Florida Legislature allocates $400 million for Grove Land Reservoir project, awaits DeSantis approval

ST. JOHNS, Fla. – The Florida Legislature allocated $400 million in the state budget, which awaits the governor’s approval, for the acquisition and ongoing planning of a project focused on safeguarding land to avert drinking water shortages and rejuvenate the environment.

The Grove Land Reservoir and Storm Water Treatment Area Project is aimed at conserving territory that spans across the southern border of the St. Johns River Headwaters and South Florida while simultaneously revitalizing water resources to bolster environmental sustainability and mitigate potential drinking water deficits in the state.

Included in the 2024 General Appropriations Act is the $400 million for the project.

The site earmarked for the prospective Grove Land Reservoir holds a distinctive position within the historic Upper St. Johns River basin.

This area currently holds water to prevent it from flowing into coastal estuaries. It is the only large piece of land in the river’s headwaters that borders canals able to move water in different directions—north, south, east and west.

The site also sits adjacent to the Florida Wildlife Corridor, serving as a crucial underpass for wildlife, including endangered species.

In an interview with Florida’s Voice, Eric Draper, advisor to Evans Properties Inc., stressed the importance of the project because the state is “running out of water.”

Evans Properties Inc. is the owner of the land located in Okeechobee and Indian River counties where the Grove Land Reservoir and Storm Water Treatment Area project would be built.

“Because we’re so flat, there’s no place to store water,” Draper said. “In Central Florida, the Orlando area, they determined that within a few years that there’s going to be a water shortage.”

Draper explained that in the Vero Beach area, water is “treated like a waste product” and dumped into the Atlantic Ocean in the estuaries next to the Atlantic Coast.

Also in that area is the Groveland site. He said it is a “really good site to build a reservoir” and store water that would “otherwise be dumped,” and then make that water available to “those places in Central Florida, where they’re running out of water.”

Draper said the water in South Florida that is being dumped into the ocean is “very polluted.” He said the project will be “creating a win-win” because it would eliminate the discharge of dirty water and release clean water “where it can benefit the environment and benefit future water supply needs.”

“[This project is going to] take that water, put it in the reservoir, treat it, clean it up, release it into the St. Johns River where it originally flowed and historically flowed into the St. Johns River, and add to water supply,” Draper said.

Draper said he is “extremely grateful” to Florida Senate President Kathleen Passidomo, R-Naples, and House Speaker Paul Renner, R-Palm Coast for being “so terrific about looking at the need for planning for future water supply.”

Draper said during the 2024 legislative session, leaders looked at the long term challenges of Florida’s environment.

Renner focused on water issues, developing new water quality programs. During Passidomo’s two years as senate president, she helped champion funds into Florida’s Wildlife Corridor, Everglades Restoration, and clean water projects.

Draper said both cleaning up water and focusing on water supply need to be done together, and this new project helps to do both of those things.

He said it “really makes a difference” when you have legislative leadership and a governor who are “looking toward the future.”

“We see investments in land acquisition, we see investments in Everglades restoration, and now we see an investment in our future water supply,” Draper said. “That really impresses me, and I’ve been doing this for a long time.”

“I’m very impressed with what the senate president, this house speaker, and the governor have done in terms of creating a budget that really does plan for Florida’s future,” he continued.

Draper said the $400 million would be used to buy the land where the reservoir would be located, as well as the planning, engineering, and the construction of the project itself.

He explained that previously in Florida, if there was a need for more water, it could be acquired by putting a pipe in the ground. 

However, he said as the population in Florida rapidly continues to grow, getting water through the ground impacts the state’s lakes and springs, leading the Florida government, the Department of Environmental Protection, and the Water Management District to have to figure out alternative sources for water. One way of doing so is to build reservoirs.

“We need to recover all that water that we’ve been taking out of the Florida aquifer so that the lakes get back to their normal levels, the rivers flow at their normal levels, and the springs flow again,” Draper said.

He said this project will help protect the Indian River Lagoon, the St. Lucie River Estuary, and the St. Johns River.

The Central Florida Water Initiative has recognized this site as a top priority project to enhance water supply for both Central Florida and coastal communities. Over a decade ago, the Florida Department of Environmental Protection commenced funding for the reservoir’s design in adherence to state regulations, and planning is now nearing completion.

Draper said if the appropriation for the project is approved by the governor, the St. Johns River Water Management District will enter into negotiations to purchase the land.

Once the land is purchased, the district will then start the design and engineering for the reservoir, and then begin construction, which he said oftentimes can be built in a three to five year period.