DeSantis touts completion of water-improvement project that reversed damage done by man-made canal

Gov. DeSantis praises water-improvement projects

Governor Ron DeSantis gives an update on the billions of dollars allocated to improve Florida's water and the completion of the Crane Creek M1 Canal Flow Restoration project.

MELBOURNE, Fla. - Governor Ron DeSantis says since he’s taken office, he’s worked hard to improve the state’s water quality and announced the completion of the Crane Creek M1 Canal Flow Restoration project during a press conference on Monday. 

The backstory:

The canal was built more than 100 years ago to control flooding in the area, but it changed the way water naturally flowed between the St. John’s River and the Indian River Lagoon. 

Over time, storm water from nearby communities carried harmful nutrients into the lagoon, fueling algae blooms and damaging water quality. 

DeSantis said the Crane Creek M1 Canal Flow Restoration project fixed the problem by adding a new weir pump stations, a pipeline and a stormwater treatment area. This restored the natural westward flow to the St. John River Basin, reduced nutrient pollution out of the lagoon and provided up to 7 million gallons of fresh water per day for downstream use without over-reliance on the aquifer. 

What they're saying:

"There are a lot of problems in this state, starting with the Florida Everglades and even jewels like the Indian River Lagoon, so we said we’re going to do something about it," DeSantis explained. "So, we put our money where our mouth is. We launched a very ambitious project for environmental stewardship, and the results have been really fantastic, but we’re not done yet."

By the numbers:

To date, DeSantis said more than $3.3B has been awarded  to more than 1,000 projects aimed at protecting Florida’s resources. 

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According to the governor, the projects are already delivering results such as reducing nitrogen by more than 4.8 million pounds and reducing phosphorus by nearly 900,000 pounds on an annual basis. 

More than 250 projects have already been completed, and more are underway to meet the future demands of Florida’s growing population. 

Why you should care:

Removing nitrogen and phosphorous is critical when it comes to protecting springs, rivers, and estuaries from harmful algae blooms, fish kills, and long-term degradation of ecosystems that support tourism, recreation and drinking water for millions of Floridians. 

DeSantis said the state is also investing in an alternative water supply. 

A few months ago, the state awarded more than $389M in grants to make additional improvements in water quality and quantity across Florida. DeSantis said $100M went to the Indian River Lagoon protection program. The Indian River Lagoon is the most biologically diverse estuary in all of North America. 

"These projects alone are projected to remove more than 1.1M additional pounds of nitrogen and almost 300,000 pounds of phosphorus each year." 

What's next:

For the fiscal year ’25-’26 budget, DeSantis said the state invested $460M for water quality improvements and $50M for the alternative water supply grant program.