Everglades Restoration by the Numbers

How do we know Everglades restoration is flowing? We see the progress ourselves!

Jul. 15, 2025 | Ribbon Cutting for the Grand Opening of the C43 Reservoir

This 10,000-acre reservoir will improve water quality, protect coastal ecosystems, and expand Florida’s water storage capacity.

Sept. 12, 2025 | Groundbreaking for CEPP

The Blue Shanty Flowway will help re-establish natural sheet flow in the southern Everglades by removing obstacles and enhancing water movement. This will enable clean water to flow south to the areas that need it most. Working in tandem with the Everglades Agricultural Area Reservoir, the project will support the delivery of vital fresh water to the ecosystems of Everglades National Park and Florida Bay.

Oct. 21, 2025 | Lake Hicpochee Phase II

Located near the headwaters of the Caloosahatchee River, Lake Hicpochee plays a vital role in regional water management. The project, part of the Northern Everglades and Estuaries Protection Program, aims to improve water quality, reduce the frequency and volume of harmful discharges to the Caloosahatchee Estuary, and provide much-needed shallow water storage in the surrounding watershed. Once complete, the restoration will help capture and treat stormwater runoff, promote natural wetland function, and enhance habitat for fish and wildlife.

Nov. 6, 2025 | Groundbreaking for the Everglades Agricultural Area Inflow Pump Station

The EAA Reservoir, located south of Lake Okeechobee, will store 78 billion gallons of water and deliver up to 470 billion gallons of clean water annually to the Everglades and Florida Bay. It also supports the Biscayne Aquifer, the primary source of drinking water for South Florida.

Done: Ribbon Cutting for Biscayne Bay Coastal Wetlands

The BBCW project aims to rehydrate coastal wetlands while reducing harmful runoff into Biscayne Bay and Biscayne National Park. According to the Army Corps of Engineers, the project “will restore wetland and estuarine habitats, and divert an average of 59 percent of the annual coastal structure discharge into freshwater and saltwater wetlands instead of direct discharges to Biscayne Bay and the national park.”

Up Next: Picayune Strand

As the first Comprehensive Everglades Restoration Program project to begin construction, the Picayune Strand Restoration Project will restore water flows to a portion of Collier County in Southwest Florida. When complete, the project aims to:

• Restore flows to nearly 70,000 acres of wetlands and uplands in the Picayune Strand as well as nearby public lands such as the Fakahatchee Strand State Preserve and the Collier-Seminole State Park.
• Restore the natural water flow to the Ten Thousand Islands National Wildlife Refuge and Rookery Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve.
• Recharge the aquifer.
• Reduce overdrainage.
• Improve salinity balances in tens of thousands of acres of coastal estuaries.
• Improve fire management and habitat for threatened species.

This article was published in the Audubon Florida Naturalist Winter 2025 issue.