St. Johns River Water Management District

Last updated
SJRWMD logo SJRWMDlogo.PNG
SJRWMD logo

The St. Johns River Water Management District ("SJRWMD") is one of five Florida water management districts that is responsible for managing groundwater and surface water resources in Florida. SJRWMD covers an 18-county region in northeast and east-central Florida. [1]

Contents

It employs approximately 600 people at offices in Palatka, Jacksonville, Maitland, and Palm Bay. The district's headquarters is located in Palatka. [2]

The budget for 2013-14 is $135.5 million. [3]

History

SJRWMD is one of five water management districts that were established in 1972 by Chapter 373, Florida Statutes, as independent special districts, and were empowered by the electorate in 1976 to assess ad valorem taxes to fund the management of the state’s water and related land resources, to benefit people and the environment. [4] Each water management district is administered by a Governing Board composed of residents appointed by the Governor and approved by the Florida Senate. All districts report directly to the governor. [5] [6]

In 2013, the District lost a case before the U.S. Supreme court in Koontz v. St. Johns River Water Management District .

Area of Jurisdiction

The counties which are entirely within SJRWMD are: Brevard, Clay, Duval, Flagler, Indian River, Lake, Marion, Nassau, St. Johns, Seminole, Putnam, and Volusia. Partial counties include: Alachua, Baker, Bradford, Okeechobee, Orange, and Osceola. SJRWMD covers 12,283 square miles (31,813 km²), or 23 percent of Florida. As of 2012, 4.73 million people (about 21 percent of the state’s population) made their home in SJRWMD. [7]

The major river within SJRWMD is the St. Johns River. The two major tributaries are the Econlockhatchee River and the Ocklawaha River. Other major waterways are the St. Marys River, which serves as the boundary between Florida and Georgia; and the Nassau, Ocklawaha, Matanzas, Halifax, and Indian rivers. SJRWMD contains 96 springs and more than 1,400 lakes. [8]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Putnam County, Florida</span> County in Florida, United States

Putnam County is a county located in the central part of the state of Florida. As of the 2020 census, the population was 73,321. Its county seat is Palatka.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nassau County, Florida</span> County in Florida, United States

Nassau County is the northeasternmost county of the U.S. state of Florida. According to the 2020 United States Census, the county's population was 90,352.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Palatka, Florida</span> City in Florida, United States

Palatka is a city in Putnam County, Florida, United States. The population was 10,558 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Putnam County. Palatka is the principal city of the Palatka Micropolitan Statistical Area, which is home to 72,893 residents. The city is also home to St. Johns River State College, St. Johns River Water Management District Headquarters, and Ravine Gardens State Park. The area is well known for its local festivals, most notably the Florida Azalea Festival and the Blue Crab Festival.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Florida Legislature</span> Legislative branch of the state government of Florida

The Florida Legislature is the legislature of the U.S. State of Florida. It is organized as a bicameral body composed of an upper chamber, the Senate, and a lower chamber, the House of Representatives. Article III, Section 1 of the Florida Constitution, adopted in 1968, defines the role of the legislature and how it is to be constituted. The legislature is composed of 160 state legislators. The primary purpose of the legislature is to enact new laws and amend or repeal existing laws. It meets in the Florida State Capitol building in Tallahassee.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">St. Johns River</span> The longest river in Florida, United States

The St. Johns River is the longest river in the U.S. state of Florida and its most significant one for commercial and recreational use. At 310 miles (500 km) long, it flows north and winds through or borders twelve counties. The drop in elevation from headwaters to mouth is less than 30 feet (9 m); like most Florida waterways, the St. Johns has a very slow flow speed of 0.3 mph (0.13 m/s), and is often described as "lazy".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lionel Tate</span> American convicted of first-degree murder when he was 13 years old

Lionel Alexander Tate is the youngest American citizen ever sentenced to life imprisonment without the possibility of parole, though this sentence was eventually overturned. In January 2001, when Tate was 13, he was convicted of first-degree murder for the 1999 battering death of six-year-old Tiffany Eunick in Broward County, Florida.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Marjorie Harris Carr Cross Florida Greenway</span> Canceled canal project in Florida

The Marjorie Harris Carr Cross Florida Greenway is a protected green belt corridor, more than one and a half miles (1.6 km) wide in places, that was the former route of the proposed Cross Florida Barge Canal. It is named for the leader of opposition to the Cross Florida Barge Canal, Marjorie Harris Carr, and was originally a U.S. Army Corps of Engineers canal project to connect the Gulf of Mexico and the Atlantic Ocean across Florida for barge traffic. Two sections were built but the project was ultimately cancelled, due to local opposition related to environmental concerns, including protecting the state's water supply and conservation of the Ocklawaha River Valley ecosystem, but also due to national opposition for the costs being perceived as "government waste" with "limited national value."

The Ocklawaha Valley Railroad, originally the Ocala Northern Railroad, was a railroad running from Silver Springs Junction, Florida to Palatka, Florida, running roughly parallel to the Oklawaha River. Except for the southernmost part, from Silver Springs Junction to Silver Springs, which was leased from the Seaboard Air Line Railroad, the railroad never had any corporate relationship with larger railroad companies.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Government of Florida</span> Government of a U.S. state

The government of Florida is established and operated according to the Constitution of Florida and is composed of three branches of government: the executive branch consisting of the governor of Florida and the other elected and appointed constitutional officers; the legislative branch, the Florida Legislature, consisting of the Senate and House; and the judicial branch consisting of the Supreme Court of Florida and lower courts. The state also allows direct participation of the electorate by initiative, referendum, and ratification.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ocklawaha River</span> River in Florida, United States of America

The 74-mile-long (119 km) Ocklawaha River flows north from central Florida until it joins the St. Johns River near Palatka. Its name is derived from ak-lowahe, Creek for "muddy".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jacksonville metropolitan area, Florida</span> Metropolitan statistical area in the United States

The Jacksonville Metropolitan Area, also called the First Coast, Metro Jacksonville, or Northeast Florida, is the metropolitan area centered on the principal city of Jacksonville, Florida and including the First Coast of North Florida. According to the 2020 United States Census, the total population was 1,605,848. The Jacksonville–St. Marys–Palatka, FL–GA Combined Statistical Area (CSA) had a population of 1,733,937 in 2020 and was the 34th largest CSA in the United States. The Jacksonville metropolitan area is the 40th largest in the country and the fourth largest in the State of Florida, behind the Miami, Tampa, and Orlando metropolitan areas.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lake George State Forest</span>

The Lake George State Forest is a designated protected area and state forest in the U.S. state of Florida. The 21,176-acre (8,570 ha) forest is located in northwestern Volusia County, Florida, near Lake George and the communities of Pierson, Barberville, and Volusia. It is overseen by the Florida Forest Service within the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services.

The Florida Mental Health Act of 1971, commonly known as the "Baker Act", allows the involuntary institutionalization and examination of an individual.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Crane Creek (Melbourne, Florida)</span> River in Florida, United States

Crane Creek is a 3.3-mile-long (5.3 km) stream in Melbourne, Florida, United States. It is a tributary of the Indian River, with its mouth in the vicinity of Front Street.

The statutory and fiduciary mandate of the State Board of Administration of Florida (SBA) is to invest, manage and safeguard assets of the Florida Retirement System (FRS) Trust Fund as well as the assets of a variety of other funds. The SBA manages 25 different investment funds and trust clients.

The Green Swamp is a swamp in Florida. It lies west of Highway 27 and east of Interstate 75 in Polk, Lake, Sumter, Hernando and Pasco Counties. The headwaters of the Peace River, Withlacoochee River, Ocklawaha River, and Hillsborough River are located here.

Orange Creek is a small stream in north-central and northeast Florida, that drains Orange Lake to the Ocklawaha River. Privately owned Orange Springs provides part of the water volume.

<i>Okeehumkee</i>

The Okeehumkee, also known as "Queen of the Ocklawaha River," was a river steamboat that provided transportation along Florida rivers in the late 19th century. The Okeehumkee was equipped with a paddle wheel positioned in the lower stern part of the boat which allowed it to traverse narrow and shallow rivers. The steamboat was the longest-serving craft of its type on the Ocklawaha River route, remaining in service for 43 years.

The Surface Water Improvement and Management Act of 1987 was a law passed by the Florida Legislature in order to protect surface waters of, which include estuaries, rivers, lakes, and streams. The act created the Surface Water Improvement and Management Program, which seeks to control nonpoint source pollution.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">University of Florida Historic St. Augustine, Inc.</span>

University of Florida Historic St. Augustine, Inc. (UFHSA) is located at 48 King Street in St. Augustine, Florida. University of Florida encourages UFHSA to preserve and interpret state owned properties in St. Augustine that will in turn satisfy and support state needs of professionals in historic preservation, archaeology, cultural resources management, cultural tourism, history, and museum administration. UFHSA also seeks to meet the needs of locals in the state of Florida and in the city of St. Augustine, supporting educational internships and practicums.

References

  1. "Statutes & Constitution :View Statutes :- : Online Sunshine". www.leg.state.fl.us.
  2. Contact Us (St. Johns River Water Management District)
  3. "FY2013-2014 Adopted Budget Overview". 2013-10-01.
  4. "Statutes & Constitution :View Statutes :- : Online Sunshine". www.leg.state.fl.us.
  5. "Statutes & Constitution :View Statutes :- : Online Sunshine". www.leg.state.fl.us.
  6. "Water Management Districts | Florida Department of Environmental Protection". floridadep.gov.
  7. "Map of Florida water management districts". St. Johns River Water Management District. Archived from the original on 2010-11-28.
  8. "Watershed maps". St. Johns River Water Management District. Archived from the original on 2010-11-28.