Everglades Agricultural Area Reservoir | Palm Beach County, Florida, USA | Client: South Florida Water Management District

The South Florida Water Management District is the largest water management district responsible for control and management of surface water in the State of Florida.  Restoration of the Everglades has been one of the most critical projects pursued by the Army Corps of Engineers during the past 30 years.  As part of a collaboration between the South Florida Water Management District and the Army Corps of Engineers to implement measures for the restoration of the Everglades, the State of Florida and the South Florida Water Management District initiated an accelerated process to design and implement eight of many large projects envisioned for the restoration of the Everglades.  The eight projects involved construction of large reservoirs and wetland treatment areas primarily south of the Lake Okeechobee to control surface water flow to the east and west shores of Florida, and to divert surface water to the Everglades.  The largest reservoir project designed among the eight projects was the Everglades Agricultural Area Reservoirs.  It was envisioned that two large reservoirs would be constructed south of Lake Okeechobee in the western part of Palm Beach County, which will receive water from the canals draining Lake Okeechobee.  The storage of water would provide additional flood control, proper management of water for irrigation, treatment of surface water for quality, and supplying water to the Everglades.

South Florida Water Management District designed and permitted the first large reservoir, which is approximately 16,000 acres in area.  The reservoir containment embankment would be 28 ft in height and 22 miles in length.  The embankment was designed to have all features of a large earth dam.  Construction of the reservoir began in September 2006, to be completed by 2011.  Globex was part of the construction management team responsible for monitoring construction activities at the site.  Construction activities were carried out on a 24-hour basis and Globex had professionals in the field during the day and night shifts.  Globex was responsible for monitoring quality of work, documenting work activities, documenting contractor’s staff and equipment, and reporting of observations.