The South Florida Water Management District (SFWMD) actively operates and maintains one of the largest regional water management systems in the world. This vast regional water management system connects to secondary drainage districts comprised of smaller neighborhood systems to effectively manage and safeguard South Florida’s water resources.
Did you know water management infrastructure is key to protecting regional water supplies and providing flood control for over 9 million South Floridians? From canals and reservoirs to stormwater treatment areas and spillways, we’re highlighting some of the most common types of water management infrastructure.
Test your knowledge and get to know these terms:
- Stormwater Treatment Areas (STAs): Large, constructed wetlands designed to remove nutrient pollution from water using natural aquatic plants.
- Reservoirs and Impoundments: Human-made water bodies used for water storage above or below ground. A Flow Equalization Basin (FEB) is a type of impoundment designed to temporarily capture and hold water.
- Weirs: Structures across a canal or stream that block the flow of water until the water flows over the structure.
- Pumps: Mechanical control structures that force movement of water.
- Spillways: Structures that allow movement of water between water bodies by use of gates.
- Dikes and Levees: A barrier that diverts or restrains the flow of water. The large earthworks that surround Lake Okeechobee are generally referred to as dikes, whereas the smaller earthworks surrounding canals and Water Conservation Areas are generally called levees.
- Culverts: Structures that allow the flow of water between two areas. They are typically placed under roads or levees.
- Canals: A system of human-made trenches used for the movement of water.
- Ditch (dry): A narrow channel dug in the ground, typically used for drainage alongside a road or the edge of a field. Ditches are typically dry except during rain events.
Moving water to meet varying conditions and needs is essential to sustaining South Florida's people, economy and our environment.
Throughout the year, SFWMD Operations and Maintenance staff oversee more than 2,175 miles of canals, 2,130 miles of levees/berms, 915 water control structures, 620 project culverts and 89 pump stations to keep this regional water management system ready for whatever nature sends our way.
Learn more about the regional water management system and flood control across South Florida.