Kissimmee River Restoration (Florida)
Once straightened into a canal, Florida's Kissimmee River is winding again: 44 miles of river and 20,000 acres of wetlands restored (SFWMD).
Image: NASA/JPL (PIA03890).
Last reviewed: 1 source cited
Explain Like I'm 10
- Long ago, people dug a straight canal through the curvy Kissimmee River.
- That stopped floods but hurt the wetlands, birds and fish.
- Now workers have filled parts of the canal so the river can curve and flood its wetlands again.
The Five W's of the Kissimmee River Restoration
Who
The South Florida Water Management District and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, working together.
Source: South Florida Water Management District, Kissimmee River
What
Filling in part of the C-38 canal so water flows again through the river's old curves and floods its wetlands with the seasons.
Source: South Florida Water Management District, Kissimmee River
When
Congress authorized it in 1992, construction began in 1999, and the finish of construction was celebrated in July 2021.
Source: South Florida Water Management District, Kissimmee River
Where
Central Florida, between Lake Kissimmee and Lake Okeechobee. The basin is the headwaters of Lake Okeechobee and the Everglades.
Source: South Florida Water Management District, Kissimmee River
Why
In the 1960s the river was dredged into a straight canal. It gave flood protection but destroyed much of the floodplain A community of living things and the place they live, like a reef or a forest, all depending on each other. Glossary.
Source: South Florida Water Management District, Kissimmee River
Impact Statement
Government solution · active
The project restores more than 40 square miles of river floodplain, 20,000 acres of wetlands and 44 miles of meandering river (SFWMD).
Source: South Florida Water Management District, Kissimmee River
For Further Information: South Florida Water Management District, Kissimmee River
The Kissimmee River once meandered for 103 miles through central Florida (SFWMD).
How This Saves People & the Planet
For People
The project kept flood protection in place while restoring the river (SFWMD).
Source: South Florida Water Management District, Kissimmee River
For Nature
Seasonal rains and flows now flood the restored floodplain again, where native wetland plants, wading birds and fish once thrived (SFWMD).
Source: South Florida Water Management District, Kissimmee River
Learn More About the Kissimmee River
Want to go deeper? The South Florida Water Management District has the full story.
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