Florida, MacDill team for ecosystem restoration project

  • Published
  • By the 6th Civil Engineer Squadron
MACDILL AIR FORCE BASE, Fla. --  There is excavation and earth moving happening at the north and south golf courses and the Lewis Lake recreation area. This construction activity is the culmination of nearly four years of planning and preparation - a joint effort between the State of Florida and the U.S. Air Force.

Back in 2008, MacDill Air Force Base and the Southwest Florida Water Management District forged a cooperative agreement which paved the way for what eventually developed into a $2.6 million ecologic restoration and surface water improvement project.

The Surface Water Improvement and Management program is a branch of the SWFWMD dedicated to improving surface water quality while simultaneously restoring and enhancing wetlands and natural habitats. Since its inception in 1989, the SWIM organization has completed more than 87 ecosystem restoration projects restoring 3,042 acres of coastal habitat throughout the Tampa Bay area. They know that MacDill's unique location with more than seven miles of shoreline at the tip of the Interbay peninsula offers excellent opportunities for improving the health of Tampa Bay through the restoration of its coastal communities.

Restoration of coastal ecosystems improves surface water quality by enhancing, and often expanding, wetlands which naturally control pollutants. It also improves and expands the estuaries, or aquatic nurseries, which are a vital part of any marine ecosystem. The SWFWMD has partnered with MacDill on two previous SWIM projects, completed in 1996 and 1999. However, the phase three SWIM effort is by far the largest. Funding for the phase three SWIM project comes primarily from the SWFWMD, providing approximately $1.8 million. In addition, grants from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the National Fish & Wildlife Foundation, as well as conservation funds from the Department of Defense were also secured to support the project.

The phase three SWIM project covers most of the southeastern portion of MacDill including the north and south golf courses and the Lewis Lake recreation area. Work on the south golf course primarily focused on restoring 30+ acres of degraded mangrove estuary which was essentially cut off from Tampa Bay years ago with construction of the golf course. The restoration work created a new tidal connection with the bay, removed dense stands of non-native vegetation (e.g. Brazilian pepper), and created more than 10 acres of new estuarine habitat. The project also improved many of the existing ponds on the south course by establishing tidal connections with Tampa Bay to create additional oligohaline (low salinity) habitat and by expanding the littoral (shallow water vegetated) areas of the ponds to increase pollutant uptake. Everyone seems to agree that the work has dramatically changed the appearance of the south course. One golfer playing the south golf course proclaimed "I really enjoy what you have done with the course by opening it up. It really created a spectacular view."

Work on the north golf course concentrated on improving stormwater treatment. A weir will divert stormwater from the large north and south drainage canal through a series of well vegetated freshwater and estuarine ponds on the north golf course. By redirecting stormwater water through the ponds the water flow is slowed down, which increases retention time and provides longer contact with the aquatic plants that naturally adsorb pollutants from the stormwater.

Lewis Lake is a permitted stormwater treatment system. The project increased the size of the lake, expanded the littoral platforms to increase beneficial aquatic vegetation and eradicated acres of nuisance, invasive plant species. The shape of the lake was modified so that water flow through the lake was redirected in a manner which increases retention time and improves pollutant uptake. Additional enhancements to the Lewis Lake recreational area include the creation of land bridges and fingers to increase fishing opportunities.

The phase three SWIM project indirectly affects about 800 acres around the project area through increased habitat and water quality improvements. The construction footprint affected more than 100 acres, and the project restored 9.6 acres of wetlands, created 21.9 acres of new wetlands, and directly enhanced 15.7 acres of surface water across the north and south golf courses and the Lewis Lake recreational area. Construction of the project began in July 2012 and is expected to be complete by March 2013. In total, the project excavated nearly 120,000 cubic yards of earth and replanted disturbed areas with more than 187,000 new native plants. The project team, which included representatives from the SWFWMD, Bay Palms Golf Course and the base Environmental Flight, was lead by Ms. Nancy Norton with SWFWMD.

Dr. Brandt Henningsen, SWFWMD member, summed the project up as "a wonderful opportunity for two governmental groups to work cooperatively on an important restoration project for the base and Tampa Bay."

For more information about the project or to participate in future environmental restoration volunteer events, contact the MacDill Environmental Flight.
Improvements to Lewis Lake Recreation Area reconfigured the lake to increase stormwater retention time, enhance vegetative communities, and expand recreational opportunities.

Ecosystem restoration work on the south golf course expanded a relic mangrove system through construction of a new tidal connection, creation of additional estuarine habitat, and the removal of acres of harmful, non-native vegetation.

For work on the north golf course which is still under construction, the SWIM project redirected stormwater flow through a series of ponds to slow water movement, increase retention time and improve pollutant uptake by native, wetland vegetation.