21
1.3 Proposed Everglades Restoration Projects
1.3.1 Central and South Florida Project for Flood Control
The Central and Southern Florida (C&SF) Project, first authorized by Congress in
1948, was a multi-purpose project consisting of approximately 1600 km of levees,
1150 km of canals, and almost 200 water control structures (Finkl 1995; Light et al.
1995). This effort served as the genesis of water management in south Florida with
the following goals in mind: adequate flood control; ample water resources for
municipal, industrial, and agricultural uses; water influxes for Everglades National
Park (ENP); the prevention of saltwater intrusion; and the protection of fish, plant,
and wildlife resources (Perry 2008). Unfortunately, as was seen over time, the
C&SF proved highly beneficial to many human interests involved with agriculture,
water supply, and flood control, but not to wildlife residing in the Everglades
ecosystem.
The C&SF Project was under the direct supervision of the Central and Southern
Florida Flood Control District (FCD) and centered around three main components
(Gunderson and Light 2006). First, there was the establishment of a perimeter levee
through the eastern portion of the Everglades. The function of this levee was to
sever approximately 16% of the eastern Everglades from the interior (Light et al.
1995). This allowed lands farther east to be protected from direct Everglades flooding through the blockage of sheet flow that would naturally occur. Second, the
C&SF Project designed a large area of the northern Everglades, just south of Lake
Okeechobee, to be drained and managed for the sole purpose of agriculture (Snyder
and Davidson 1994). Aptly named the Everglades Agriculture Area (EAA), it
encompassed about 27% of the historic Everglades and was a major driving economic factor of the C&SF Project (Davis and Ogden 1994). Third, the remaining
Everglades between the EAA and the ENP were designated exclusively as water
conservation areas (WCAs) (Kiker et al. 2001).
At that time, the newly formed FCD, which held their first official meeting in
West Palm Beach in July 1949, was charged primarily with providing flood protection to the area, thus, they did not adhere to the natural hydrologic or geographic
features of the Everglades (Rizzardi 2001; Sklar et al. 2005). In its first 5 years of
existence, the FCD acquired, through either title or easement, approximately
3500 km
2
needed for construction and water storage, as dictated by the C&SF
Project (Perry 2008). The acquired land, which cost $1.5 million back then, included
Everglades wetlands in the WCAs. The FCD was charged with keeping an optimistic schedule for the C&SF Project, which called for all the public works features to
be completed within 10 years at a cost of $200 million (Clark and Dalrymple 2003;
Holl and Howarth 2000). However, as of 1960, $68 million had been expended, with
only about 20% of the work complete (Light and Dineen 1994). In the meantime,
Florida’s population was booming, increasing from three million to five million
over the previous decade. Turner Wallis, who served as the FCD’s first executive
director from 1949 to 1956, called for a more rapid pace for the C&SF Project,
1 The Florida Everglades: An Overview of Alteration and Restoration
1.3 Proposed Everglades Restoration Projects
1.3.1 Central and South Florida Project for Flood Control
The Central and Southern Florida (C&SF) Project, first authorized by Congress in
1948, was a multi-purpose project consisting of approximately 1600 km of levees,
1150 km of canals, and almost 200 water control structures (Finkl 1995; Light et al.
1995). This effort served as the genesis of water management in south Florida with
the following goals in mind: adequate flood control; ample water resources for
municipal, industrial, and agricultural uses; water influxes for Everglades National
Park (ENP); the prevention of saltwater intrusion; and the protection of fish, plant,
and wildlife resources (Perry 2008). Unfortunately, as was seen over time, the
C&SF proved highly beneficial to many human interests involved with agriculture,
water supply, and flood control, but not to wildlife residing in the Everglades
ecosystem.
The C&SF Project was under the direct supervision of the Central and Southern
Florida Flood Control District (FCD) and centered around three main components
(Gunderson and Light 2006). First, there was the establishment of a perimeter levee
through the eastern portion of the Everglades. The function of this levee was to
sever approximately 16% of the eastern Everglades from the interior (Light et al.
1995). This allowed lands farther east to be protected from direct Everglades flooding through the blockage of sheet flow that would naturally occur. Second, the
C&SF Project designed a large area of the northern Everglades, just south of Lake
Okeechobee, to be drained and managed for the sole purpose of agriculture (Snyder
and Davidson 1994). Aptly named the Everglades Agriculture Area (EAA), it
encompassed about 27% of the historic Everglades and was a major driving economic factor of the C&SF Project (Davis and Ogden 1994). Third, the remaining
Everglades between the EAA and the ENP were designated exclusively as water
conservation areas (WCAs) (Kiker et al. 2001).
At that time, the newly formed FCD, which held their first official meeting in
West Palm Beach in July 1949, was charged primarily with providing flood protection to the area, thus, they did not adhere to the natural hydrologic or geographic
features of the Everglades (Rizzardi 2001; Sklar et al. 2005). In its first 5 years of
existence, the FCD acquired, through either title or easement, approximately
3500 km
2
needed for construction and water storage, as dictated by the C&SF
Project (Perry 2008). The acquired land, which cost $1.5 million back then, included
Everglades wetlands in the WCAs. The FCD was charged with keeping an optimistic schedule for the C&SF Project, which called for all the public works features to
be completed within 10 years at a cost of $200 million (Clark and Dalrymple 2003;
Holl and Howarth 2000). However, as of 1960, $68 million had been expended, with
only about 20% of the work complete (Light and Dineen 1994). In the meantime,
Florida’s population was booming, increasing from three million to five million
over the previous decade. Turner Wallis, who served as the FCD’s first executive
director from 1949 to 1956, called for a more rapid pace for the C&SF Project,
1 The Florida Everglades: An Overview of Alteration and Restoration