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History buffs can now get an up-close look at the artifacts recovered during the Chassahowitzka Springs Restoration Project. More than 700 artifacts were recovered during the District’s project, which removed sediments with a pump that had accumulated in the springs. Now, some of those artifacts are on display in a new exhibit at the Old Courthouse Heritage Museum in Inverness.  The “Changing People, Changing Springs: Chassahowitzka Discovered” exhibit… Read more

The Southwest Florida Water Management District is holding a workshop to gather the public’s input on how the Starkey Wilderness Preserve should be managed and used.The workshop will be held at the Starkey Environmental Education Center on Thursday, April 28 at 6 p.m. The environmental center is located at the Jay B. Starkey Wilderness Park, 10500 Wilderness Park Road in New Port Richey.The Starkey Wilderness Preserve encompasses more than 19,000 acres of land in… Read more

The Southwest Florida Water Management District is asking for the public’s input on updating the land management plan for the Starkey Wilderness Preserve.A workshop will be held at the Starkey Environmental Education Center on Thursday, April 28 at 6 p.m. The environmental center is located at the Jay B. Starkey Wilderness Park, 10500 Wilderness Park Road in New Port Richey.The Starkey Wilderness Preserve encompasses more than 19,000 acres of land in southwestern… Read more

The Southwest Florida Water Management District is opening its doors and welcoming those interested in helping protect the region’s water resources by hosting a career and internship fair at its Brooksville office. The District employs individuals and has internship opportunities from across a wide variety of disciplines, including administrative, business and finance, trades work, mechanical, heavy equipment operation, well drilling, natural sciences and engineering,… Read more

The Southwest Florida Water Management District is opening its doors and welcoming those interested in helping protect the region’s water resources by hosting a career and internship fair at its Tampa office. The District employs individuals and has internship opportunities from across a wide variety of disciplines, including administrative, business and finance, trades work, mechanical, heavy equipment operation, well drilling, natural sciences and engineering, and… Read more

Something special happened this November in the Green Swamp Wilderness Preserve. Thirteen of fourteen disabled hunters participating in a deer/hog hunt were successful. The event was organized by the National Wild Turkey Federation/Wheelin’ Sportsmen on land managed by the Southwest Florida Water Management District.The hunters harvested ten deer and seven wild hogs during the two-day event. One young man who battles the effects of cerebral palsy was successful in… Read more

Statewide Tracker System One of the reasons the state has been able to mobilize so efficiently to assist the victims of Hurricane Charley is the use of the State Emergency Operations Center (SEOC) Tracker System. The system, which operates as a database, was implemented to coordinate needs and resources more efficiently. It was created after Hurricane Andrew struck south Florida in 1992. The system is managed and updated by the SEOC, a part of the Division of… Read more

Excellence in Engineering District employee Bill Hartmann recently received a pat on the back from his peers. Hartmann, who is a member of the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE), was named the Government Engineer of the Year for 2002–2003. Hartmann was presented with the award at the annual dinner for the ASCE and the Florida Engineering Society. The award is for the ASCE’s Florida Section-Ridge Branch. There are about 100 members in the… Read more

Left: Rep. Richard Glorioso, R-Plant City; Robert Brown, Plant City Commissioner; Heidi McCree, Governing Board member; Hugh Gramling, Hillsborough River Basin Board member; Fred Johnson, former Hillsborough River Basin Board member; and Devon Higginbotham, Northwest Hillsborough Basin Board member, visited the McIntosh Park site. The District’s new Governing Board chair knew early in life that his future lay in the citrus industry. Born in Avon Park and… Read more

The "Southwest Florida Water Management District(Southwest Florida Water Management District)":http://www.swfwmd.state.fl.us "Governing Board(Governing Board)":/about/governingboard voted to begin the process of expanding an area in Eastern Hillsborough that requires special well construction standards to reduce the risk of private wells going dry during frost-freeze events.The special standard require restricted wells to be dug deeper than typical residential wells.… Read more

They tackled topics like aquatics and invasive species.  Hundreds of students from several counties recently participated in the 2016 Tampa Bay and Nature Coast regional envirothons. The competition is a problem-solving, natural resources education program for high school students allowing them to use critical-thinking skills to solve problems or conduct hands-on investigations about current environmental issues. This marked the 19th year the District sponsored… Read more

Dozens of paddlers recently joined the Florida Wildlife Corridor Expedition team on their excursion along the Rainbow River.  The District recently hosted the Rainbow River Paddle trail mixer in partnership with the expedition at Rainbow Springs State Park. Despite some chilly temperatures, more than 50 people came out to paddle in the event.  Before people launched their canoes and kayaks, they had a chance to meet the expedition team and some of the… Read more

The "Southwest Florida Water Management District":http://www.swfwmd.state.fl.us/ (District) will hold a Recreation Ad Hoc Committee meeting Thursday, May 30, at 9:30 a.m. The meeting will take place at the Tampa Service Office, located at 7601 U.S. Highway 301.The Recreation Ad Hoc Committee, made up of four Governing Board members, will provide guidance and review future staff recommendations. Staff will be evaluating the District's lands to determine whether the current… Read more

The Southwest Florida Water Management District will hold a Preliminary Evaluation CommitteeMeeting on Tuesday, December 19, at 12:00 p.m. (local time) to evaluate responses to RFP 24-4534Physical Risk Assessment. The committee members will discuss their review of the responses and mayselect a firm to award, select firms to be shortlisted for further evaluation, or reject all responses.

Public participation will be provided through online viewing or conference call options The Southwest Florida Water Management District’s Governing Board will hold its monthly meeting Tuesday, July 28, at 9 a.m. remotely. In-person attendance by Board members and staff will be limited in accordance with the directive in the Florida… Read more

_First test this Saturday, Oct. 3 at noon_The Southwest Florida Water Management District will begin monthly audible testing on Saturday, Oct. 3 of three sirens installed near the Edward Medard Park reservoir in southeast Hillsborough County.The audible testing will continue to occur the first Saturday of each month at noon to ensure these sirens perform properly. During testing, the sirens will sound for about 15 seconds and are expected to reach a two-mile radius.The… Read more

Southwest Florida Water Management District land managers plan to hold a series of hog hunts on District land this fall and winter to help reduce the wild hog population.Beginning at 9 a.m. on Oct. 12, prospective hunters can purchase permits for these hunts on the District’s web site at WaterMatters.org/hoghunts/. Permits will be available on a first-come, first-… Read more

Want to know if we’re catching up on the drought? How does the current drought compare to the historic drought of 2000-2001?A new Southwest Florida Water Management District web page provides information on long-term rainfall and river flows in west-central Florida.Color-coded charts and maps compare current rainfall and river flows to historical levels, illustrating the degree to which levels deviate from normal over the 16-county District.The District developed the… Read more

District staff moderated discussion sessions and presented studies during the 8th Biennial Conference on Stormwater Research and Watershed Management. The conference, which was held in late April, was co-sponsored by the District and the Florida Department of Environmental Protection (FDEP). The two-day conference provided a forum to discuss and debate a wide range of stormwater treatment and watershed management ideas and issues and provide initial peer review.… Read more

Throughout the year Southwest Florida Water Management District employees volunteer their time and donate money to help support a variety of charitable organizations, but the greatest support comes during the holiday season.The District’s employee committee coordinates the holiday season benevolent efforts, which begin in the fall with an auction to raise funds for the “adopt-a-family” program that helps employees, their families, and their friends and neighbors. Families… Read more