One explosion closer to sending water south.
On August 28th, the South Florida Water Management District (SFWMD) began blasting ground to make way for the canals that will funnel water into the 6,500-acre Stormwater Treatment Area (STA) component of the EAA Reservoir.
The STA is a critical part of the EAA Reservoir as a whole. Ultimately, this project will reduce harmful discharges to the St. Lucie and Caloosahatchee estuaries and send water south to the Everglades and Florida Bay where it’s desperately needed.
The STA design includes filter marshes that will naturally cleanse the water before it flows south to the Everglades. The explosive blasts displaced 10,000 cubic yards of limestone, carving ground for the intake and outflow canals that will eventually move 3,000 cubic feet per second of water into and out of the STA. Construction of the STA began in April 2020 and is expected to be complete by 2023. The U.S. Army Corps will build the 10,000 acre reservoir which is expected to be complete by 2028.
While this progress is encouraging, we have to keep Everglades restoration and our water quality a top priority or we’ll see these projects stagnate as they have for decades.
Since the Comprehensive Everglades Restoration Plan (CERP) was authorized in 2000, not one of the 68 project components has been completed. In the past two years, we’ve finally started to see progress happen at a record pace and critical projects being expedited.
Because of your voice, Governor Ron DeSantis prioritized Florida’s environment and Everglades restoration when he signed the Achieving More Now For Florida’s Environment Executive Order 19-12.
“We would not be here today if it weren’t for the people getting involved, because I tell you, I certainly heard it.” In multiple press conferences last year, Governor DeSantis credited the voice of the people for inspiring his bold action for our waters. “When people in elected office see that, I think they really are in a position to have to follow suit.”
Thank you to our members and supporters for amplifying that voice that Governor DeSantis referred to – you spoke, and he listened. And a big thank you to the South Florida Water Management District for having us out to celebrate this momentous occasion. Let’s send the water south!
Construction on the EAA Reservoir STA begins from Captains For Clean Water on Vimeo.