Partners break ground on project at Lake Monroe

The District’s Clay Coarsey (middle) and partners participate in a groundbreaking ceremony

The District’s Clay Coarsey (middle) and partners participate in a groundbreaking ceremony at Lake Monroe.

The District’s Clay Coarsey (middle) and partners participate in a groundbreaking ceremony

The District’s Clay Coarsey (middle) and partners participate in a groundbreaking ceremony at Lake Monroe.

PALATKA, Fla., Jan. 12, 2022 — Today, the St. Johns River Water Management District joined partners and interested stakeholders in celebrating the groundbreaking of a project that is integral to the success of the Volusia Prevention and Recovery Strategy (VPRS).

The VPRS is a comprehensive strategy to protect Blue Spring and six Volusia County lakes from current and potential impacts of groundwater withdrawals, as part of the District’s minimum flows and levels program. The strategy calls for groundwater withdrawals in the region to be maintained at or below sustainable limits, or for impacts from the withdrawals to be offset through reuse of reclaimed water, aquifer recharge and water supply projects, as well as through conservation and regulatory measures to protect water resources.

“We are excited about this project and its benefit to the region,” said Clay Coarsey, Division Director of Water Supply Planning and Assessment at the St. Johns River Water Management District. “The ability to provide additional reclaimed water to the city of Deltona and the surrounding area is a great accomplishment and one that will allow them to meet peak demands for water now and in the future.”

Both the District and the Florida Department of Environmental Protection have contributed funding to various phases of the project. This final phase consists of the construction of a surface water pump station on Lake Monroe and a transmission line that will allow the city of Deltona to pump and treat up to 4 million gallons a day of surface water. This water will be used to not only supplement the city’s reclaimed water system, but also allow them to provide any excess to other interconnected reclaimed water systems in the region and to recharge projects that would benefit Blue Spring.

To learn more about the District’s cost-share funding opportunities and projects, visit www.sjrwmd.com/localgovernments/funding.