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| Contract awarded for new phase of Kissimmee restoration |
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has awarded a contract to backfill an additional 3.8 miles of the channelized Kissimmee River. Work is expected to begin in August. The backfilling and other contract components will take approximately 2½ years to complete.
 The section to be backfilled is called Reach 4 and is adjacent to the Kissimmee Prairie Preserve State Park in Highlands and Okeechobee counties.
The Kissimmee River Restoration project is one of the world’s largest river restoration efforts. Many years ago, the river flowed in a serpentine course from south of Orlando to Lake Okeechobee. The meandering 103-mile-long river nourished a 1- to 2-mile-wide floodplain, home to migratory and wading birds and many other wildlife species.
 In the 1960s, the gentle Kissimmee was channelized to provide flood protection to growing central Florida. The curving river was replaced with a straight 56-mile-long canal. While the flood control mission worked as planned, almost all environmental values were lost.
In 1992, Congress passed historic legislation to restore the Kissimmee River. When complete, more than 40 square miles of river-floodplain, including almost 20,000 acres of wetlands and 46 miles of historic river channel, will be restored. This will be accomplished by increasing water storage levels in the upper chain of lakes at the river’s headwaters, filling in 22 miles of canal, excavating some original river channel, and other components.
Today, the project is more than halfway complete. Ten of 22 miles of channelized river have been backfilled. All the land needed to complete the restoration has been acquired: more than 102,000 acres.
“The return of wildlife has been greater than anything anybody expected,” said Jeffery Couch, senior project manager with the Corps of Engineers. Native plants, fish and other wildlife have returned in substantial numbers. Ducks, wading birds, largemouth bass and shoreline species have all come back to the restored river and its floodplain.
The contract for this 3.8-mile section of backfilling was awarded to WRS Infrastructure and Environment Inc. on July 18 for $18.2 million. The total river restoration project is estimated to cost $634 million. The restoration will be complete in 2012. Monitoring will follow. For more information, visit www.saj.usace.army.mil/dp/krr/index.htm.
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| Threatened Caracara to be monitored |
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers will begin monitoring the nesting habits of a threatened raptor that lives in the Kissimmee River Restoration project area.
 The Crested Caracara is a beautiful bird that is found in Central America, northern South America, southwest United States, and in Florida. It prefers drier upland communities. In Florida, it is most notably found in the Kissimmee Prairie.
When the Kissimmee River was channelized in the 1960s, this created thousands of acres of new uplands in areas that were once dominated by wetlands. As a result, the caracara developed communities in the channelized Kissimmee River basin. As the restoration project is under way and these areas will once again become floodplain wetlands, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service scientists want to know what will happen to the caracara living in the project area.
The Corps has engaged an environmental consultant to monitor the nesting habits of caracara pairs in the project area. Biologists will trap and tag nesting pairs of caracara and follow them for four nesting seasons via small plane and satellite. The goal is to monitor if and where the birds relocate, and if they have successful nesting after being displaced.
The monitoring project is scheduled to begin this fall and will conclude in 2012. It is being coordinated through the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and a final report will be provided to the Service.
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| Historic land acquisition could benefit Everglades |
In the eyes of many, Everglades restoration is on the verge of a quantum leap forward.
 On June 24, the state of Florida announced it was entering into negotiations to purchase United States Sugar Corporation for $1.75 billion. The proposed acquisition includes nearly 300 square miles of land in four counties, nearly all in the Everglades Agricultural Area (EAA). The EAA, located south of Lake Okeechobee, today is mostly farm land, but was once the "River of Grass." If successful, the acquisition could help re-establish the original overland flow from Lake Okeechobee to the Everglades – lost decades ago as Florida grew.
There are many potential benefits from the acquisition including the following:
- Fewer harmful discharges to coastal estuaries
- Cleaner water for the Everglades
- More water for the Everglades
- Additional treatment marshes to remove phosphorus and other nutrients
- Additional above-ground water storage reservoirs
- Relieving some pressures on the Herbert Hoover Dike, while the federal government carries out repairs
- Eliminating the need to “back-pump” water from the EAA to Lake Okeechobee
Many observers believe the acquisition of U.S. Sugar presents opportunities for the Everglades.
“Governor Crist’s bold vision has brought us to a new day for Everglades restoration,” said Eric Buermann, chairman of the South Florida Water Management District Governing Board.
Col. Paul Grosskruger, commander of the Corps Jacksonville District, said: "The benefit to Everglades restoration will be immense. Acquiring this much land primarily located south of Lake Okeechobee will greatly increase the opportunities for water storage and water quality treatment before water flows to the historic Everglades."
The acquisition is only a proposal. Many details must be worked out. There is concern about the economic impact it will have on the communities around Lake Okeechobee. The state and the South Florida Water Management District are meeting with elected officials and community residents to address those concerns.
The South Florida Water Management District and U.S. Sugar have identified Nov. 30, 2008 as the target date for a closing. For more information, visit my.sfwmd.gov.
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| Hurricane season may bring beneficial rains to lake |
The 2008 Atlantic hurricane season began on June 1 and will continue until Nov. 30. This is much to the chagrin of many who dread wind damage and flooding that can accompany a tropical storm or hurricane. However, a storm also may bring a silver lining. It may help raise the level of Lake Okeechobee, the liquid heart of the Everglades and an important water supply source for south Florida.
 Lake Okeechobee is located 75 miles south of Orlando. It also is the second-largest freshwater lake in the lower 48 United States. For the past two years the giant lake has been a victim of the drought that has plagued the southeast United States.
Today the lake remains more than 3 feet below normal. In July 2007, it hit an all-time record low of 8.82 feet above sea level. Fortunately, the lake is up approximately 2 feet since then, but far below where it should be for this time of the year.
This year's rainy season has helped raise the water level. But, some lake watchers are hoping – in a guardedly optimistic way – that a hurricane or tropical storm will bring a couple feet of rain to help replenish the low levels.
For now, all eyes are on Mother Nature.
For information about the current lake level, please visit www.saj.usace.army.mil/sfoo/nav/navindex.htm or www.saj.usace.army.mil/h2o/reports/r-oke.html
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| Comments sought on programmatic regulations |
The Corps of Engineers has started a review of the programmatic regulations for the Comprehensive Everglades Restoration Plan (CERP). The programmatic regulations describe the processes to determine 1) how much water should be reserved for the natural environment, 2) what constitutes a "restored" Everglades, and 3) how CERP coordinates with state water law.
Comments are being accepted until Aug. 18, 2008 during this initial scoping period. For information, please visit www.evergladesplan.org/pm/progr_regs.aspx.
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| $3.8 million contract awarded for Herbert Hoover Dike rehabilitation |
The Corps of Engineers has awarded a $3.8 million contract for construction of the seepage cutoff wall in the Herbert Hoover Dike.
The contract is for a 500-foot demonstration section, with options to construct four additional sections totaling 3.2 miles. It was awarded to Treviicos South, Inc. of Boston, Mass.
The Corps sought the world’s foremost experts in cutoff wall construction for the rehabilitation of the Herbert Hoover Dike surrounding Lake Okeechobee. This is the third task order awarded for the cutoff wall. Potentially, all three contractors can work simultaneously.
For more information, visit www.saj.usace.army.mil/cco/HHD/hhdike.htm
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| Outreach in Action |
 Approximately 25 small and large business representatives attended a workshop about subcontracting opportunities with the Corps on July 9 in West Palm Beach. The Corps is committed to providing opportunities for small and minority-owned businesses to participate in its procurement process, including that related to Everglades restoration and the Herbert Hoover Dike. For more information, visit http://www.saj.usace.army.mil/contract/index.html or http://www.usace.army.mil/business.html#Small
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| To add your name to the Everglades Report electronic mailing list: visit www.evergladesplan.org. To remove your name, please call 305-948-8063, ext. 232. |
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