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photo of Lake Okeechobee near Ritta Island

Everglades Agricultural Area Storage Reservoir Project

Post Authorization Change Report for the Central Everglades Planning Project

Click to read the Central Everglades Planning Project Post Authorization Change ReportOn March 26, 2018, the South Florida Water Management District submitted its plan for the EAA Storage Reservoir to the Assistant Secretary of the Army for Civil Works for federal review, approval and submittal to Congress. In accordance with state law, the Post Authorization Change Report (PACR) seeks to increase the storage, treatment and conveyance of the congressionally authorized Central Everglades Planning Project (CEPP).

The Tentatively Selected Plan was developed to meet the goals set forth by the Florida Legislature when it passed Senate Bill 10 and to be consistent with the Comprehensive Everglades Restoration Plan. The plan will reduce damaging discharges to the northern estuaries, deliver clean water for Everglades restoration and achieve water quality standards.

The plan was approved by the SFWMD Governing Board on March 8, 2018, and submitted to the Assistant Secretary along with an independent peer review that found the report to be technically sound.

Central Everglades Planning Project Post Authorization Change Report

Related Documents

In May 2017, Florida Gov. Rick Scott signed legislation that provides more than $1 billion to increase water storage south of Lake Okeechobee as part of an effort to reduce harmful lake discharges to the Caloosahatchee and St. Lucie estuaries.

Click for EAA Reservoir Project TrackerThe Water Resources Law of 2017 (Laws of Florida, Chapter 2017-10, Senate Bill 10) directs the expedited design and construction of a water storage reservoir in the Everglades Agricultural Area (EAA) to provide for a significant increase in southern storage to reduce high-volume discharges from Lake Okeechobee.

A project component of the Comprehensive Everglades Restoration Plan (CERP), the reservoir will be designed to hold at least 240,000 acre-feet of water and include water quality features necessary to meet state and federal water quality standards. The law requires the South Florida Water Management District to meet certain timelines for implementing the project. You can follow the District's progress at:

Modeling Results

As part of the extensive public process for the EAA Storage Reservoir Project, the District is conducting a series of computer modeling runs to inform the development of the project's features. As new modeling results are released, they will be posted at the FTP link below.

Public Planning Meetings

The District conducted a series of meetings to solicit public input on the EAA Storage Reservoir Project. Presentations, videos and materials from these meetings are posted in the archive below.

These public meetings were consistent with the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) process. The NEPA process provides an opportunity for the public to give input related to the project.
 

Submit Public Comments

If you cannot attend the public meetings, you can still submit comments on the EAA Storage Reservoir Project throughout the planning process by email to EAAreservoir@sfwmd.gov.

Written comments can be sent to:

Mike Albert, Project Manager
South Florida Water Management District
3301 Gun Club Road, MSC 8312
West Palm Beach, FL 33406

Meeting Archive

 

Land Acquisition

The District is seeking landowners willing to sell or exchange property in the Everglades Agricultural Area (EAA) that could be used for the EAA Storage Reservoir project.

Section 4 of the Water Resources Law of 2017 (Laws of Florida, Chapter 2017-10, Senate Bill 10) "declares that acquiring land to increase water storage south of the lake is in the public interest" and says "the district shall acquire that land from willing sellers" if necessary. The law requires the District to work with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to use the A-2 parcel and any additional land identified with the goal of increasing water storage and necessary treatment plus conveyance improvements.

If you are interested, please email RealEstate@sfwmd.gov.