Over the past several years, the City of Fort Pierce has been progressively addressing the water quality of the Indian River Lagoon and is continuously committed to keeping our precious waters clean. The City’s successful implementation of stormwater quality improvement projects have undoubtedly assisted with the cleanliness of our Indian River Lagoon.
Veterans Memorial Park
Have you noticed all of the activity on Indian River Drive in Downtown Fort Pierce? If so, you probably saw the construction in front of the River Walk Center. This will be home to the new and improved Veterans Memorial Park – beauty with a purpose! Not only does this project look absolutely beautiful and honor our veterans, it will also be extremely effective in reducing pollutants and unwanted particles from entering our lagoon. This project is currently scheduled to be completed by November 2016, just in time for Veteran’s Day. For more information, click here: http://www.cityoffortpierce.com/598/Veterans-Memorial-Park
Indian Hills Recreation Area and Stormwater Project
Are you ready for new outdoor recreation in Fort Pierce? You’re in luck; the Indian Hills Recreation Area features a .94 mile walking and biking trail around the perimeter of the lake, as well as informational kiosks which allow visitors to enjoy the improvements while being educated about the stormwater protection system. Highlights of this project include: expansion of the 17 acre stormwater treatment lake and 12 floating “islands,” which not only take care of fluctuating water levels, but also produce oxygen, remove nutrients and pesticides from the water, and provide a habitat for wildlife utilization. For more information, click here: http://www.cityoffortpierce.com/599/Indian-Hills-Recreation-Area
State Road A1A
Do you know what a baffle box is? Baffle boxes remove nutrients, sediments and oils from the runoff that discharges into the lagoon by the utilization of screens that trap vegetation, skimmers that prevent oils from discharges, and baffles that trap sediments. This project included installation of 9 baffle boxes at all existing drainage outfalls along A1A.
Moore’s Creek
Do you remember when we widened Moore’s Creek in 2010? This was a precautionary measure to increase stormwater capacity and retention time before discharge into the Indian River Lagoon. Improvements to Moore’s Creek included: the widening of the creek to provide additional storage capacity, installation of baffle boxes to remove nutrients, oils, and sediments from the run-off, and construction of littoral shelves. For more information, click here: http://www.cityoffortpierce.com/600/Moores-Creek
In light of the recent water quality concerns to our south, the City of Fort Pierce is proud have been proactive in addressing the needs of our Indian River Lagoon and will continue to do so. Residents are reminded that they should avoid any contact with algae blooms and stay out of waters where it is present.
For more information about our stormwater projects, contact the City of Fort Pierce Engineering Department at 772-467-3774.