Florida Governor Ron DeSantis announced a new agreement between the State of Florida and the Army that will accelerate progress on several key components of Everglades restoration, including the Everglades Agricultural Area (EAA) Reservoir.
The agreement, formalized through a Memorandum of Agreement and accompanying Memorandum of Understanding, allows Florida to assume a leading role in constructing certain portions of the Comprehensive Everglades Restoration Plan (CERP), a long-running federal initiative to restore the natural flow of water in South Florida.
The EAA Reservoir, considered one of the most significant projects under CERP, is designed to store more than 78 billion gallons of water and deliver up to 470 billion gallons of treated water annually to the Everglades and Florida Bay. The reservoir also supports the Biscayne Aquifer, which supplies drinking water to much of South Florida.
Under the terms of the agreement, Florida will be authorized to construct several major components of the EAA Reservoir system, including the inflow and outflow pump stations. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers will continue to oversee construction of the reservoir basin. The project’s completion timeline has now been moved up by five years, from 2034 to 2029.
“This project, decades in the making, is moving forward faster than expected thanks to this new cooperation,” DeSantis said.
In addition to the EAA Reservoir, the agreement gives Florida authority over other CERP projects, including the Blue Shanty Flow Way, a key element for delivering water south of the Tamiami Trail. It also streamlines permitting and oversight procedures to reduce bureaucratic delays in future restoration work.
Mr. Lee Forsgren, Acting Assistant Secretary of the Army for Civil Works, described the agreement as a major step toward faster project delivery. “By strengthening our partnership with the state of Florida, we’re building on the historic commitment in President Trump’s FY26 budget to expedite work on Everglades Restoration,” he said.
The Everglades restoration effort seeks to undo decades of man-made alterations to South Florida’s water systems. While past changes helped control flooding, they also disrupted natural water flows, damaging ecosystems and contributing to harmful discharges into coastal estuaries.
Alexis Lambert, Secretary of the Florida Department of Environmental Protection, emphasized Florida’s familiarity with the Everglades landscape. “Floridians understand the Everglades better than anyone else. Our goal remains aligned with our federal partners—restoring America’s Everglades,” Lambert said.
Since 2019, Florida has completed several major Everglades-related projects ahead of schedule, including the C-43 and C-44 reservoirs, as well as nutrient reduction efforts that have removed millions of pounds of pollutants from state waterways.
While the announcement highlighted progress at the state level, it also included criticism of delays under the Biden administration. State officials cited slower timelines for federal projects managed by the Army Corps of Engineers and the U.S. Department of the Interior. In contrast, they said the South Florida Water Management District has consistently delivered projects more quickly and at lower cost.
The newly signed agreement is intended to build on that momentum and ensure faster, coordinated progress on one of the nation’s largest and most complex environmental restoration efforts.
