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The Southwest Florida Water Management District (District) has activated the Tampa Bypass Canal System due to anticipated heavy rains from Hurricane Milton to help protect the cities of Temple Terrace and Tampa from river flooding.The District is preemptively closing S-155 on the Hillsborough River before Hurricane Milton makes landfall to decrease freshwater discharge from the river into Tampa Bay during the forecasted historic storm surge and to minimize flood risks from… Read more

Area Returns to Phase III Water Restrictions In August the District’s Governing Board voted to reduce the water restrictions in the Tampa Bay Water service area from Modified Phase IV (or Critical) to Modified Phase III (or Extreme) for potable water use. The Board voted to ease the water restrictions because Tampa Bay Water has been able to store 8.3 billion gallons of water in the 15-billion-gallon C.W. Bill Young Regional Reservoir. However, District staff… Read more

The District Governing Board recently adopted policies to ensure that District funding is spent on water supply projects that are consistent with regional water supply goals and provide relief to stressed groundwater sources. In two separate decisions, the Governing Board detailed District funding requirements for water supply projects within water supply authority service areas and reaffirmed that it will not fund the construction of brackish groundwater supply projects… Read more

The Southwest Florida Water Management District is extending a water shortage emergency authorization that allows Tampa Bay Water to withdraw additional water from the Alafia River to continue to fill the C.W. Bill Young Regional Reservoir.As of Sept. 15, the reservoir had about 11.2 billion gallons in storage. When full, the reservoir stores approximately 15 billion gallons of water.The executive order, which was scheduled to expire Sept. 30, has been extended through Dec… Read more

The management of the Green Swamp involves the coordinated efforts of many different agencies and organizations. The District is the lead agency responsible for regulating, protecting, preserving, restoring and making available for public use the water resources and lands of the Green Swamp Wilderness Preserve.In many instances, public land in the Green Swamp is managed cooperatively by more than one agency, with assistance from volunteers and the private sector. The Fish… Read more

The Southwest Florida Water Management District (District) is reminding residents to check the timers on their irrigation system controllers this weekend, which is the beginning of daylight saving time. Saturday night is when we will turn our clocks ahead one hour. The time change is also a good time to make sure irrigation system timers are set correctly to ensure that the systems operate consistently with year-round water conservation measures. All 16 counties… Read more

The District does not control a dam on Lake Jovita in Pasco County and is not releasing water from Lake Jovita. Heavy rainfall from Hurricane Milton has caused extreme flooding in the region, but it is not related to the release of any water from the lake by the District. Please disregard misinformation being circulated on social media and share this post with your community so we can ensure accurate information is being shared. Media reports about the release of water are… Read more

The Central Florida Water Initiative (CFWI) Steering Committee recently accepted the amended Regional Water Supply Plan (RWSP) and the draft 2035 Water Resources Protection and Water Supply Strategies Plan (Solutions Plan). That action sends the documents to the Governing Boards of three central Florida water management districts for consideration. The RWSP charts a long-term course for water supply in Orange, Osceola, Polk, Seminole and south Lake counties through 2035.… Read more

The Southwest Florida Water Management District (District) is reminding residents who irrigate their lawns to “Skip a Week” or more of watering during the cooler months of January and February. According to research by the University of Florida, grass doesn’t need to be watered as often during the cooler months. One-half to three-quarters of an inch of water every 10–14 days is sufficient. In fact, if your lawn has received any significant rainfall, then you can turn… Read more

The Southwest Florida Water Management District’s Governing Board Tuesday approved an agreement between the District and the St. Johns River Water Management District that will provide uniform lawn and landscape irrigation measures throughout unincorporated Marion County. The measures address both drought and normal conditions.Marion County is divided between the two water management districts, with the boundary roughly being Interstate 75. The two agencies currently… Read more

 Chair McCree and her assistants demonstrate the water cycle at St. Mary's Episcopal Day School. Chair McCree used two volunteers, a cotton ball, water and a pan to demonstrate the water cycle. One student volunteer was the “sun,” while another held a cotton ball and was a “cloud.” The exercise showed the kindergarteners the process of evaporation, how rain is made and how water moves in a continuous cycle. Afterward, Chair McCree modeled water… Read more

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… Read more

The "Southwest Florida Water Management District(Southwest Florida Water Management District)":/ is reminding residents to check the timers on their irrigation system controllers this weekend, which is the end of Daylight Savings Time.Saturday night is when we will turn our clocks back one hour. The time change is also a good time to make sure your irrigation system timer is set correctly to ensure that your system operates consistently with current water restrictions.Under… Read more

Southwest Florida Water Management District Executive Director David Moore signed a water shortage emergency order (order 08-043 ) Thursday that will allow Tampa Bay Water to withdraw additional water from the Tampa Bypass Canal to help the City of Tampa meet its demand for potable water.Tampa relies primarily on its Hillsborough River Reservoir to meet the water needs of 656,000 residents. As of Oct. 14,… Read more

The Southwest Florida Water Management District (District) is reminding residents to check the timers on their irrigation system controllers this weekend, which is the end of daylight saving time. Saturday night is when we will turn our clocks back one hour. The time change is also a good time to make sure irrigation system timers are set correctly to ensure that the systems operate consistently with year-round water conservation measures. All 16 counties… Read more

At the water management conference Eric Draper, policy director for Audubon of Florida; Sen. Paula Dockery (R-Lakeland); Jerry G. Hill, Authority chair and DeSoto County Commissioner; and David L. Moore, District executive director, together. During the Annual Conference on Water Management in September, Audubon of Florida presented the Peace River/Manasota Regional Water Supply Authority (Authority) with a special award for using alternative water supply… Read more

District Extends Water Restrictions The Governing Board extended Phase I water shortage restrictions for the District’s entire 16-county area through Feb. 29, 2012, because of a disappointing summer rainy season and an approaching winter that is expected to be drier than normal. This means lawn and landscape watering remains limited to a two-day-per-week schedule, and residents may only water before 10 a.m. or after 4 p.m. Some local governments have stricter local… Read more

Southwest Florida Water Management District Executive Director David Moore modified a water shortage emergency order Wednesday that allows Tampa Bay Water to withdraw additional water from the Tampa Bypass Canal to help the City of Tampa meet its demand for potable water.The modified executive order, which is in effect until… Read more

Residents Urged to “Skip a Week” of Irrigation During Cooler Months The District’s Governing Board voted in December to modify the tightened turfgrass restrictions for Hillsborough, Pasco and Pinellas counties, which will allow builders to sod and residents to replace lawns under a specific set of conditions. The move comes after District staff met with members of the sod industry to discuss solutions to the extreme water shortage in the Tampa Bay area and the… Read more

The C.W. “Bill” Young Regional Reservoir is the result of the historic Partnership Agreement, which sought to reduce groundwater pumping in the regional wellfields by developing alternative water supplies. While much of the 1990s was characterized by the contentious “water wars” and the signing of the historic Partnership Agreement, the 2000s ushered in a decade of regional cooperation focused on solving the area’s greatest water supply challenges through the… Read more