The South Florida Water Management District and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers- Jacksonville District, with the support from the Florida Department of Environmental Protection, Broward County, Miami Dade County, and other project partners are providing an update on the status of the Central and Southern Florida (C&SF) Flood Resiliency Study.

The project partners have been working to finalize the study scope to achieve benefits for the southeast Florida communities. An overall integrated strategy has been developed, and it will allow the project teams to pursue parallel efforts for each of the four original C&SF Flood Resiliency Study planning reaches.

This integrated strategy will allow the partners to advance these urgent feasibility assessments at a faster pace, and maintain consistency in scenario formulation, study assumptions, and regional planning standards.

Reach A

The South Florida Water Management District will be advancing a feasibility assessment and initial engineering designs on C&SF coastal water control structures in portions of Broward County, Florida, respective to the Reach A of the C&SF Flood Resiliency Study. SFWMD will be utilizing Section 203 of the Water Resources Development Act (WRDA) of 1986, as amended, to advance the flood risk management study with support from FDEP and Broward County, and technical assistance from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers – Jacksonville District aiming for inclusion in the Water Resource Development Act (WRDA) 2026.

Reach B
For Reach B, inclusive of C-7 (Little River), C-8 and C-9 (Snake Creek) Basins, the South Florida Water Management District is working with the Florida Department of Environmental Protection, the Florida Department of Emergency Management, the Federal Emergency Management Agency, and Miami-Dade County, to advance the implementation of awarded grants under the Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities Program and Resilient Florida Program. As the design for these projects are being advanced and construction is estimated to start early in FY26, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers – Jacksonville District will provide review as part of either formal 408 permitting process or technical assistance.

Reach C

The South Florida Water Management District and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers - Jacksonville District will continue to partner on the ongoing C&SF Flood Resiliency Study (Section 216) study, which will focus on advancing the feasibility and engineering studies for four coastal structures within Reach C, in Miami Dade County, aiming for inclusion in WRDA28.

Reach D
Finally, work in Reach D will move to a future effort, potentially the multipurpose Comprehensive Central and Southern Florida Study authorized in WRDA 2022.

This integrated strategy will ensure important and urgent studies and implementation work are advanced to build flood resiliency in the southeastern Florida region, especially in Miami-Dade and Broward Counties. This multi-jurisdictional partnership, involving Local – Regional – State and Federal Agencies, is notable for its collaborative development and reinforces the relevance of these investments for the benefit of South Florida communities.