Lee County accepts $774K for North Ft. Myers water quality project

FORT MYERS – The Lee Board of County Commissioners on Tuesday voted to accept a state grant of $774,000 from the Florida Department of Environmental Protection for construction of water quality improvements to the Powell Creek bypass canal.

The 10.5-acre project site is southwest of Old Bridge Road, near the Caloosahatchee River, and is designed to improve water quality in the Powell Creek bypass canal. The project will divert water through a detention area /filter marsh to remove nutrients before the water flows into the Caloosahatchee River, which has a Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) for nitrogen.

The Caloosahatchee Estuary Basin Management Action Plan (BMAP), adopted November 2012, includes this project as part of its goal to reduce elevated nitrogen levels in the estuary.

The Board on Sept. 18 approved a contract with Kimley Horn to design the project. Funding for the design is budgeted in the current fiscal year.

For more information on Lee County Natural Resources’ efforts to protect and improve water quality, log on to http://www.leegov.com/naturalresources/WaterQuality.