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Gov. Jeb Bush recently reappointed one member and appointed two new members to the Governing Board of the Southwest Florida Water Management District.*Todd Pressman of Clearwater was reappointed for a term beginning March 3, 2006 and ending March 1, 2010. He has served on the Governing Board since April 2005. Pressman is president of Pressman and Associates, Inc.*Sallie Parks of Palm Harbor was appointed to succeed Watson L. Haynes II, whose term expired March 1, 2006.… Read more

The Southwest Florida Water Management District is seeking public input about proposed minimum lake levels for Lake Panasoffkee, Lake Deaton, Lake Okahumpka, Lake Miona and Big Gant Lake in Sumter County.Minimum lake levels are established to protect lakes from significant harm due to water withdrawals from a lake or the groundwater system. The District Governing Board sets these limits as part of achieving a balance between meeting human water needs and those of Florida’s… Read more

A District staff member was recently recognized for his quick thinking when assisting a citizen, possibly saving a life. Alan Saxton, a senior heavy equipment operator for the District, received an Award of Excellence for his actions in August 2017. The Award of Excellence is a series of awards given internally to staff twice a year for contributing to the success of the District’s mission, vision, values and goals.  Saxton was leaving the Green Swamp… Read more

Gov. Jeb Bush recently reappointed one member and appointed three new members to the Governing Board of the Southwest Florida Water Management District.Edward W. Chance of Palmetto, retired, was reappointed for a term beginning April 14 and ending March 1, 2009. He has served on the Governing Board since September 2000.C. A. Neil Combee, Jr. of Lakeland was appointed to succeed Ronald C. Johnson whose term expired March 1, 2005. Combee is a cattleman and realtor with… Read more

The Southwest Florida Water Management District will be conducting “controlled, prescribed burns” during the months of October through December on the District’s Myakka River Project property. The property is located between I-75 and U.S. Hwy. 41 and between Myakka River and the North Port. The scheduled, managed burns are a part of routine maintenance of lands managed by the District. Approximately 1,000 acres of land may be burned in small, manageable… Read more

The Southwest Florida Water Management District will be conducting “controlled, prescribed burns” during January and February on the District’s Myakka River Project property. The property is located between I-75 and U.S. Hwy. 41 and between Myakka River and the North Port. The scheduled, managed burns are a part of routine maintenance of lands managed by the District. Approximately 1,000 acres of land may be burned in small, manageable units.According to… Read more

The Southwest Florida Water Management District (District) invites the public to a virtual workshop Wednesday, Sept. 27, at 5:30 p.m. The purpose of the virtual workshop is to allow for public comment on recommended minimum flows for Little Manatee River in Hillsborough County. These are the first minimum flows being established for this river system and will include both the upper (freshwater) and lower (estuarine) portions of the river.Members of the public may join the… Read more

table(webalert). |Who:|Students and staff from South Sumter High School, Wildwood Middle High School and field experts from the "Southwest Florida Water Management District(Southwest Florida Water Management District)":/ .||*What:*|Sumter County School District personnel and District field experts will engage 45 ninth-grade students in activities that integrate the use of technology tools with the collection and recording of data about the site. The highlights include… Read more

_Water Reuse Workshop to start at 9:00 a.m._The Southwest Florida Water Management District's Governing Board will hold its monthly meeting on Tuesday, October 25 at 11 a.m. The meeting will immediately follow an information workshop on reuse. Both meetings will take place at the District's Headquarters, located at 2379 Broad Street in Brooksville. To view the Governing Board meeting and workshop online, visit Watermatters.org and click on the "Live Video Stream" link. The… Read more

From left: Jason DiBattista, left, and Jeff Toth inspect irrigation systems at the District’s headquarters in Brooksville. Center: Kris Miller, a tradesworker in the Tampa service office, checks a microjet. Right: Steve Noble, a tradesworker in the Sarasota service office, inspects a conversion manifold filter. More District tradesworkers are versed in micro-irrigation technology after attending a training course in Tampa. Tradesworkers and other staff from… Read more

Today is National Camp Day and the perfect time to reflect on the ways we can connect with the great outdoors. Whether you’re an avid camper, a hiking enthusiast or simply looking for a peaceful retreat, the District offers a variety of natural spaces and activities to help you refresh and reconnect with nature.  The District provides numerous campgrounds, each… Read more

Executive Director Resigns Governing Board Chairman Ronnie Duncan received the call at 8:30 a.m. on Monday, Dec. 16. After six years at the helm, Sonny Vergara was resigning as executive director, effective Jan. 17. Duncan’s reaction: surprise, sadness, a “little gut wrenching.” It soon became clear to Duncan that Vergara had mountains left to climb. “Sonny is an extraordinary individual, one that thrives off of the challenge, that thrives off of the adrenaline… Read more

The "Southwest Florida Water Management District(Southwest Florida Water Management District)":/ is inviting the public to an open house about Lake Panasoffkee on Tuesday, Dec. 7. The workshop will be held from 4 to 7 p.m. at "Lake Panasoffkee Recreation Park(Lake Panasoffkee Recreation Park)":http://sumtercountyfl.gov/index.aspx?NID=207, 1582 CR 459, Lake Panasoffkee.The District is holding the open house to discuss the success of the restoration project as well as current… Read more

At its Aug. 12 meeting, the Southwest "Southwest Florida Water Management District's(Southwest Florida Water Management District)":http://www.swfwmd.state.fl.us Withlacoochee River Basin Board adopted a fiscal year 2011 (FY2011) millage rate of 0.23 mill, which is the same as the current fiscal year. The "Withlacoochee River Basin Board(Withlacoochee River Basin Board)":/about/basinboards/withlacoochee.php area covers portions of Citrus, Hernando, Levy, Marion, Pasco and… Read more

The Land Management Section of the "Southwest Florida Water Management District":http://www.swfwmd.state.fl.us/ (District) will be conducting prescribed burns during the months of June, July and August on the Deer Prairie Creek Preserve and neighboring Schewe Tract.Deer Prairie Creek Preserve, which is jointly owned and managed by the District and Sarasota County, lies between Interstate 75 and US Highway 41. The Schewe Tract, which lies north and south of Interstate 75 just… Read more

In October, the Southwest Florida Water Management District will celebrate the Hillsborough River and the Hillsborough River watershed with a series of events along the river.The District’s Hillsborough River Basin Board has declared the week of Oct. 20 through 27 as “Hillsborough River Watershed Awareness Week.” The participating city and county governments plan to recognize the week, which was modeled after a similar event in April that focused on the Peace River… Read more

SWIM Success Story An ugly duckling was transformed into a pollution-removing swan through a District Surface Water Improvement and Management (SWIM) project. The “ugly duckling” in this story was a Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) borrow pit that was turned into a stormwater pond to improve the water quality of 600 acres of runoff that flows into Tampa Bay. While the project may not sound like a big deal to someone who doesn’t know anything about… Read more

h2. Rate Reduced to Meet $108 Million Ad Valorem CapThe "Southwest Florida Water Management District(Southwest Florida Water Management District)":/ "Governing Board(Governing Board)":/about/governingboard Tuesday adopted its proposed fiscal year 2012 (FY2012) millage rate.The proposed FY2012 millage rate of 0.3928 mill takes into account the merger of the budgets of the District's eight Basin Boards into the Governing Board, and the $108 million cap on ad valorem… Read more

Guest speakers and songs will be featured at the 6th Annual Marion County Springs Festival, which is being held Saturday, Sept. 22, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at Silver River State Park.A variety of experts will speak about Florida’s springs and springs protection during the festival, including Chris Zajac, an environmental scientist with the Southwest Florida Water Management District. Zajac will talk about the District’s projects on the Rainbow River. Other… Read more

The Southwest Florida Water Management District Governing Board voted Tuesday to elect a new slate of officers for the 2019-2020 term. Mark Taylor was elected chair of the Governing Board. Taylor represents Hernando and Marion counties and is president of TTG Properties, Inc., a real estate management, investment and development firm. Taylor was appointed to the Governing Board in August 2016. Michelle Williamson was elected vice chair of the Governing Board.… Read more