EXCITING NEWS FROM THE CITY OF FORT PIERCE:
Governor Ron DeSantis and the Florida Legislature approved $25 million in funding for water quality improvement projects that specifically benefit the Indian River Lagoon for the fiscal year 2020-2021. The State of Florida General Appropriations Act FY 2021 provides the funding under line item 1641A to the St. Johns River Water Management District (SJRWMD) for water quality projects that reduce nutrients TP (Total Phosphorous) and TN (Total Nitrogen) and restore flow to the Indian River Lagoon (IRL). Eligible applicants include counties and municipalities (local governments) within the IRL watershed in the SJRWMD and the South Florida Water Management District (SFWMD), as well as public universities, regional planning councils, non-profit groups, and Indian River Lagoon National Estuary Program. Notifications of funding awards are usually made in September.
The City of Fort Pierce is pleased to announce that it is applying for $1,550,000.00 in grant funding to fund the Georgia Avenue Basin Water Quality Improvement Project. The Georgia Avenue Basin lies within the Indian Hills Golf Course; east of US Highway 1; south of Georgia Avenue; and west of the Florida East Coast Railroad, and outfalls to the Indian River Lagoon.
Currently, the 235-acre Georgia Avenue Basin drains through the Indian Hills Golf Course through a High-Density Polyethylene (HDPE) lined sixty-inch (60") Reinforced Concrete Pipe (RCP). It then discharges directly into the Indian River Lagoon. There are three (3) points of inflow into the golf course where three (3) BMP Treatment Trains will be constructed. At Inflow 1, the project will clean out the north part of the lake located on the golf course and create a stormwater treatment area / bioswale prior to discharging into the lake. At Inflow 2, a Generation 2 Baffle Box will be installed prior to discharging into a transmission swale. The swale will be stabilized with a concrete grid which outfalls into the lake. At Inflow 3, an aeration fountain will be placed to increase oxygen content in the lake at Inflow 3 prior to discharging to the main lake. A control structure will be placed prior to the lake outfalling into the Indian River Lagoon to promote retention and limit discharge.
If the City is awarded the funding it seeks, the project would filter out approximately 626 pounds of nitrogen; 105 pounds of phosphorous; and 20,361 pounds of Total Suspended Solids annually from reaching the Indian River Lagoon! We will keep residents updated via the City’s website and Facebook page on the status of the awards. We look forward to your feedback and support of this initiative to improve the Indian River Lagoon.