Southwest Florida Water Management District

Some of our land managers recently spoke about prescribed fires and land management to the Summer Nature campers at Jay B. Starkey Wilderness Park.

The District is hiring a communications student intern. The person will gain hands-on experience in public relations disciplines including media relations, social media and internal communications with an environmental focus. This internship position is required to work in the office and candidates should expect to interact with other team members virtually and work independently some days. Get more details at WaterMatters.org/Careers

Before Google and smart phones, there was Cindy Taylor and her typewriter. This week, we say goodbye to the assistant resource specialist who is retiring from the District after 39 years. She started her career in 1985 as a high school student clerk for the Human Resources Department. During her nearly four decades at the District, she has held seven different administrative positions in various departments and played an important role in supporting our District mission. Her coworkers agree on two things: she will be greatly missed, and she hasn’t aged a day since she arrived. (Must be the water.) Congratulations to Cindy on her well-deserved retirement.

District staff joined water conservation coordinators at South Florida Water Management District and St. Johns River Water Management District for their quarterly meeting to share ideas on how to reduce residential water use. #WorkForOurWater

The District's Governing Board voted today to extend one-day-per-week watering restrictions for Hillsborough, Pasco and Pinellas counties until September 1. This also includes the existing water shortage order currently in effect for Citrus, DeSoto, Hardee, Hernando, Manatee, Polk, Sarasota and Sumter counties; portions of Charlotte, Highlands and Lake counties; the City of Dunnellon and The Villages in Marion County; and the portion of Gasparilla Island in Lee County. Despite having Districtwide above-average rainfall during the winter months (Nov.-Jan.), we still have a Districtwide 12-month rainfall deficit of about 7.4 inches (based on data through May). The 12-month rainfall total through May in the Northern Region of the District matches the historical average, while it is below average in the Southern and the Central regions, which includes the Tampa Bay area. June rainfall through June 19 is near the historical average in the Southern Region of the District, while it is below average in the Northern and Central regions. Additionally, Tampa Bay Water’s 15.5-billion-gallon C.W. Bill Young Regional Reservoir is still approximately 12.5 billion gallons below its capacity. Get full details at https://lnkd.in/e9nSUPTa

Come along with our staff to get a look at the seagrass mapping process and why this process is important. #WorkForOurWater

The Sterling Council Council is an organization promoting excellence in business management. Congratulations to these staff members that were recognized this year by Sterling: Bailey Mickelsen was named rookie of the year and promoted to advanced examiner. Eryn Worthington and Buddy Wood were recognized as first-year back up team leads. Eryn was also promoted to lead examiner. Tom Hughes, CGCIO and Michelle Eddy were promoted to senior examiners. Hannah Kuzlo was recognized for five years of service with Sterling.

Thank you to Boy Scout Troop 433 of Spring Hill for building five new benches along the trail in Weekiwachee Preserve. The effort was for an Eagle Scout bench project.

When a storm hits Florida, what are some of the ways the District responds? Learn all about the workings of the District EOC from one of its leaders on this latest edition of the Water Matters podcast. https://lnkd.in/gVpxc_S4

Congratulations to Miurel Brewer, Ph.D. who recently had a manuscript published on the “Impact of cover cropping on temporal nutrient distribution and availability in the soil” in Horticulturae, an international, peer-reviewed, open access journal published monthly online by the Multidisciplinary Digital Publishing Institute (MDPI). The manuscript was also selected as an editor’s choice article, which is based on recommendations by the scientific editors of MDPI journals worldwide. These articles are chosen from recent publications in the journal, with the aim of highlighting work deemed particularly noteworthy or influential within their respective research areas. The manuscript is one of the first publications from Miurel’s doctoral dissertation. She earned a Ph.D. in 2023 from the University of Florida in soil, water and ecosystems sciences, with two minors in agronomy and horticulture sciences. Read the article here: https://lnkd.in/geDEAMnc