The purpose of the BBSEER project will be to improve the quantity, quality, timing and distribution of freshwater to estuarine and nearshore subtidal areas, including mangrove and seagrass areas, of Biscayne Bay, Biscayne National Park, Card Sound, Barnes Sound and Manatee Bay.  This project will also seek to improve hydroperiods and freshwater marsh habitat in the Model Lands and Southern Glades, to re-establish hydrological and ecological connectivity between these areas and to improve the resiliency of these important marsh and coastal habitats to future sea level change.

BBSEER Project planning objectives include:

1. Improve quantity, timing, and distribution of freshwater to estuarine and nearshore subtidal areas, including mangrove and seagrass areas (500-meter zone).
2. Restore freshwater depths, hydroperiods, and flows, for dry and wet seasons in terrestrial wetlands.
3. Restore connectivity and habitat gradients in areas compartmentalized by federal and state canal systems in Southern Everglades, Model Lands, Biscayne Bay Coastal Wetlands
4. Increase and restore ecological resilience in coastal habitats in southeastern Miami-Dade County

The BBSEER Project Team has completed the plan formulation process and has publicly recommended Alternative 32 “Revised” (ALT32R) as the preliminary Tentatively Selected Plan.

The Engineering Technical Team has completed site visits and gathered existing information to advance design and make refinements to the BBSEER features. These refinements will be available in a technical document shortly.

The BBSEER Project Team is working to complete the Tentatively Selected Plan Milestone in September 2026 and produce a technical document on the analyses of the project complete to date in early 2027.

The BBSEER Preliminary Tentatively Selected Plan (TSP) was recommended as Alternative 32 “Revised” (ALT32R) and includes approximately 70 features aimed to meeting the BBSEER Project objectives and avoid impacts to water supply, flood protection, and water quality. See below for a graphic of ALT32R as it was presented to the BBSEER public Project Delivery Team on April 8, 2025, prior to any engineering design refinements.

The Biscayne Bay Southeastern Everglades Restoration (BBSEER) Project, a part of the Comprehensive Everglades Restoration Plan (CERP), that seeks to protect and restore the remaining Everglades ecosystem while providing for other water-related needs in the region, is being undertaken in partnership with the South Florida Water Management District.

The construction of roads, railways and ditches, along with the connection of the South Dade Conveyance System to the sea through the C-111 canal, dramatically altered the distribution of freshwater across the landscape of Southeastern Florida. These man-made barriers and drainage features starved some areas of freshwater and increased the supply to others converting what was a healthy productive aquatic ecosystem into a distressed environment.

Implementation of the project will provide multiple benefits to the aquatic environment including improved habitat for juvenile and prey-fish species, improved conditions for recreationally and commercially important aquatic species and fish and improved habitat for wading birds that were once common in this area prior to extensive drainage, all while maintaining the current level of flood protection.