Floridan Aquifer Feasibility Study
The use of the Floridan Aquifer as an alternative water supply with increasing population and possible loss of traditional sources (to saltwater intrusion) requires additional studies for optimal and sustainable use.
Phase 1
The completed Phase 1 of the Upper Floridan Feasibility Study gathered all available well information and commissioned a new well (G-2984) to be drilled, cored, and logged. In total, 84 wells at 33 sites were utilized to help construct the cross-sections and maps representing the stratigraphic and hydrogeologic units of the Floridan Aquifer in urban Broward County. An additional component of the project was to complete seismic profiling along approximately 14 miles of the Hillsboro Canal.
Phase 2
Phase II of the Upper Floridan Feasibility Study is currently underway to further refine the hydrogeologic framework and regional extent developed from Phase I. The current status of the project includes the completed acquisition and processing of an almost 60 miles of seismic-reflection data which will be used to complement the original 14 miles previously obtained along the Hillsboro Canal. The newly acquired seismic-reflection profiles locations include reaches of the C-9, C-11, C-13, L-36, L-35A, and North New River Canal. Enhanced technology and data collection methods now allow for the viewing of the part of the surficial aquifer, Upper Floridan, Avon Park Permeable Zone, Lower Floridan, Boulder Zone, and possibly upper Cretaceous limestone.
Water Quality and Quantity Monitoring
Broward County, the U.S. Geological Survey, the South Florida Water Management District, and numerous municipalities fund the collection of water quality (chlorides and nutrients) and quantify (groundwater and surface water elevation) data. This data is found on numerous sites with some keys links found below:
Comprehensive Everglades Restoration Plan (CERP)
The Central and Southern Florida (C&SF) Project, South Florida 's system of primary canals, was authorized by Congress in 1948 to provide flood control and regional water supply for agriculture, urban, and natural areas and to prevent salt water intrusion. The altered hydrology has had unintended, adverse effects on the natural and urban areas of South Florida. The Comprehensive Everglades Restoration Plan (CERP), is the blueprint for refitting the region's outdated water management infrastructure. By addressing the needs of the natural system with those of the urban areas and agriculture, the plan provides considerable benefits throughout the system and is a first step towards a sustainable South Florida. The CERP is designed to capture, store, or convey water now lost to tide, making it available for all users and yielding benefits for both the regional system and local partners. The United States Army Corps of Engineers and the South Florida Water Management District (SFWMD) are partners in the re-plumbing of the Everglades with the objective of "getting the water right". This watershed plan is linked to the SFWMD's Lower East Coast Regional Water Supply Plan which addresses water supply issues in Miami-Dade, Broward and Palm Beach Counties over the next twenty years. On the county level, the Integrated Water Resources Plan addresses not only water supply but management of local water resources. Local benefits of the CERP are described in the Broward County staff report.
Central Everglades Planning Project (CEPP)
CEPP’s goal is to deliver a finalized plan, Project Implementation Report (PIR), for a suite of restoration projects in the central Everglades to prepare for congressional authorization, as part of the Comprehensive Everglades Restoration Plan (CERP). Broward County participated in the project development team meetings and sub groups such as the water supply group to review plans, make suggestions, voice concerns, and verify results. The CEPP initiative involved linking many previously planned projects into one that could be implemented sequentially to provide immediate benefit and restore traditional sheet flows through the central everglades.
Broward County Secondary Canal Improvement Project (CERP)
The Broward County Secondary Canal Improvement Project, as part of the CERP, is a water management project that will optimize the integration and operation of the County's secondary canal system and support Everglades restoration by reducing the County's reliance on water from the regional system.
Authorized and to be funded by the U.S. Congress, State of Florida, and local government, the goals of the Broward County Secondary Canal Improvement Project are to capture as much annual rainfall as possible for storage and recharge of the Biscayne Aquifer, to maintain water levels in wetlands, and to stabilize saltwater intrusion. Additionally, through more efficient management of the local water resources, urban demand on the regional system is expected to be reduced, as well as seepage losses from the WCAs, as the project has the potential to raise groundwater levels on the east side of the levee.
This project includes a series of water control structures, pumps, and canal improvements located in the C-9, C-12, and C-13 Canal Basins and east basin of the North New River Canal in central and southern Broward County. Excess water in the basins will be pumped into the coastal canal systems to maintain canal stages at optimum levels. When basin water is not sufficient to maintain canal stages, the canals will be maintained from other CERP projects and/or Lake Okeechobee and the Water Conservation Areas.
Water Preserve Areas (WPA)
The Water Preserve Areas (WPA) are a series of marshes, reservoirs, and groundwater recharge areas along the eastern side of the Water Conservation Areas in Broward, Palm Beach, and Miami-Dade Counties. In Broward County, the WPA extends along the western urban limits, adjacent to Levees 37 and 68A. The projects within the WPA are intended to serve multiple uses such as increasing the spatial extent of wetlands, reducing seepage losses from the Water Conservation Areas, improving water supply and quality, and establishing a buffer between the Everglades and developed areas. The conceptual plan for the WPA is contained in the Comprehensive Everglades Restoration Plan. Specific size, location, operational aspects, and engineering design of the components are in the WPA Feasibility Study, which was completed October, 2001. Other water-related needs and issues addressed in the Feasibility Study include: water quality, seepage barriers, salt water intrusion, urban development impacts, and the presence of exotics in the proposed WPA.
Lower East Coast Regional Water Supply Plan (LECRWSP)
The Lower East Coast Regional Water Supply Plan (LECRWSP) is a blueprint which provides guidance and outlines funding and resources needed to meet water supply needs of South Florida. Timely implementation of the LECRWSP will significantly decrease the risk of water shortages in the region by creating a water supply that fully meets the 2020 needs of more than seven million people and agricultural industries; reduce the number and severity of violations of Minimum Flows and Levels (MFL)criteria; reserve sufficient water for Everglades restoration and enhancement of other natural systems; reduce uncertainties in permitting, and; promote greater flexibility in the operation of the regional water management system.
Lower East Coast Regional Water Supply Plan
