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West Palm Beach, FL
- South Florida Water Management District (SFWMD) engineers today began adjusting water levels on a portion of the Kissimmee River between Osceola and Okeechobee counties as part of the final phase of the river's historic restoration.
Lowering the water level between two key structures, S-65A and S-65C, that control flow on the river is necessary for the
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to complete
backfilling of approximately 7 miles of the channelized portion of the river. Once complete, water will flow into the winding oxbows of the river's historic natural state.
Beginning the draw down during the dry season is being carefully done to create no adverse effects on the ecology of the river and is designed to closely mirror the natural system.
The Corps has restricted navigation near the construction area, and posted
notice online here.
Background: Kissimmee River Restoration
The Kissimmee River once meandered for 103 miles through central Florida. Its floodplain, reaching up to 3 miles wide, was inundated for long periods by heavy seasonal rains.
In the 1960s, the river was channelized by cutting and dredging a 30-foot-deep straightaway through the river's meandering natural state creating the C-38 canal. While the project delivered on the promise of flood protection, it also destroyed much of a floodplain-dependent ecosystem that nurtured threatened and endangered species.
After extensive planning, construction for the Kissimmee River Restoration Project began in 1999 with backfilling of 8 miles of the C-38 canal. Three construction phases are now complete, and continuous water flow has been re-established to 24 miles of the meandering Kissimmee River. Seasonal rains and flows now regularly inundate the floodplain in the restored area, as they did before channelization.
The comprehensive restoration project will return flow to 40 miles of the river's historic channel and restore about 40 square miles of river/floodplain ecosystem.
