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The Southwest Florida Water Management District will hold a Preliminary Evaluation Committee Meeting on Tuesday, January 6, 2026, at 2:00 p.m. (local time) to evaluate responses to RFP 25-4871 CEMP/COOP for Emergency Operations. The committee members will discuss their review of the responses and may select a firm to award, select firms to be shortlisted for further evaluation, or reject all responses. 

The District’s Governing Board voted in a new slate of officers Tuesday for the 2019-2020 term. Governing Board members are unpaid, citizen volunteers who are appointed by the Governor and confirmed by the Florida Senate. The Governing Board sets policy for the District, whose mission is to protect water resources, minimize flood risks, and ensure the public’s water needs…

Governor Jeb Bush recently appointed several members to seven of the eight Basin Boards of the Southwest Florida Water Management District. Some of the Basin Board members are reappointments and some of them are newly appointed.Alafia River Basin Board:*Cheryl Johnson of Brandon was reappointed. She is a real estate associate with Tampa Electric Company. Her term began March 29 and ends March 1, 2009.*Jean C. Tort of Ruskin was reappointed to the Alafia…

High school students from Pasco, Hernando and Sumter counties displayed their knowledge for the 2017 Nature Coast Envirothon. The competition is a problem-solving, natural resources education program which tests high school students on their surrounding environment.  Frank Gargano, Katie Carswell, Krista McKean, Gabrielle Kiliman, Kim Dymond, Carolyn Pina and David Sauskojus represented the District this year at Fort Cooper State Park. The Regulation staff…

Setting prescribed fires in controlled settings can reduce the risk of wildfires burning out of control, as many Floridians witnessed during the state’s wildfire emergency in 2017. That’s why the Southwest Florida Water Management District (District) will be conducting prescribed burns now through December on the Edward W. Chance Reserve - Gilley…

The Southwest Florida Water Management District’s (District)Hálpata Tastanaki Preserve in Marion County will be temporarily closed to the public for feral hog hunts Jan. 23-25.Only permitted hunters will be allowed on the property during these dates. All 25 permits for these hunts have been sold.Hálpata Tastanaki Preserve is located at 15430 SW Highway 484 in Dunnellon.This activity is one of a series of feral hog hunts being held on District lands to control the damage…

Setting prescribed fires in controlled settings can reduce the risk of wildfires burning out of control. That’s why the Southwest Florida Water Management District (District) will be conducting prescribed burns now through September on Starkey Wilderness Preserve, Conner Preserve and Cypress Creek Preserve.Starkey Wilderness Preserve is located east of New Port Richey, west of the Suncoast Parkway, north of State Road 54 and south of State Road 52. Approximately 700 acres…

From top: (1) The restoration site prior to the cleanup. (2) Raymond Chen and other volunteers show off the coins he found. (3) Using a track hoe, Jason Wadsworth of J. D. Sunny Isle removes exotics. (4) Lisa Henningsen, District staff environmental scientist, and Bill Lewelling, District hydrologist, stand near a dumpster of trash collected during the cleanup. Eighty-five people answered the call for volunteers to help remove mountains of tires, television…

From left: Frederick J. Buckman, Pasco County Parks and Recreation director; Jay B. Starkey, Jr.; Allen Altman, Pasco County School Board chair; Todd Pressman, District Governing Board member; and Lou Kavouras, deputy executive director for District Outreach, Planning, Board Services & Ombudsman, mark the opening of the Starkey Environmental Education Center exhibits with a ribbon-cutting ceremony. Representatives from the Pasco County School Board, Pasco…

Setting prescribed fires in controlled settings can reduce the risk of wildfires burning out of control, as many Floridians witnessed during the state’s wildfire emergency in 2017. That’s why the Southwest Florida Water Management District (District) will be conducting prescribed burns June through September at Annuteliga Hammock and Weekiwachee Preserve in Hernando County. Annuteliga Hammock…

The "Land Management Section of the Southwest Florida Water ManagementDistrict ":http://www.swfwmd.state.fl.us/documents/plans/landusemgmt/ (District) will be conducting prescribed burns from November through March on the Starkey, Conner and Cypress Creek Preserves in Pasco County. These properties are located in central and west Pasco County near Land O' Lakes and New Port Richey. Approximately 1,200 acres will be burned in small, manageable units. The District will also…

Setting prescribed fires in controlled settings can reduce the risk of wildfires burning out of control, as many Floridians witnessed during the state’s wildfire emergency in 2017. That’s why the Southwest Florida Water Management District (District) will be conducting prescribed burns February and March at Annuteliga Hammock and Weekiwachee Preserve in Hernando County. Annuteliga Hammock is located east of U.S. Highway 19, north of Centralia Road and south of the county…

The "Southwest Florida Water Management District":http://www.swfwmd.state.fl.us/ (District) will dedicate Phase 1 of the Terra Ceia Ecosystem Restoration Project on Monday, May 12th at 10:30 a.m. in Terra Ceia. Invited speakers include representatives from the District, the Florida Department of Environmental Protection and Manatee County government. In addition to the program speakers, representatives from the Wildlife Education and Rehabilitation Center, Inc. in Anna…

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 April, May and June on both 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, is located between Interstate 75 and US Highway 41. The Schewe Tract, which is located north and south of…

Setting prescribed fires in controlled settings can reduce the risk of wildfires burning out of control, as many Floridians witnessed during the state’s wildfire emergency in 2017. That’s why the Southwest Florida Water Management District (District) will be conducting prescribed burns July through September at the Green Swamp Wilderness Preserve, which includes, the Green Swamp East Tract in Polk,…

Setting prescribed fires in controlled settings can reduce the risk of wildfires burning out of control, as many Floridians witnessed during the state’s wildfire emergency in 2017. That’s why the Southwest Florida Water Management District (District) will be conducting prescribed burns July through September at Annutteliga Hammock and Weekiwachee Preserve in Hernando County. Annutteliga Hammock is…

The Southwest Florida Water Management District’s (District)Hálpata Tastanaki Preserve in Marion County will be temporarily closed to the public for feral hog hunts Nov. 14-16.Only permitted hunters will be allowed on the property during these dates. All 25 permits for this hunt have been sold.Hálpata Tastanaki Preserve is located at 15430 SW Highway 484 in Dunnellon.This activity is one of a series of feral hog hunts being held on District lands to control the…

The Southwest Florida Water Management District (District) will host a public workshop Wednesday, Feb. 27, to share information about changes to the current structure operational guidelines for the North Winter Haven Chain of Lakes in Polk County. The meeting will take place at the UF/IFAS Citrus Research and Education Center’s Ben Hill Griffin, Jr. Citrus Hall, located at 700 Experiment Station Road in Lake Alfred. Lakefront residents of Lakes Conine, Fannie, Haines…

The Southwest Florida Water Management District's (District) Chito Branch Reserve in Hillsborough County will be temporarily closed to the public for feral hog hunts Nov. 7-9.Only permitted hunters will be allowed on the property during these dates. All 10 permits for these hunts have been sold.Chito Branch Reserve is located at 11254 Browning Road in Lithia.This activity is one of a series of feral hog hunts being held on District lands to control the damage being…

*District to begin habitat improvement activities*The Morris Bridge Bicycle Area's off-road trails and parking lot will be closed intermittently from mid-December through mid-January, except for weekends and holidays. The Morris Bridge Bicycle Area is part of the Southwest Florida Water Management District's Lower Hillsborough Wilderness Preserve, located just south of Morris Bridge Road and just east of I-75 near Temple Terrace. The property is managed by the District in…