Holding Water, Healing the Everglades: Why Reservoirs Are Fundamental to Restoration
- Apr 1
- 3 min read
Updated: 5 days ago
April x, 2026
Restoring the Everglades isn’t just about moving water – it’s about storing it, too. Almost like a water savings account, reservoirs in Florida are helping rebuild nature’s balance by capturing water when it’s abundant and releasing it when the ecosystem needs it most.
What Are Reservoirs and What Is Their Role in Everglades Restoration?
Reservoirs are large-scale water storage projects that allow water managers to hold excess freshwater during the wet season and release it during the dry season. In Everglades restoration, storage plays a critical role in restoring the natural timing and distribution of water across the landscape, especially in a system that is reduced in area, compartmentalized, and disconnected from Lake Okeechobee.
Historically, water slowly flowed south from Lake Okeechobee into the Everglades. Over time, agriculture expanded immediately south of the lake, and flood control infrastructure altered that system, redirecting water east and west to protect communities. This led to a significant reduction in flows to the remaining Everglades. In restoration, reservoirs help reconnect the lake to the Everglades by storing water that would otherwise be discharged to coastal estuaries and making it available to the ecosystem when and where it is needed.
As part of the Comprehensive Everglades Restoration Plan (CERP), reservoirs support a broader effort to restore natural flows, improve water quality, protect our coasts, and increase ecosystem resilience throughout South Florida. Together, reservoir projects demonstrate how storage connects the water we have with the water the ecosystem needs.
Why Do We Need Reservoirs in South Florida?
Today, roughly half of the original Everglades has been lost, and much of what remains has been hydrologically separated from Lake Okeechobee – a historic source of freshwater for the system. As a result, South Florida’s water cycle now swings between extremes.
During the wet season, excess water is dumped to the coasts, often carrying excess nutrients that can harm coastal ecosystems. During the dry season, there is often not enough water to sustain the Everglades’ critical wetlands. These conditions have stressed ecosystems, communities, and economies in Florida’s east and west coasts, while leaving America’s Everglades lacking much needed freshwater flow.
Recognizing the need to restore balance, federal and state partners identified water storage as a foundational element of Everglades restoration, becoming a central feature of CERP and other restoration plans.
What Are the Benefits of Reservoirs in South Florida and the Everglades?
Reservoirs deliver multiple, interconnected benefits that are essential to restoring America’s Everglades:
Moving Water South: Now under construction, the Everglades Agricultural Area (EAA) Reservoir is designed to reconnect the Everglades ecosystem to Lake Okeechobee. Once complete, the EAA Reservoir and its 6,500-acre Stormwater Treatment Area (STA) will span a combined 17,000 acres with the capacity to clean, store, and send 120 billion gallons of clean water south into the Everglades and Florida Bay every year. This will also allow for an annual reduction in harmful lake discharges to the Caloosahatchee River, St. Lucie River, and Lake Worth Lagoon by 55%.
Restoring the Balance of Water: Reservoirs like the Caloosahatchee (C-43) West Basin Storage Reservoir and C-44 Reservoir near Indian River Lagoon and the St. Lucie River system capture excess wet season water and release it gradually during the dry season, mimicking natural patterns and keeping South Florida’s coastal ecosystems healthier year-round.
Improving Water Quality: Treatment elements like STAs that are incorporated into reservoir projects help reduce excess nutrient loads before water is released, lowering the risk of harmful algal blooms downstream and ensuring that the water flowing into the Everglades meets quality standards.
When Will the Reservoirs Be Operational?
The C-43 and C-44 Reservoirs are now completed and nearly operational, marking major milestones in restoring water storage and flow management. Thanks to a 2025 agreement to expedite construction, the EAA Reservoir is set to be completed in 2029.
Even after construction is complete, reservoirs will be managed through ongoing monitoring and adaptive management to ensure they perform as intended within broader restoration goals.
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