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At its June 15 meeting, the Southwest Florida Water Management District’s Hillsborough River Basin Board adopted a proposed fiscal year 2008 (FY2008) millage rate of 0.285 mill, which is the same as the current fiscal year.Further, the Basin Board authorized the executive director to recalculate its millage rate to reflect the mandated changes in revenue prescribed by the Legislature.The proposed budget for FY2008 is $17,609,836, which is a decrease of $3.46 million… 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. District leaders recently helped Marion County Utilities celebrate the expansion of the Oak Run Wastewater Reclamation Facility, which includes 20 miles of new pipeline, a new 1.6-million-gallon storage tank and removal of three smaller wastewater treatment plants.  The… Read more

The Southwest Florida Water Management District (District) invites the public to a workshop on Tuesday, June 13 at 5:30 p.m. at the Lake Aurora Christian Camp and Retreat Center located at 237 Golden Bough Road east of Lake Wales. The purpose of the workshop is to allow for public comment on the proposed minimum and guidance levels for Lake Aurora in Polk County.The Florida Legislature requires the District to set minimum flows and levels (MFLs) for priority water bodies… Read more

At its June 13 meeting, the Southwest Florida Water Management District’s Hillsborough River Basin Board adopted a proposed fiscal year 2007 (FY2007) millage rate of 0.285 mill, which is the same as the current fiscal year.The proposed budget for FY2007 is $18,453,013, which is an increase of $2,577,458 from the approved FY2006 budget. The increase is primarily due to proceeds from the sale of surplus land. FY2007 will run from Oct. 1, 2006, through Sept. 30, 2007.… Read more

At its August 17 meeting, the Southwest Florida Water Management District’s Hillsborough River Basin Board adopted a fiscal year 2005 (FY2005) millage rate of 0.285 mill, which is the same as the current fiscal year.The budget forFY2005 is $11,817,325, which represents an increase of $405,679 over the approvedFY 2004 budget. The increase in the budget is due to additional ad valorem property taxes resulting from new growth and increases in existing property values.FY… Read more

With the arrival of the holiday season, the Southwest Florida Water Management District has many gift and decorating ideas that can save and protect water resources and create new holiday traditions.Here are some gift ideas:* Rain barrels are a great way to conserve water and an inexpensive gift when you pick one up at a local extension office.* Compost bins provide nutrients for a garden and keep food scraps out of the garbage disposal. A garbage disposal uses up to 4… Read more

h2. *_Charlotte Harbor Shows Rebound After 2008 Decline_*Scientists with the "Southwest Florida Water Management District's Surface Water Improvement and Management (SWIM) Program(SWIM)":/projects/swim/ have recorded increases in seagrass presence in Lemon Bay, Sarasota Bay and Charlotte Harbor over the past two years.According to the "District's(Southwest Florida Water Management District)":/ 2010 seagrass mapping study, seagrass acreage in the three water bodies has… Read more

At its August 2 meeting, the Southwest Florida Water Management District’s Coastal Rivers Basin Board adopted a fiscal year 2006 (FY2006) millage rate of 0.235 mill, which is the same as the current fiscal year.The budget for FY2006 is $8,240,442, which represents an increase of $2,119,438 from the approved FY2005 budget. The increase in the budget is primarily due to an increase in property values, increases in funding from local governments for Cooperative Funding… Read more

To help lower lake levels and prevent flooding, the District recently partnered with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, the University of Florida Center for Aquatic and Invasive Plants and the Panavista Fish Camp to treat and remove hydrilla from the Lake Panasoffkee Outlet River in Sumter County. Water naturally flows out of Lake Panasoffkee to the Withlacoochee River through the Outlet River. Hydrilla, an invasive species, recently grew so dense… Read more

Water will now flow naturally between the Hernando pool of Lake Tsala Apopka and Potts Preserve thanks to a restoration project by the "Southwest Florida Water Management District(Southwest Florida Water Management District)":http://www.swfwmd.state.fl.us.The District removed more than 15,000 cubic yards of fill material at 15 locations to restore the historic natural flow patterns of water between the preserve's marsh and the lake system."We're glad to have this final stage… Read more

Seven springs restoration projects in Citrus and Hernando Counties will receive $12 million in state funding from Legacy Florida through the department’s Division of Water Restoration Assistance program. This funding is expected to leverage nearly $3 million in matching funds for a total of $15 million. The District’s projects are part of 35 springs projects across the state to receive more than $56.6 million  included in the 2016-17 “FLORIDA FIRST” budget,… Read more

The Southwest Florida Water Management District (District) will conduct an inspection of the Inglis Bypass Spillway water control structure located in Levy County on the Inglis Bypass Channel. The inspection has been scheduled to take place Tuesday, June 9. During that time, the water control gates will need to be partially or fully closed. Closings are anticipated to occur during daylight hours and for a duration not exceeding eight hours per closing. The channel… Read more

At its September 10 meeting, the Southwest Florida Water Management District’s Peace River Basin Board adopted a fiscal year 2005 (FY2005) millage rate of 0.195 mills, which is the same as the current fiscal year.The budget forFY 2005 is $10,194,810, which is a decrease of $5,839,024 from the approvedFY2004 budget. The decrease is due primarily to a reduction in Florida Forever funding for the Lake Hancock Outfall project, which was part of theFY 2004 budget.FY2005… Read more

J.D. Durham, behavioral specialist at Moore-Mickens Education Center, shows Mary Margaret Hull, lead communications coordinator, and Mary Alice Makoid, communications coordinator, the hydroponics garden her students built with funding from a mini-grant. District youth education staff recently visited more than 30 schools to observe student water resources projects developed with Splash! mini-grant funds. The District’s youth education sharing days are held… Read more

Six projects in the Manasota Basin were awarded Community Education Grants from the Southwest Florida Water Management District. The Manasota Basin includes Manatee and Sarasota counties. The grants, which are up to $5,000 each, will help fund projects that provide communities the opportunity to learn about water resources.This year the District awarded 49 grants Districtwide for a total of $171,444. This is the 10th year Community Education Grants have been available.The… Read more

The Southwest Florida Water Management District (District) is soliciting stakeholder input on the annual update of the Priority List and Schedule for the Establishment of Minimum Flows and Levels. A public meeting will be held at the District's Tampa Service Office, located at 7601 U.S. Highway 301 North on Thursday, Sept. 1 from 5:30 to 6:30 p.m. Minimum flows and levels (MFLs) are limits set by the District Governing Board for surface waters and groundwater. MFLs are… Read more

The Florida Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) approved adding three first-magnitude spring systems — Weeki Wachee River, Chassahowitzka River and Homosassa River — to the Surface Water Improvement and Management (SWIM) Program priority list.  The existing SWIM Program priority list includes two first-magnitude spring systems – Rainbow River and Crystal River/Kings Bay. The DEP approval brings all five of the District’s first-magnitude spring systems onto… Read more

Who:Southwest Florida Water Management District staff, Florida Restaurant and Lodging Association (FRLA) members, Florida Department of Environmental Protection staff, Progress Energy representatives, City of St. Petersburg representativesWhat:“Go Green See Green” workshop. These organizations have come together for the first time to educate members of the hotel/motel and restaurant industries on free programs they can take advantage of to… Read more

Five Polk County projects expected to reach up to 250,000 people were recently awarded Community Education Grants from the "Southwest Florida Water Management District(Southwest Florida Water Management District)":/.The overall goal of the Community Education Grant program is to actively engage adults in water-related issues including conservation, protection and preservation. Funded by the "District's Basin Boards(Basin Boards)":/about/basinboards/, the program is intended… Read more

The Southwest Florida Water Management District is announcing the recipients of the 2005 Community Education Grant Program. The grants, which are up to $5,000 each, will help fund projects that provide communities the opportunity to learn about water resources.This year the District awarded 29 grants Districtwide for a total of $107,667.The overall goal of the Community Education Grant Program is to actively engage adults in water-related issues pertaining to conservation,… Read more