Hydrology Restoration Project

The Refuge is engaged in a multi-year effort to restore natural hydrology across the Lower Suwannee Refuge into the Gulf. Several years ago, grants to restore the land and water became available after the Gulf oil spill for high impact projects in the affected region. The Refuge joined with other organizations in a successful hydrology restoration proposal. More details about it are available in Restoration of the Refuge's Natural Hydrology.

Now that our project has received approval and funding, the next step is to obtain detailed engineering studies of the specific areas where changes will be made. The Refuge decided to focus first on the public driving roads, the Dixie Mainline, its spurs, and the Nature Drive and its spurs.  The secondary roads will be addressed later, but remedying the public driving roads is a first priority and may use all the current funding.

The Refuge is working with the Suwannee River Water Management District (SRWMD), given its expertise in water studies. SRWMD will soon release a Request for Quotations to identify an appropriate consulting firm  for an Engineering and Design Study. The purpose of the study is to lay out various options to achieve our restoration goals.

As was mentioned in the earlier article, the project is important because it will return the natural hydrology and movement of water through the Refuge to the Gulf of Mexico. It will improve the health of the estuary by restoring freshwater to it. Moreover, it will help sustain the economic viability of recreational and commercial fishing, ecologically important oyster reefs, federally-protected species, and the significant shellfish aquaculture industry in the region.

The photos show various ditches next to roads. The roads form barriers, keeping the fresh water from flowing naturally across the land and into the Gulf and River.