Middle St. Johns - Florida Department of Environmental Protection

228 Water Quality Assessment Report: Middle St. Johns
way to reduce runoff volumes. The project was funded by special legislative
appropriation for fiscal year 2001/2002.
• Aquatic plant revegetation: The SJRWMD has initiated an aquatic planting
plan to improve fisheries habitat in Lake Jesup. The project will also help to evaluate
aquatic vegetation growth patterns in various substrates.
• Construction of a box culvert along State Road 46 and Lake Jesup: In
partnership with the Florida Department of Transportation and the city of Sanford, the
SJRWMD has completed the design of a double concrete box culvert , approximately one
mile west of the Geneva Bridge, that would reconnect the lake’s floodplain and provide a
wildlife crossing. Construction will begin once flowage easements are obtained from
private landowners.
• Removal of levees at the Lake Jesup Conservation Area and the North Lake
Jesup Conservation Area: Removing the levees has reconnected 3,682 acres of
wetlands to the lake and will improve fisheries and wildlife habitat. It has also expanded
the lake’s storage volume, increasing flood protection in surrounding areas. Seminole
County has provided additional lake access for public use and established a public park
along the southwest shore.
• Seminole County subdivision stormwater retrofit program. The county has
initiated early planning for the program. Approximately 2,058 subdivisions in Seminole
County were platted and constructed prior to 1983, before the development of the
SJRWMD's stormwater rule. Approximately 1,420 plats are in the unincorporated areas
of the county. The retrofit program is needed most in the Lake Jesup watershed but also
includes other watersheds in the county.
• Removal of the State Road 46 causeway and elevation of a new bridge over
Lake Jesup. The Florida Department of Transportation is in the planning phase of the
project, which will allow important internal and external lake recirculation. The U.S.
Army Corps of Engineers is determining how best to remove flowage impediments
beneath the new bridge.
• Navy Canal Flood Attenuation and Retrofit Project: A section of the Navy
Canal flows over its banks, causing flooding and increasing the erosion and washouts of
downstream structures. The proposed correction involves constructing a 6.4-acre wet
detention pond with associated control structures north of Sand Dollar and regrading a
segment of the Navy Canal. The pond will also provide water quality treatment for the
watershed. The project is projected to reduce pollutant loads by 20,500 pounds per year.
• Cameron Ditch Project: The proposed project for Cameron Ditch includes the
construction of a 4-acre wet detention facility to provide water quality treatment for a
tributary drainage area of approximately 416 acres. The Watershed Management Model