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At a time when most news reports about the economy are negative, a District program is providing a boon to the local economy. A project funded through the District’s Facilitating Agricultural Resource Management Systems (FARMS) Program, a cost-share reimbursement program that conserves water and improves water quality, created work for ten local contractors and subcontractors. The project involved the design, permitting and construction of a five-acre surface water…

Three Citrus County projects expected to reach up to 167,000 people were awarded Community Education Grants from the "Southwest Florida Water Management District(Southwest Florida Water Management District)":/. This year the District approved 29 grants Districtwide for a total of $120,471. This is the 14th year "Community Education Grants(Community Education Grant program)":/business/communitygrants have been available. These grants offer reimbursement up to $5,000 to help…

Improving communication between the District and the more than 190 public supply utilities in the region is the focus of a new utility outreach program that officially kicked off this summer. This outreach program provides tremendous benefit to utilities by offering District tools, programs and resources that can help them meet the District’s regulatory requirements, conserve water and save money. The need for strengthened communication was identified last year…

A project funded by the Southwest Florida Water Management Districts Pinellas-Anclote River Basin Board and the City of Clearwater will improve water quality, reduce erosion and increase flood protection along the Stevensons Creek Watershed.The watershed encompasses an area of approximately 10 square miles in western Pinellas that includes the cities of Dunedin and Clearwater.This multi-year project will allow the implementation of the Best Management Practices (BMPs)…

Southwest Florida Water Management District Executive Director David L. Moore today declared a modified Phase II Severe Water Shortage which restricts lawn watering to one-day-per-week throughout the 16-county District.The restrictions apply to the use of water from public and private water utilities as well as the use of all wells and surface water sources (ponds, rivers, etc.). The order goes into effect January 16 and remains in place until July 31 unless otherwise…

Charlotte Harbor has about 985 acres of seagrass beds, according to the 2014 seagrass mapping study by the District’s Surface Water Improvement and Management (SWIM) program. The District’s study results show Charlotte Harbor now supports 19,896 acres of seagrass beds. That’s the largest amount of seagrass measured since 1996.  Seagrasses are an important barometer of a bay’s health because they require relatively clean water to flourish, thus they are…

Check for LeaksLeaks inside your toilet can waste up to 200 gallons per day. Some leaks are silent, some produce a running water sound and others may be visible as a small trickle running from the rim to the water in the bowl.To detect silent leaks, remove toilet tank lid and any colored cleaning agents. Make sure there is only clear water in the bowl to start. Add dye tablets, leak detector fluid or a few drops of food coloring to the tank. If the tank is leaking, color…

The Southwest Florida Water Management District (District) is prohibiting campfires and other sources of open flames on District conservation lands in conjunction with numerous county burn bans and dry conditions. Lack of rainfall this spring has made grasses and other light vegetation extremely dry and volatile, increasing the potential for wildfires. Burning is thereby prohibited on these District properties with camping until sufficient rains occur and county burn bans…

table(webalert). |*Who:*|Representatives from "Keep Manatee Beautiful(Keep Manatee Beautiful)":http://www.manateebeautiful.com/, the "Florida Department of Environmental Protection(Florida Department of Environmental Protection)":http://www.dep.state.fl.us and the "Southwest Florida Water Management District's(Southwest Florida Water Management District)":/ Surface Water Improvement and Management (SWIM) Program staff and volunteers.||*What:*|As part of the 25th annual…

The District adopts plans to ensure its public conservation lands are used and managed in ways that are consistent with Florida Statutes and the District’s mission.Land Use and Management PlansDistrict lands are open to the public and community input is vital in determining how these lands are managed and used. Each of the following plans includes the natural resource and public use strategies and objectives established for these lands over the 10-year period for…

Doris Heitzmann, a horticulturist and community outreach coordinator with the Pinellas County Extension office, evaluates the landscape at Venetian Bay. Members of the Venetian Bay Homeowners Association (HOA) wanted to do their part to conserve water, so they looked to the City of St. Petersburg and the Pinellas County Extension office for help. The Venetian Bay community consists of 22 waterfront and 51 nonwaterfront townhomes in St. Petersburg. In August…

In addition to flow from springs, the Withlacoochee River also receives water from several tributaries. The most notable are the Little Withlacoochee River, Gum Slough, Jumper Creek and the Outlet River from Lake Panasoffkee.Several lakes, including Lake Panasoffkee, Tsala Apopka and Lake Rousseau, are also key features that affect river flows. Along with the Withlacoochee and Rainbow rivers, these lakes are all designated Outstanding Florida Waters by the State of Florida.…

The purpose of the Green Industry Advisory Committee (GIAC) is to provide professional and technical input into District programs and activities.This includes regulatory programs, rule revisions, water conservation activities, water resource planning, water resource and supply development projects, research and other water resource management projects that relate to the Green Industry.Subject matter considered by the GIAC shall relate to the statutory duties and…

Brian Armstrong was appointed as the executive director of the Southwest Florida Water Management District in June 2016.Armstrong had previously served as the District’s assistant executive director where he provided daily oversight of three Divisions and more than 400 staff. As the assistant executive director, Armstrong introduced Six Sigma principles to the District creating a program to successfully reduce waste and unnecessary processes, saving money and time;…

Two Citrus County projects that are expected to reach approximately 31,000 people were awarded Community Education Grants from the Southwest Florida Water Management District. These grants provide up to $5,000 to help fund projects that provide communities an opportunity to learn about water resources.This year the District awarded 38 grants Districtwide for a total of $136,598. This is the 11th year Community Education Grants have been available.The overall goal of the…

Northeast of the recently-restored Lake Panasoffkee, a wetland forest of freshwater marshes rises to the pine flatwoods and scrub oaks of upland sandhills to form the vast floodplain forest of the District’s Lake Panasoffkee property. The 9,911-acre property was acquired by the District to preserve the floodplain forest. Thick marsh vegetation prevents access to the lake from the property, but the property has a lot to offer. Visitors will find a large pavilion,…

Southwest Florida Water Management District Executive Director David Moore signed two water shortage emergency orders last week that will allow the City of Tampa to withdraw additional water from Sulphur Springs and Tampa Bay Water (TBW) to withdraw additional water from the Tampa Bypass Canal to help meet the potable water demand of its member governments.Ongoing drought conditions have caused an acute water shortage within the region, so emergency actions are necessary to…