to become self-sufficient in providing potable… Read more

Blog note: Projects and Partners is a WaterMatters Blog series that highlights various innovative projects of the District and its partners to benefit the community and water resources. They came from countries across the globe with one common mission…water.  The District recently hosted students from nearly two dozen countries to discuss water policy. The session, held at Crystal Springs Preserve, was part of the United Nations… Read more

A study of Flatford Swamp in Manatee County could lead to a project that could help improve groundwater levels, reduce saltwater intrusion and benefit the 3,000-acre habitat.District staff will conduct a feasibility study to recover groundwater levels by recharging millions of gallons per day of naturally-treated surface water from the swamp into the Upper Floridan aquifer. This is the most impacted area of the Southern Water Use Caution Area (SWUCA), a designation given to… Read more

The Southwest Florida Water Management District's Governing Board recently approved minimum flows (or MFLs) for both the Rainbow River and the Crystal River/Kings Bay systems. A minimum flow is the limit at which withdrawals will cause significant harm. Some recent guest editorials and letters have suggested the water management district arbitrarily sets these limits and offers a "blank check" to pump unlimited amounts of water out of the aquifer. In fact, MFLs are an… Read more

The District’s response team jumps into action to help the Suwannee River Water Management District with flooding in its area. (Photo courtesy Paul Buchanan) As Tropical Storm Debby churned in the Gulf of Mexico in June, it brought record rainfall, flooding and damage to various areas of the District. As part of the District’s core mission of flood protection, staff immediately responded to the needs of the community in a variety of ways. The… Read more

The Southwest Florida Water Management District’s Governing Board approved minimum and guidance levels for 11 lakes in Citrus, Levy and Sumter counties.Once approved, these levels will become part of the Florida Administrative Code and the District’s rules and will be used as guidelines in District permitting programs, for development of water resource projects, as information for development bordering lakes and in the management of water control structures.The… Read more

The Southwest Florida Water Management District Tuesday voted 7-4 to approve a settlement agreement with Tampa Bay Water that resolves a dispute over how much water a seawater desalination facility must produce. The agreement also promotes environmental restoration.This agreement allows the District and Tampa Bay Water to move forward with its partnership to ensure a sustainable water supply for the Tampa Bay area and expedite environmental recovery in areas where water… Read more

The Southwest Florida Water Management District (District) has activated the Tampa Bypass Canal System in response to heavy rains from Tropical Storm Debby to help protect the cities of Temple Terrace and Tampa from river flooding.The Hillsborough River has reached the activation criteria and the District has closed Structure S-155 as of 6 p.m. tonight. The Hillsborough Flood Detention Area (HFDA) is now considered activated, and the empty reservoir will begin to fill with… Read more

A familiar face is the District’s newest leader. Robert Beltran is now the District’s executive director. He replaces Blake Guillory who became the executive director of the South Florida Water Management District.  The Florida native and Polk County resident joined the District in March 2012 as the assistant executive director where he oversaw the District’s Regulation, Resource Management, Operations, and Maintenance and Construction divisions. Some of… Read more

On Friday, February 12, the "Southwest Florida Water Management District(Southwest Florida Water Management District)":http://watermatters.org will certify the first home in Hernando County to meet the criteria of the "Florida Water StarSM Gold(Florida Water Star Gold)":http://www.swfwmd.state.fl.us/conservation/florida_water_star_gold program. The District has partnered with Diamond Construction to certify the home in Hernando County's Riverdale neighborhood as part of the… Read more

At its August 11 meeting, the Southwest Florida Water Management District’s Northwest Hillsborough Basin Board adopted a proposed fiscal year 2006 (FY2006) millage rate of 0.268 mill, which is the same as the current fiscal year.The budget for FY2006 is $9,108,165, which is an increase of $3,064,078 over the approved FY2005 budget. The increase in the budget is primarily due to an increase in property values and revenue from the state’s newly created Water Protection and… Read more

The "Southwest Florida Water Management District":http://www.watermatters.org and the City of St. Petersburg are offering city water customers a free sprinkler system checkup.St. Petersburg water customers who have an operating in-ground sprinkler system with a timer are eligible for the free program. Customers who irrigate with reclaimed, well or drinking water can apply for the program. Properties previously evaluated as part of the program in 2006 or after are not… Read more