Overview
Topography
SFWMD Projects
History
Geology
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Water Resources
Water Quality
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Historically, south Florida was a giant marsh fed by rainfall. Like an ice glacier slowly moving over a huge mass of land, during the rainy wet season, sheets of water would move down the state through what was then the great expanse of the Everglades. Because the land was so flat, during the wet season of May through October, water could flow from lake to lake, spill over natural river channels and spread into floodplains. There were no barriers or canals to direct or control the path of water. In the aftermath of large storms, water could stand for weeks and months and leave devastating damage and disease in its wake. During the drier months of winter and spring, Florida had its own version of the dust bowl days - cows went thirsty and crops withered on parched land.

Geography sentenced south Florida to total dependence on rainfall. To make this water state more inhabitable, through the years, engineers and water managers attempted to control the water. For more than a century, from 1850 to 1950, the solution was to dredge and drain the "swamp". After years of severe hurricanes, then drought, then more deadly storms, Florida asked the federal government for a master plan to tame nature's excesses.

In 1948, the U.S. Congress authorized the largest civil works project in the country. Construction began the next year and continued for over 20 years as the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers built a massive plumbing system called the Central and Southern Florida (C&SF) Flood Control Project. The project stretches from just south of Orlando to Florida Bay. It consists of 1,800 miles of canals and levees and 200 water control structures. It includes 16 major pump stations to send water south and through waterways eastward and westward to both coasts.

In 1949, the state created the South Florida Water Management District - to be the local sponsor for the federal project. The SFWMD began to operate and maintain the system. Now, the District's mission is to manage and protect water resources of the region by balancing and improving water quality, flood control, natural systems and water supply.

Over the last four decades, urban development and agricultural production have flourished. At the same time, the altered natural areas became inhospitable to native wildlife. As a result, the environment began to flounder. The number of wading birds decreased along with the amount of floodplains. In the 1970s, as more habitats showed signs of distress, our responsibilities expanded to encompass environmental restoration.

During the last century, the Everglades decreased in size dramatically. Current restoration projects include not only the Everglades as it is now known, but encompass the entire south Florida ecosystem - the area from the upper chain of lakes to Florida Bay where the water once flowed naturally down through the state.

A major initiative called the Comprehensive Everglades Restoration Plan (CERP) is under way. It will provide the right amount of water and the right flow conditions to the Everglades while providing water for urban and agricultural needs for a 50-year population projection. With the collaborative effort of our federal partners, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, and state partners such as the Florida Department of Environmental Protection, the District is committed today to shape the Florida of tomorrow, for generations to come.

History Links

Everglades Natural History Journal - A magazine of natural history of South Florida
http://everglades.fiu.edu/fiu/enhj/index-2.html

History Of The Everglades
http://www.evergladesonline.com/history.htm

The Everglades Water Story
http://www.nps.gov/ever/ed/edhydro.htm

History of the Everglades - National Wildlife Federation
http://www.nwf.org/keepthewildalive/panther/wwwlinks.cfm

Ecosystem History: Terrestrial and Fresh-water Ecosystems of Southern Florida
http://sofia.usgs.gov/publications/fs/146-96/

The Founding of Everglades National Park
http://www.historical-museum.org/history/tacit/tacit.htm

History Of The Everglades National Park
http://www.eng.fiu.edu/evrglads/introenp/history.htm#origin-of-enp

The Everglades and 10,000 Islands History Past and Present by Totch Brown
http://www.florida-everglades.com/totch/past.htm

History of Everglades National Park http://www.nps.gov/ever/eco/history.htm

Florida Everglades - History Links
http://www.florida-everglades.com/hiscul.htm

Everglades National Park 50 Years 1947 - 1997 - Historical Photos
http://www.evergladesonline.com/50years/events.htm

Link to Everglades/Florida Bay Timeline:
http://www.sfwmd.gov/org/wrp/wrp_evg/2_wrp_evg_info/evg_timetable.html

SFWMD website links: