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Ronald E. Oakley was elected today by his peers to serve as Governing Board chair of the "Southwest Florida Water Management District(Southwest Florida Water Management District)":http://www.swfwmd.state.fl.us.Other "Governing Board(Governing Board)":/about/governingboard officers selected today include Hugh M. Gramling, vice chair; H. Paul Senft Jr., secretary, and Douglas B. Tharp, treasurer."Chair Ronald E. Oakley(Ronald E. Oakley)":/about/governingboard/profiles/… Read more

All Southwest Florida Water Management District (District) offices will be closed Thursday, Nov. 10, due to potential impacts from Tropical Storm Nicole. District offices are scheduled to be closed Friday for Veteran’s Day. Information regarding District-related meeting cancellations will be provided to the media and made available on the District’s website at… Read more

The Southwest Florida Water Management District (District) announced changes to rules governing camping reservations on District lands after the draft rules were submitted to the Florida Legislature during the 2021 legislative session. These rules went into effect June 23 and will be enforced beginning Oct. 1, 2021. The updated rules provide more fair opportunities for all users and create greater consistency with the other water management districts. Some changes to… Read more

In order to increase efficiency of operations and reduce costs, the Governing Board approved a resolution to merge the budgets of the District’s eight Basin Boards into the Governing Board’s budget, while keeping a reduced Cooperative Funding Initiative to fund regional projects. The District’s eight Basin Boards provided guidance for local programs and projects that were specific to the watershed basin they protected. Through the Cooperative Funding Initiative, the Basin… Read more

The Southwest Florida Water Management District (District) is gathering information to improve identification of flood prone areas in Sumter County. Residents living in the Jumper Creek watershed are invited to attend an open house on Thursday, April 12 at 4 p.m. The meeting will take place at the Sumter County Fairgrounds, located at 7620 SR 471 in Bushnell. District representatives will present preliminary data for flood prone areas, explain the basis behind the… Read more

The Southwest Florida Water Management District will be conducting "controlled, prescribed burns" during December, January and February on the Flatwoods Park and Oak Ridge Equestrian areas of the District's Lower Hillsborough Wilderness Preserve in Hillsborough County.The Lower Hillsborough Wilderness Preserve is located just south of Morris Bridge Road and just east of I-75, approximately three miles northeast of Temple Terrace. Approximately 700 acres of land will be… Read more

Governor Charlie Crist recently reappointed Jack Bispham and Frank Strelec to the Southwest Florida Water Management District’s Manasota Basin Board.Paul J. “Jack” Bispham is the owner of Bayside Sod and lives in Sarasota. His term ends March 1, 2011.Frank E. Strelec is a retired attorney who lives in Sarasota. His term ends March 1, 2011.The Manasota Basin Board area includes Manatee and Sarasota counties.The District has seven regional Basin Boards that… Read more

The Southwest Florida Water Management District (District) is celebrating February as Florida Hiking Trails Month by inviting the public to explore the more than 850 miles of hiking trails on District lands. Florida Hiking Trails month, recognized by the Florida Department of Environmental Protection, encourages Floridians to take advantage of Florida's extensive trail system. Many trails on District lands are nearby and are also open for related activities such as nature… Read more

The Southwest Florida Water Management District will be conducting “controlled, prescribed burns” during June, July and August on the District’s Jack Creek property in Highlands County.The property, which is in the Leisure Lakes area, is approximately one mile west of U.S. Hwy. 27, three miles south of S.R. 66 and six miles northwest of Lake Placid. The scheduled, managed burns are a part of routine maintenance of lands managed by the District.… Read more

The Southwest Florida Water Management District will be conducting “controlled, prescribed burns” during the remaining days of August and September on the Deep Creek property in DeSoto County.The site is approximately three to four miles north of the Kings Highway on-ramp to Interstate 75. The parcel is east of the Kings Highway and north of the Deep Creek subdivision. Approximately 700 acres of land will be burned in small, manageable units. The scheduled,… Read more

The Southwest Florida Water Management District will be conducting “controlled, prescribed burns” during the remaining days of August and September on the District’s Jack Creek property in Highlands County.The property, which is in the Leisure Lakes area, is approximately one mile west of U.S. Hwy. 27, three miles south of S.R. 66 and six miles northwest of Lake Placid. The scheduled, controlled burns are a part of routine maintenance of lands managed by… Read more

The "Southwest Florida Water Management District(Southwest Florida Water Management District)":/ is gathering input needed to improve identification of flooding risks in the areas surrounding 17 lakes in Highlands County.The District is serving as a cooperating technical partner for the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) on its national effort to update and modernize the FEMA Flood Insurance Rate Maps (FIRMs). Most of the current FIRMs are 10 to 30 years old and are… Read more

Whether your favorite outdoor activity is camping, kayaking, hiking or horseback riding, the District has the place for you to get outside and do your thing. The District owns a variety of properties that include more than 343,000 acres of land open for public recreation. And while about 2.5 million people visit these properties each year, many people don’t realize these recreational opportunities are located just minutes from their homes. That’s why WaterMatters… Read more

The Southwest Florida Water Management District's Aquifer Resource Weekly Update provides information to the public about the health of the water resources.Aquifers are underground layers of rock and sand that hold water. In southwest Florida, more than 80 percent of the water supply comes from aquifers.The Aquifer Resource Weekly Update contains two sections: Aquifer Levels and Rainfall. Levels and rainfall are provided for three regions: north (Citrus, Hernando, Lake, Levy… Read more

The Southwest Florida Water Management District's Aquifer Resource Weekly Update provides information to the public about the health of the water resources.Aquifers are underground layers of rock and sand that hold water. In southwest Florida, more than 80 percent of the water supply comes from aquifers.The Aquifer Resource Weekly Update contains two sections: Aquifer Levels and Rainfall. Levels and rainfall are provided for three regions: north (Citrus, Hernando, Lake, Levy… Read more

The Southwest Florida Water Management District's Aquifer Resource Weekly Update provides information to the public about the health of the water resources.Aquifers are underground layers of rock and sand that hold water. In southwest Florida, more than 80 percent of the water supply comes from aquifers.The Aquifer Resource Weekly Update contains two sections: Aquifer Levels and Rainfall. Levels and rainfall are provided for three regions: north (Citrus, Hernando, Lake, Levy… Read more

Governor Rick Scott appointed two new board members to the District’s Governing Board and also re-appointed a board member. Mark Taylor and Michelle Williamson were appointed to the board. Taylor represents Hernando and Marion counties and Williamson represents Hillsborough County. Taylor, 57, of Brooksville, is the president of TTG Properties Inc. Taylor received his bachelor’s degree from the University of Florida. He is appointed for a term from Aug. 26, 2016… Read more

The Governing Board declared April Springs Protection Awareness Month at today’s Governing Board meeting. The move is part of the District’s ongoing effort to restore and protect area springs and encourage community involvement.  The Governing Board also recognized the Springs Coast Steering Committee, which is made up of members of local, regional and state agencies. One of their main goals is to develop management plans tailored for each spring system to identify… Read more

Long Distance Assistance As of Friday morning, August 13, Hurricane Charley was still projected to strike the Tampa Bay area. That’s when Garry Flood’s supervisor, Dale Ravencraft, asked him to travel to Tallahassee and serve in Florida’s State Emergency Operations Center (SEOC). “I had to leave my wife and two teenage kids here in order to help out,” said Flood. “It was a hard situation, but I just had to pray that they would be safe while I went to help other… Read more

Clearwater Mayor Frank Hibbard calls it “another gem in the crown of Clearwater,” but Kapok Park wasn’t always a beautiful public green space, home to roseate spoonbills, wood storks, sandpipers and many other shorebirds. In December, Representative Gus Bilirakis joined members of the District’s Governing and Pinellas-Anclote River Basin boards, along with the Clearwater mayor and several city staff members, in celebrating the completion of a $19.3 million floodplain… Read more