Public Works CIP Project Update

 

Lake Seminole Restoration Project

Project ID# 000157A

 

Project Location

Lake Seminole

 

Map of Project Area

 

Project Overview

Pinellas County is implementing a programmed Capital Improvement Project (CIP) to remove approximately 900,000 cubic yards of accumulated organic sediment causing water quality and habitat degradation. The removal of the organic sediments, based on pre-construction sediment sampling, is expected to eliminate 54 tons of total phosphorus and 311 tons of total nitrogen from the lake and reduce nitrogen loads by an estimated 56% to Long Bayou and Boca Ciega Bay. The County issued a Notice to Proceed on November 19, 2018. The contractor has since mobilized and completed clearing and grubbing of the Dredge Material Management Area (DMMA). The contractor is currently working on creating the DMMA area and should be complete by August 2018. The next step will be to begin the in-lake dredging is anticipated to begin September 2019.

 

Project Schedule

Schedule is preliminary and will be updated as the project progresses.

• Design and Permitting: August 2018
• Begin Site Work at Dewatering Area: November 2018
• Begin In-Lake Dredging Operation: September 2019
• Complete In-Lake Dredging Operation: December 2021
• Site Restoration Complete: March 2023

 

Additional Information

The main goals of the Lake Seminole Restoration Project are to reduce nutrient inputs into the lake, remove existing in-lake nutrients, and restore wetland and upland areas adjacent to the lake to improve in-lake water quality, ensure healthy fish and wildlife populations, and maintain recreational uses.

 

Lake Seminole is a 684-acre hypereutrophic shallow lake located in the west central Pinellas County. The lake receives runoff from approximately 3,500 acres of urban land. The contributing watershed is almost entirely developed with residential and commercial land use dominating the landscape. Created in the late 1940’s by damming off the estuarine backwater area of the Long Bayou. Lake level is maintained by weir located on the south end of the lake along the north side of Park Blvd. The lake and adjacent Lake Seminole Park provide many recreational activities including boating, fishing, bird watching, and a variety of other water activities.

 

The dredge portion of the Lake Seminole Restoration Project will improve water quality in Lake Seminole through the removal of nutrient-enriched (phosphorus and nitrogen) sediments that are contributing to elevated nutrients in the water column and persistent algae blooms. The removal of the sediments from the lake will also improve in-lake habitats by reducing the available nutrients for algae and vegetation growth. The dredged sediments will be deposited in a 20-acre settling area called a dredge material management area (DMMA) to dewater and consolidate. The DMMA will be adjacent to the eastern edge of the lake near 98th St. and 94th Ave.

 

Project Contact

Robert Burnes -- Project Manager
Public Works Environmental Management
22211 U.S. Highway 19 N., Bldg. 10
Clearwater, FL 33765
(727) 453-3149
rburnes@pinellascounty.org