• March

    Completion of critical project milestone celebrated for Tamiami Trail One-Mile Bridge

    Federal, state and local officials stood atop 5,280 linear feet of restoration progress as they came together to celebrate the completion of the Tamiami Trail one-mile bridge March 19 in Miami, Fla.
  • Reaching out in South Florida

    Reaching out to the communities we serve, to engage them by providing information as well as seeking their input on our projects and processes, is a basic tenet of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Jacksonville District. From formal meetings about the Central Everglades Planning Project to participating in community-based events, the Jacksonville District team is continuously engaged in a multitude of public interactions in south Florida.
  • The relationship between the United States, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands

    The first of this series of four stories about the history of Jacksonville District’s Antilles Office described the location of the archipelago of islands that includes Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. This installment will look at how Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands are related to the United States.
  • Cowbone Marsh to be protected through Regulatory Division action

    Located within central Glades County, Fla., eight miles upstream of the mouth of Fisheating Creek at the western shore of Lake Okeechobee, lies Cowbone Marsh, an approximately 5,500-acre freshwater marsh system. Fisheating Creek, the only remaining free-flowing waterway feeding into the lake, flows through Cowbone Marsh. Most of the surrounding land is either publicly owned or under conservation easements that restrict development, making it one of the most valuable aquatic and wildlife resource areas in the country.
  • Jacksonville Mayor celebrates Black History Month with Corps Employees

    Jacksonville District wrapped up its 2013 Black History Month events with a visit from Jacksonville Mayor Alvin Brown Feb. 27. “Black history means accountability, responsibility and opportunity. It means that we have the ability to work together to fully empower people and believe that they too could live the American dream by getting a good education, by focusing on what they can do to be successful,” said Brown.
  • Close competition in the 2013 Black History Brain Brawl

    Jacksonville District divisions are about to go head to head in the 2013 Black History Brain Brawl. The defending champions, Regulatory Division, walk in and set a large trophy on the table in front of them.
  • Engineering Career Day engages students and promotes STEM careers

    STEM is a national and regional effort to better prepare the workforce of tomorrow by encouraging today’s students to engage in studies, events and careers involving science, technology, engineering and math. The Engineering Career Day event invites student teams to compete in building and entering a take home project, completing a surprise project assigned the day of the event and a trivia challenge. Team 2 from Bishop Kenny, Thunder Buddies, was the overall winner of the competition.
  • February

    Spencer discusses invasive plants at local science symposium

    In an effort to educate land managers and the public about two plants that are just beginning to invade the Jacksonville area, biologist Jessica Spencer gave a presentation at the 2013 Timucuan Science and History Symposium Jan. 25 in Jacksonville, Fla.
  • Where in the world are the Antilles and Puerto Rico?

    Jacksonville District’s area of responsibility includes the Antilles and Puerto Rico, but some have only a vague idea of the location of the Antilles, its relationship with the United States, and what the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers does there. This first installment in a series provides a bird’s eye view of the Antilles.
  • Motivating, recruiting students was driving force behind Engineering Career Day

    A desire to motivate students to pursue engineering degrees and jobs ten years ago by a handful of U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Jacksonville District engineers and other young professionals resulted in what has become an annual high school competition on Engineering Career Day. These enterprising engineers from several different disciplines within the Corps came up with a plan to make students aware of a possible future in the fields of science, engineering, math and technology via a take home construction competition.
  • Burmese pythons threaten native species and restoration efforts

    A hunt for Burmese pythons in south Florida is not a hoax; this non-native invasive species is threatening Everglades ecosystem restoration efforts and native wildlife. The one-month ‘Python Challenge’ organized by the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission allows anyone older than 18 to hunt the snakes on state land. Burmese pythons are exceptionally difficult to locate, due to their camouflaging capabilities. The ISM branch has initiated efforts to detect the pythons by using dogs and thermal energy remote sensing by an Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV).
  • African American/Black History Month

    In observance of African American/Black History Month, which takes place Feb. 1-28, 2013, Jacksonville District’s Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) Office has planned several events with the theme, “At the Crossroads of Freedom and Equality: The Emancipation Proclamation and the March on Washington.” Mayor Alvin Brown of the city of Jacksonville is the keynote speaker for a program scheduled for Wednesday, Feb. 27 from 10 to 11 a.m.
  • Quick response by Regulatory Division keeps St. Thomas running

    Early in December 2012, Regulatory Division’s Antilles Office staff received word that the island of St. Thomas in the U.S. Virgin Islands was on the brink of losing electrical power, absent a permit to make necessary modifications to a dock at Krum Bay which would facilitate the delivery of fuel.
  • New Faces of Engineering: Viktoria Bogina

    Viktoria Bogina, E.I.T., a civil engineer with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE), Jacksonville District, was one of the USACE nominees for this year's New Faces of Engineering program. “I’m really excited for this recognition, and I couldn’t be more thrilled!” said Bogina. Each year, the National Engineers Week Foundation – a coalition of engineering societies, major corporations and government agencies – asks its members to nominate colleagues 30 years old and younger who have shown outstanding abilities and leadership. The program promotes the accomplishments of young engineers, highlights the impact of their engineering contributions on society and inspires students to consider engineering careers.
  • January

    Corps Deputy Commanding General visits south Florida project sites

    Maj. Gen. Michael J. Walsh, Deputy Commanding General for Civil and Emergency Operations for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, visited Jacksonville District project sites in south Florida Jan. 23 and 24, including the Tamiami Trail Modifications project and the Herbert Hoover Dike Rehabilitation project.
  • Jacksonville Engineer Tim Brown wins big at national engineering conference

    Timothy R. Brown, a senior project manager with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Jacksonville District, responsible for leading interdisciplinary project delivery teams in the execution of large scale civil works projects, is the recipient of this year’s Special Recognition award for the 2013 BEYA STEM Conference.
  • Federal, state partners celebrate completion of key component in Everglades restoration

    Federal and state partners celebrated the completion of a key component in improving freshwater deliveries to the southern end of the Everglades ecosystem Jan. 11 in Homestead, Fla., at the C-111 Spreader Canal Western Project Dedication Ceremony.
  • Busy year for nation’s largest regulatory permitting program

    Jacksonville District’s regulatory permitting program, the largest in the Corps, exceeded all national performance standards in Fiscal Year 2012. Particularly noteworthy is the fact that 94 percent of general permit decisions were completed within 60 days of receipt of a complete application and 82 percent of individual permit decisions were completed within 120 days of receipt of a complete application.
  • Milestones reached at Herbert Hoover Dike as dedication to water management balance continues

    The past year saw both low water and high water at Lake Okeechobee, as well as completion of one project and the start of others on Herbert Hoover Dike (HHD). The best news occurred in October, when the last section of cutoff wall in the dike between Port Mayaca and Belle Glade was accepted by Jacksonville District construction representatives. The action meant 21.4 miles of cutoff wall that had been under construction since 2007 was in place, reducing the risk of failure for the southeast portion of the dike.
  • Invasive Species biologists combat explosion of aquatic plant growth

    The year 2012 brought many challenges for the Invasive Species Management (ISM) Branch to tackle. Multiple factors led to the highest levels of water hyacinth on Lake Okeechobee since 1986. Water hyacinth invades lakes, ponds, rivers, marshes and other types of wetland habitats. According to the Early Detection and Distribution Mapping System website, water hyacinth can reproduce and quickly form dense floating mats of vegetation, sometimes doubling in size over a two week period. These dense mats reduce light and deplete oxygen levels for submerged plants and aquatic invertebrates.