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  • August

    A view of operations at Port Everglades, where Jacksonville District is conducting a study to address the potential widening of the entrance channel and deepening of the navigation channel from its current 42 feet to a depth of 48 feet.

    Port studies reach critical milestones

    Two major milestones have been met, with the release of the draft tentatively selected plan for the Jacksonville Harbor Deepening Study and the Port Everglades Feasibility Study.

  • July

    Survey technician Jack Salzer at the helm of the Florida II. Salzer was working for the Corps when the Florida first arrived in 1973

    New survey vessel brings enhanced capability to support district missions

    The Florida II is a 62-foot aluminum hydrofoil-assisted catamaran hydrographic survey vessel that was built to Corps specifications by All American Marine and commissioned in February 2013. The
  • Lionfish were first reported off Florida’s Atlantic Coast in 1985, according to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission website. Lionfish can reach up to 22 inches in length and have a venomous spine that can cause painful wounds.

    Lionfish continue to populate, pose threats to coral reefs

    Their dorsal spines and zebra-like bodies may draw one in for a closer look. Commonly used in aquariums for show, the invasive lionfish has made its way from the South Pacific and Indian Oceans to the east coast. In the past decade, they’ve been rapidly expanding from Florida to North Carolina, as well as the Caribbean.
  • Mike Ornella, Interagency and International Services branch chief, addresses celebration attendees. Ornella says the small IIS program operates on a limited budget but contributes a considerable percentage to the district’s full time equivalent.

    District celebrates 19 years of Interagency and International Services support

    Staff gathered Thursday, June 6, to celebrate the 19th birthday of Jacksonville District’s Interagency and International Services (IIS) program. Joining the celebration were two former employees who were instrumental to the program’s creation.
  • Senior leaders from Jacksonville District listen as Emergency Management Branch Chief Aaron Stormant fires questions to the group during a Continuity of Operations (COOP) exercise conducted June 4. The exercise tested the COOP plan through a discussion on how critical operations would be conducted if the district’s headquarters building were inaccessible due to disaster.

    Jacksonville District prepares for potential emergency

    The exercise tested the COOP plan, which identifies critical actions that must continue in the event the district’s headquarters building was no longer inhabitable because of fire, flood or some other event.
  • The members of EMC Magnitude Design, Inc. at Booker Creek, the site of their award-winning water environment improvement design. Pictured left to right is Miki Skinner, Caitlin Hoch and Brett French. Team members not pictured are Erin Morrison and Josh Becker.

    Regulatory’s Caitlin Hoch and team headed to national competition

    Tampa Regulatory Office’s newest environmental engineer Caitlin Hoch has already added a pretty impressive credential to her resume. The recent University of South Florida graduate and her student design team, EMC Magnitude Design, Inc. took first place in a recent competition sponsored by the Florida Water Environment Association, beating 10 other teams from seven state universities. They will advance to represent the state in the national competition at the Water Environment Federation Technical Exhibition and Conference this fall.

  • June

    A survey of laurel wilt damage to swampbays in an Everglades tree island.

    Laurel wilt – a possible threat to Everglades restoration

    First discovered in 2005 in Duval County, laurel wilt disease has since spread south and is covering a vast section of Tamiami Trail, potentially threatening the Everglades. The disease, caused by a fungus transmitted by the invasive redbay ambrosia beetle, kills avocado and other trees in the laurel family
  • Outreach program specialist and former middle school teacher Erica Skolte spoke to eighth grade students at Polo Park Middle School about what the Everglades were like prior to being altered by man.

    The student connection: Corps employees reach out to local schools

    For the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Jacksonville District, this time of year provides an opportunity to educate future engineers and scientists on the breadth of the district’s work and the contributions it makes to the quality of life in Florida, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. All Corps team members are representatives for the Corps in their own communities. Every interaction provides a potential opportunity to share information about the district’s programs and projects.
  • A view of Palm Beach Harbor, the site of the Lake Worth Inlet Feasibility Study, which evaluates the potential widening and deepening of the channel.

    Lake Worth Inlet moves forward with release of draft report to public

    In May, the Lake Worth Inlet project team reached a major milestone with the release of the draft environmental impact statement (DEIS) to the public. A public meeting to introduce the plan to the community was attended by nearly 70 interested residents and stakeholders in Palm Beach.
  • Panther biologists have tracked Florida panthers crossing north in a section of the Caloosahatchee River that narrows to about 92 feet across and has relatively gradual banks. It is just a few miles west of the Ortona Lock and Dam.

    Corps recognized for role in making Florida panther corridor a reality

    Panther scientists estimate that there are only 100 to 140 Florida panthers remaining in the wild, and the last remaining breeding population of Florida panthers is in south Florida, south of the Caloosahatchee River.
  • Steve Dunham, chief of the South Florida Operations Office in Clewiston (in white shirt) and park ranger Richard Bailey speak with army instructor Sergeant First Class Brian Lamberton as JROTC volunteers plant Royal Palms along the entrance to the Port Mayaca Lock & Dam.

    Volunteers take pride in accomplishments at Take Pride in America Day

    Like anything worthwhile, Jacksonville District’s observance of Take Pride in America Day took a lot of planning, preparation and hard work. For the Corps employees and volunteers who participated in the May 4 event, the results were well worth the effort again this year. It was a win-win for everyone involved.
  • Adam Morrison (left), Jacksonville District Equal Employment Opportunity Office, visited lock leader Pam Peralta (right) and lock operator Robert Holmes (center) at Moore Haven Lock and Dam on the Okeechobee Waterway.

    Female lock leader honored with Steel de Fleury

    Forty years ago, career choices for women were generally not as diverse as they are today. Pam Peralta never let that stand in her way. Her choices leaned toward the non-traditional and resulted in several historic firsts.

  • May

    A current view of the filter marsh, in which invasive vegetation has been removed. A new weir structure will be constructed, where flows will outfall into an existing slough system that discharges into the east branch of Coral Creek. Wood Storks and Roseate Spoonbills have already been observed feeding in the marsh as it was pumped down.

    Restoration project may serve as regional prototype

    Nationwide Permit (NWP) 27 specifically authorizes aquatic habitat restoration, establishment and enhancement activities, and it was this general permit, issued by Linda Elligott, project manager in the Fort Myers Regulatory Office, that authorized a unique hydrologic and habitat restoration project in Charlotte County.
  • Water Conservation Area #3 near the Tamiami Trail in late April. How to handle this water during extreme wet weather events was the topic of a meeting held with multiple state and federal agencies in preparation for the upcoming wet season.

    Water managers prepare for wet season

    A different challenge facing water managers this year surrounds Lake Okeechobee and a higher water level this year, when compared to the previous two years. On April 23, the lake level was 13.59 feet, more than two feet higher than it was on the same date in 2011 and 2012. The lake has stayed within the Corps’ preferred range of 12.5 and 15.5 feet all winter. As a result, the district has been able to provide regular discharges of water to meet a wide variety of needs, including releases to the Caloosahatchee Estuary to keep the saltwater-freshwater mix in an acceptable range.
  • During his recent deployment to Afghanistan, Robert Medlock (center) managed construction projects in Afghanistan, one of which was on Forward Operating Base (FOB) Shank in the Logar Province.

    Corps project manager sets future conditions in Afghanistan

    Robert Medlock, a 10-year veteran of Jacksonville District, just returned from his second deployment with the Corps in February and is now incorporating new skill sets he acquired while overseas into his management of Everglades restoration projects in the district’s Ecosystem Branch.
  • The giant African land snail (GALS) is considered one of the most damaging snails in the world, known to consume at least 500 different types of plants and possibly pose a health threat to humans.

    Giant African snails attack south Florida

    The giant African land snail (GALS) is considered one of the most damaging snails in the world, known to consume at least 500 different types of plants and possibly pose a health threat to humans, according to the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (FDACS) website.
  • Looking upstream to its source in the central mountains, the Río Puerto Nuevo basin drains 24 square miles of metropolitan San Juan, 75 percent of which is highly developed with a population of 250,000. The plan of improvements includes channels, high velocity channels, debris basins and modifications to bridges, in an effort to protect the population against a 100-year flood.

    An overview of projects and missions in the Antilles

    Puerto Rico, at its widest point, is 110 miles long from east to west and only 40 miles wide from north to south. The main mountain range, La Cordillera Central and the smaller cordilleras that run east-west through the center of the island are sparsely populated, but take up half of the available land. Most of the population lives in the narrow coastal band around the cordilleras. In the mountainous region above the city of Ponce in the south, slopes average 45 degrees and Cerro de Punta, the highest point of the island, at 4,393 feet, is only 14 miles from the coast.
  • Unexploded ordnance, found by a young girl on Culebra, Puerto Rico. Old military munitions are not always easily identifiable and should always be considered dangerous, regardless of their age, condition or location.

    Injury underscores importance of 3R safety message

    The potential for encountering military munitions on Culebra and in the surrounding waters is high, and the Corps consistently informs the community about that possibility while promoting safety precautions.

  • April

    Biologist Jessica Spencer (left) educates a volunteer group about air potato, an invasive vine that has been found at local creek cleanups. The volunteers were at one of many cleanup sites around Jacksonville, Fla. as part of the 18th Annual St. Johns River Cleanup March 16.

    Air Potato Roundup yields big results, educates community

    National Invasive Species Week, held March 2 through 8, focused on raising awareness of non-native threats to local ecosystems and endangered species. Invasive species smother native plants and are one of the greatest ecological threats to natural communities, according to the U.S. Department of the Interior, which also estimates the costs to prevent, monitor and control invasive species at about $137 billion annually.

  • Army Family Action Plan

    AFAP is input from the people of the Army to Army leadership. It's a process that allows Soldiers, Department of the Army (DA) civilians, retirees and family members to say what's working and what isn't – and what they think will fix it. It alerts commanders and Army leaders to areas of concern that need their attention and it gives them the opportunity to quickly put plans into place to work toward resolving the issues.