NWFWMD Newsletter v2n3

8/8/2019 NWFWMD Newsletter v2n3

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aside to absorb sea level rise,

The District will receive$46,100 the first year and pro-vide $10,000 match funds overfive years to arrange meetingsacross the Panhandle through

the Surface Water Improvemenand Management program.

The Northwest Florida WaterManagement District accepted$215,000 in federal grant fundingover five years to study conse-quences of projected sea rise lev-els on aquatic resources. In part-nership with the University ofCentral Florida (UCF) and the Na-tional Oceanic and AtmosphericAdministration (NOAA), the Dis-

trict will help develop and applytools to explore a projected 5-10inch sea rise by 2050.

1900s has averaged about 1.7millimeters (mm) per year with anincrease over the last 20 years toham Lewis, Senior EnvironmentalScientist, Resource Managementthrough 2100 is about 4 mm peryear, as sea surface warms, wa-ter expands and glaciers melt.The District will help coastal re-source managers apply tools thatidentify potential consequencesand adjust plans to protect, pre-serve and restore critical re-

District a unique opportunity tointeract with sea level rise re-searchers and ensure that the re-search is practical and transferra-

ble to our lo-cal coastalsaid Execu-tive DirectorDouglas Barr.

trict will sharemodels it hasdeveloped in

its coastalflood haz-ard map-pingsaid RonBartel, Di-rector ofthe Re-sourceManage-

ment Divi-will alsosharethree-dimensional salinity transportmodels for analysis of freshwaterneeds, as well as collected Li-DAR (detailed elevation data),

be not to develop low lyingcoastal wetlands but set them

NORTHWEST FLORIDA WATER MANAGEMENT DISTRICT

NORTHWEST NEWS & UPDATES

OCTOBER 2010 VOL. 2, NO. 3

District to Partner in Rising Sea Level Studies

Sea level rise by 2100: 7.2 to 23.6 inches (18-59 centimeters or 0-0.59 meters). (Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change grap

Conditions Dry in PanhandleRainfall accumulations dur-

ing September and Octoberhave been below normal for themajority of northwest Florida.Coastal Bay County and north-ern Holmes and Walton coun-

ties have had significant rainfalldeficits in recent months withsome areas 16 inches or morebelow normal for the year. Thedry conditions are reflected inthe drought assessment with

moderate to severe droughtconditions in the central andwestern areas of the Panhan-dle.


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Page 2 NORTHWEST NEWS & UPDATES

Wetland Protection to Increase with Comprehensive Regulation

Northwest Florida will addprotection for unregulated isolat-ed wetlands when Environmen-tal Resources Permitting (ERP)

is fully implemented on Novem-ber 1, 2010. Phase II adds regu-lation of wetlands and other sur-ing ERP program. Most of theother regulations have been inplace for decades in the Pan-handle under various programsadministered by the Florida De-partment of Environmental Pro-tection (DEP).

fit greatly from a combinedstormwater/wetland programsimilar to what has existed in theExecutive Director Douglas E.lation will also challenge the Dis-trict with new permitting respon-sibilities and will benefit the reg-ulated community by requiring

one combined permit for storm-

view time because delineation ofwetlands and evaluation of im-Bureau of EnvironmentalDistrict will administer conserva-tion easements, financial

assurance documents and wet-land mitigation, which are new tous. However, other than addingisolated wetlands, little is chang-

Phase I (stormwater), imple-mented in the Panhandle on Oc-tober 1, 2007, added rules forquantity (not just quality) of run-off and stream bank erosion to

development projects acrossnorthwest Florida. The Districthas issued nearly 1,000 storm-water system permits in three

years and discovered that isolat-ed wetlands only occur on about30 percent of the projects.

As with Phase I, the Districtand DEP will jointly manage fullERP. The District will regulateactivities of less than five acresof wetland impacts, not locatedin water or not a single familyresidence. Single family dwell-ings that are not part of a larger

common development are ex-empt from the stormwater rules,although homeowners may needpermits if construction projectsimpact wetlands.

DEP will regulate activitieswith wetland impacts of five ormore acres, all in-water activitiessuch as docks, marinas and con-struction in sovereign sub-

merged lands and any associat-ed uplands.

The single application alsostreamlines the regulatory pro-

cess since it constitutes an automatic electronic request to the US. Army Corps of Engineers(Corps) for federal water qualitycertification. Similar automatednoticing will improve coordina-tion between the District, DEPand other state agencies suchas the Florida Fish and WildlifeConservation Commission andthe Department of State Histori-

cal Resources.

ers and businesses is to call us,call often and early in the pro-850-921-Handbook, it totals almost 1,000

Mitigation Bank, Washington County. (David Clayton photo)


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Page 3DECEMBER 2009 VOL. 1, NO. 3

Page 3OCTOBER 2010 VOL. 2, NO. 3

Wetland Regulation sion and Sediment Control Man-ual, the Florida Department offications for Road and Bridge

Julian Gotreaux, Director of theance the needs of the regulatedcommunity and the health andsafety of people and the environ-

ment. We are educators in theuals identify when they need apermit and thereby avoid anycompliance or enforcement is-

Marchman suggested sched-uling a pre-application confer-ence with the District to speed uppermit review. Applicants whomeet with the District before fil-ing, decrease review time an av-erage seven days because morecomplete documents avoid a Re-quest for Additional Information.

Applicants may also decreasereview times when they use theportal, which also allows visitorsto certify whether an activity isexempt from regulation. Thishelps avoid copying costs andsending several applications bymail or courier.

the regulations can be turned in-to permittable and environmen-

Rainfall was generally normalor above normal for northwestFlorida during the winter andspring months this year, but has

been below normal across thepanhandle in September and Oc-tober.

Rainfall accumulations werehighly variable across the Districtduring the summer months withsome areas receiving above nor-mal rainfall and areas primarily inthe central and northern Districtexperiencing below normal rain-fall.

Counties located inthe middle of the Districtincluding Bay, Washing-ton, Holmes and northernportions of Jackson, Wal-ton and Okaloosa coun-ties have the driest condi-tions in the District. Pan-handle watersheds thatextend into southern Ala-bama also experienced

rainfall far below normal.Most major rivers and

streams in the panhandlewere in the normal toabove normal range for

the first seven months of 2010.Flows started falling below nor-mal across the Panhandle in thefall in response to below normal

rainfall.On October 10, five major riv-

ers (Escambia, Perdido, Shoal,Ochlockonee and Sopchoppy)experienced low flows (below 10percent of all recorded historicflows for the day). In addition,five other major rivers andstreams had below normal flowscompared with historic flows forthis time of year. A few streams

were in the normal or above nor-mal range. The month of Octo-ber typically has the lowest rain-fall of the year with correspond-

ing low river and stream flows.Lake levels have increased

from low levels of the 2000-2001and 2006-2007 droughts. Lakeswith prominent surface contribu-tion remain at normal levels whilelakes with ground water recharge(Sand Hill lakes, Lake Mystic) arstill recovering though dry condi-tions have resulted in minor ele-vation declines in most lakes.

Conditions Dry in Panhandle

U.S. Drought Monitor, Florida, October 12, 2010


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OCTOBER 2010 VOL. 2, NO. 3 Page 5

District Land Manager John Valenta(above) uses the new canoe dockon Econfina Creek near Pitt Spring.A rail holds the canoe steadyagainst downstream currents aspaddlers disembark.

An excavator bucket dwarfs William

and Acquisition (left), as limestoneboulders are arranged around PittSpring. Native plants will be addedto the restored spring banks andvisitors will be directed to enter thespring carefully via new boardwalksand steps. (Tyler Macmillan photos)

Restoration Progresses on Econfina Creek, Pitt Spring


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Page 6 NORTHWEST NEWS & UPDATES

District Helps Milton Create Recreation TrailA public recreation trail along

the scenic Blackwater River willbe constructed following approv-

al of a cooperative agreementbetween the City of Milton andthe Northwest Florida WaterManagement District GoverningBoard. The Old River Trail runsalong the river for about a thirdof a mile and continues througha natural floodplain swamp.Dominated by Atlantic white ce-dar, cypress, black gum, sweet-bay and red maple, the trail al-

so passes a rare stand of theendangered Panhandle lily.

The trail will cross a portioner Water Management Areanear its new West Region LandManagement office. The cityhas given the District 3.2 acresof river frontage in exchange fordeveloping the trail. Milton willprovide labor and equipment to

develop and construct the trail,as well as manage and main-tain it. The trail will connect Mil-recreation facility.

city representatives approached

the District about developing the

deavor at all times to make Dis-trict lands available for appropri-ate public recreation that does

fund development and construc-

ley, Director of Lands Manage-canoe/kayak launch near thetrail is also being considered

The endangered Panhandle lily blooms along the Blackwater River near the pro-posed trail. (Steve Brown photo, Danny Layfield map)

The new West Region Land Management office was officiallyopened October 5 , 2010 at 5453 Davisson Road, Milton.


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Purchase Enhances Protection of Escambia RiverOCTOBER 2010 VOL. 2, NO. 3 Page 7

The Northwest Florida WaterManagement District GoverningBoard recently acted to protect

of Defense military mission, espe-cially maintaining critical flightpaths for its F-35 fighter jets. TheDistrict was asked by the FloridaDepartment of Environmental Pro-tection (DEP) to pursue purchaseof a 1,036-acre conservationeasement when Florida Foreverfunding became scarce. Conse-quently, the District used up to$1.8 million in Department of De-

fense Readiness and EnvironmentInitiative (REPI) funds to acquire aconservation easement onNokuse Plantation, which is adja-Creek tract in Walton County.

subject to significant residentialand commercial development

large base buffering project and itsdefense mission cannot be under-

The conservation easement, islocated east of Highway 331 nearFreeport. Former agriculturalland, it is interspersed with seep-age streams that will provide en-hanced water resource protectionfor Magnolia and Lafayette creeks.

The property also lies within theNorthwest Florida Greenway,

which is envi-sioned as anecologicalcorridor for

protectingand dispers-ing plant andanimal spe-cies, espe-thriving blackbear popula-tion. The$1.5 millionprice negoti-

ated by theDistrict isabout $1,500per acre.

trict is pur-chasing thedevelopmentand land useconversion

William O.Cleckley, Director, Division ofLand Management and Acquisi-must be restored to longleaf pine/wiregrass habitat in keeping withmission.

being managed as a large private

conservation easement removes

the property from developmentpressure and provides critical lamanagement funding to continurestoring and managing the platation over time. It is hoped thamore REPI money may be avaible to buy additional conservatieasement buffers for Eglin alonthe Shoal River, on other Nokus

Plantation property and on othe

District Helps Eglin Buffer Flight Path with Easement

Conservation easement buffer is orange. (Danny Layfield map)

Checks will be larger thisyear to rural counties where theDistrict has purchased lands forwater resource preservation.To reduce fiscal impacts forthese tax exempt public lands,

the legislature reinstated ex-pired payments in lieu of taxesby the five water managementdistricts.Calhoun $ 116.45Holmes $1997.13

Jackson $8,992.21Liberty $6,560.03Santa Rosa $17,951.33Walton $19,360.82Washington $40,688.60TOTAL $95,666.57

District Sending Larger Checks to Rural Counties


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NORTHWEST FLORIDA WATER

MANAGEMENT DISTRICT

Protecting and managing water resources sustainably ...

81 Water Management DriveHavana, FL 32333

Phone: 850-539-5999

Fax: 850-539-2777E-mail: [email protected]

nwfwmd.state.fl.us

Text by Faith Eidse; other contributionsby District staff.

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ply is expected to nearlydoublefollowing DistrictGoverning Board approvalof up to $400,000 in grantfunding to extend a watermain from the City of Gret-na through Interstate 10 atState Road 12 to the Townof Greensboro. The $2 mil-lion project will facilitateeconomic development in

Gretna, particularly at the I-10 interchange and it willsubstantially increase wateravailable to Greensboro.

ro has severely constrainedgroundwater yields from theecutive Director Douglas

pected to nearly double thepacity. Also, GadsdenCounty is a Rural Area ofCritical Economic Concernand thus is a high priority

The City of Gretna is in-vesting in water supply im-provements to meet antici-pated needs, while sustain-

ing water and environmen-tal resources. It has com-pleted engineering plansrequired to extend water tothe I-10 interchange and tointerconnect with Greens-boro. Additional local andfederal funding is anticipat-ed for construction.

District Helps ExpandGadsden County Water Supply

The Northwest Florida Water Management District, in cooperation with McKenzie Tank Lines, presented an Enviroscapemodel to middle school science teacher Spencer Tolbert at Franklin County School. Tolbert will use the model to increasestudent understanding of watersheds, stormwater, pollution and steps to protect our environment. (Lucinda Scott photo)

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