This project is specifically aimed at retaining rainfall and stormwater runoff, preventing excess water from flowing into Lake Okeechobee, and offering much-needed relief from local flooding during major weather events. The Partin Family Ranch Water Storage Project boasts the capacity to store over 1 billion gallons of water annually and is expected to remove 11,000 pounds of Total Nitrogen and 800 pounds of Total Phosphorus each year—making it not only a flood prevention tool but a significant step toward improving regional water quality.
In attendance at the ribbon-cutting ceremony were Osceola County Commissioner Ricky Booth (District 5), who has personal ties to the ranch, and Osceola Chair Commissioner Cheryl Grieb (District 4), along with officials from the South Florida Water Management District.
“On our ranch now, we’re going to take a billion gallons of water a year, and hold it back, and try to uptake some of those nutrients that would normally flow down to the Lake Okeechobee, to the Everglades, Caloosahatchee River, the St. Lucie, and we’re gonna hold them back, and try to let the flora and fauna here on the ranch take it up, so we don’t have problems of algae blooms and contamination south of here. We’re excited to partner with the South Florida Water Management District and to be a part of the solution,” District 5 Osceola County Commissioner Ricky Booth shared after the ribbon cutting.
This vital water storage initiative was made possible through a collaboration with the Florida Department of Environmental Protection, with funding from the Florida Legislature. The area surrounding the project has historically been prone to heavy flooding during extreme weather events, and the newly implemented system will help alleviate this issue in the future, benefiting the entire region.
As Osceola County continues to grow and face increasingly variable weather patterns, the Partin Family Ranch Water Storage Project stands as a testament to the power of collaborative partnerships and innovative infrastructure in providing both flood protection and environmental improvements, ensuring a more resilient future for the community.
