Florida Governor Ron DeSantis not too long ago marked the official opening of the Caloosahatchee (C-43) Reservoir, a ten,000-acre water storage facility acknowledged as some of the vital Everglades restoration tasks in Florida’s historical past.
Accompanied by state and native officers, environmental advocates, and water administration leaders, DeSantis celebrated the completion of the reservoir, which is anticipated to significantly enhance water high quality, improve freshwater storage, and shield downstream ecosystems alongside Florida’s Gulf Coast.
“This mission will have an effect far past the Caloosahatchee,” DeSantis acknowledged. “The C-43 Reservoir is a landmark achievement in our broader mission to revive the Everglades, broaden Florida’s water storage capability, and go away this state higher than we discovered it.”
Situated in Hendry County, the C-43 Reservoir will seize and retailer extra stormwater runoff from the Caloosahatchee River in the course of the moist season. It’ll launch freshwater throughout dry durations to assist steadiness salinity ranges within the estuary and cut back dangerous discharges into the Gulf of Mexico. This mission is a component of a bigger initiative to revive pure water circulate throughout South Florida.
DeSantis has made Everglades restoration a central focus of his administration. On his second day in workplace in 2019, he signed Government Order 19-12, pledging $2.5 billion over 4 years for water high quality enhancements and Everglades tasks—a aim that the state exceeded by investing $3.3 billion throughout his first time period.
In his second time period, DeSantis has continued this momentum. The not too long ago signed state finances for FY 2025–26 contains $1.4 billion for water initiatives, bringing the entire to $4.6 billion for his present time period—already surpassing his unique aim of $3.5 billion. In complete, practically $8 billion has been dedicated to water high quality and Everglades restoration since 2019.
“Right this moment, I used to be excited to affix the Governor for this main milestone,” stated Florida Division of Environmental Safety Secretary Alexis A. Lambert. “Beneath Governor DeSantis’ management, we’ve invested extra in restoration and are seeing significant outcomes—on time and on finances.”
