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Policy & Planning
Mission Statement:
The mission of the Water Resources Policy and Planning Program is to develop policies that maximize the beneficial uses of Broward County's water resources.
Program Description
The Water Resources Policy and Planning Program is responsible for coordinating County-wide water resource planning and policy concerns related to local water supply planning, regional water resource management efforts, and Everglades restoration projects. This program coordinates activities with regional, state, and federal agencies and tracks the development and implementation of the Comprehensive Everglades Restoration Plan, Minimum Flows and Levels, Water Preserve Areas, Lower East Coast Regional Water Supply Plan, and regulation changes. This program develops and coordinates legislative policies for the Water Resources Division and reviews land use amendments, Developments of Regional Impact, and re-zoning applications.
WATER MATTERS PROGRAM
WATER MATTERS IN BROWARD COUNTY - A Public Outreach Campaign
Water Matters...in Broward County is designed to demonstrate that each of us plays a vital part in our water management system. While governments create plans, programs and projects to better manage water, residents, and homeowners in particular, can make a tremendous difference in water quantity and water quality.
The website is filled with information that shows how to be an active participant in water management - and why you should. After all, it begins in your backyard.
NatureScape
NatureScape Broward is a Water Matters program designed to help people learn about, create, and maintain attractive, low maintenance, low impact, healthy landscapes that reflect and help protect Florida's natural resources. NatureScapes are “Florida Friendly” yards and landscapes that:
• Conserve water by using native and other drought-resistant plants;
• Reduce stormwater contamination caused by pesticides and fertilizers;
• Use integrated pest control practices;
• Provide food, water and shelter for resident and migrating wildlife; and
• Recycle yard waste into mulch and compost
The goal of NatureScape Broward is:
To protect water quality and quantity, and create wildlife habitat through appropriate landscaping practices, the prudent use of our water resources, and the planting of native and non-invasive plants, and other drought tolerant plants in Broward County.
A number of themes are incorporated into the NatureScape Broward program. “Right Plant, Right Place” stresses the importance of ensuring that plants are selected and planted in appropriate locations based on their intended function and growth requirements. “Get the Water Right” encourages homeowners to understand the irrigation requirements of their yards. In conjunction with this theme, a companion brochure on Landscape Best Management Practices has been developed to discuss the importance of best management practices and provide homeowners with tips on irrigation, stormwater management, fertilizer application, vegetation management, and NatureScaping. NatureScape programs are offered through regularly scheduled classes and at the request of interested groups, such as garden clubs and community associations.
As a result of this program, over 750 backyards, schoolyards, workplaces, public properties, and homeowner communities have been certified as NatureScapes in Broward County to date.
Know the Flow
Know the Flow is a water management course presented monthly and geared towards the thousands of licensed property managers in Broward County. The Know the Flow program encourages property managers and landscape professionals to adopt environmentally sound practices; increase their knowledge of proper maintenance of stormwater systems; and, it provides the tools necessary to implement environmentally sound landscape practices in support of the conservation and protection of local water resources. The Know the Flow course was developed through a cooperative project between Broward County EPD, Broward County Extension Education/University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, the South Florida Water Management District, and the Central Broward Water Control District. Property owners that participate in Know the Flow are eligible for four continuing education credits in the subject of Operation of the Community Association's Physical Property. Landscape professionals with a pesticide applicator license are also eligible for continuing education credits.
NatureScape Irrigation Service
In 2005, Broward County is launching its new NatureScape Irrigation Service ( NIS ), a conservation-based technical assistance approach to further reducing water used for irrigation. The NIS is being developed to help people conserve water, save money, and protect water quality. Patterned after the Mobile Irrigation Lab (MIL) approach of the Broward Soil and Water Conservation District, and a perceived need to expand this type of service to a greater segment of the community, two NatureScape Irrigation Specialists will provide technical evaluations of irrigation systems and provide specific information on system deficiencies, water conservation, and landscape best management practices.
They also take water measurements from individual irrigation systems to determine the uniformity of water distribution. After all of the information is collected, NIS operators will use it to quantify current water consumption and estimate the water savings that would be possible by implementing operational or equipment modifications, many of which are often very simple and cost-effective.
Additionally, the NIS will provide information and recommendations on “Florida-Friendly”/NatureScape landscaping practices.
LINKS TO RELATED PROGRAMS
• NatureScape Website
• The Water Matters Website
For More information E-mail: rrudolph@broward.org
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