About
The Bennett Swamp Rehydration and Conservation Project in Daytona Beach off of LPGA Blvd. was completed in the summer of 2019. The project redirects and disperses up to six million gallons per day of reclaimed water into several locations within Bennett Swamp, a 1,423 acre parcel jointly owned by the St. Johns River Water Management District and the State of Florida’s Trustees of the Internal Improvement Trust Fund.
The rehydration project included the installation of pipes from the Westside Regional Water Reclamation Facility, which is on the east side of LPGA, across LPGA Boulevard and into Bennett Swamp, which is on the west side of LPGA. The project has multiple benefits including:
- Reestablishing hydrologically stressed wetlands
- Recharging the aquifer
- Reducing pollutant loads diverting flow from the Halifax River into Bennett Swamp.
- Providing habitat and refuge for wildlife
The $5.3 million project was conceived by the City of Daytona Beach in discussion with the St. Johns River Water Management District. Grant awards from the St. Johns River Water Management District and the Florida Department of Environmental Protection funded 81% of the project cost.
Fact Sheet
For a fact sheet on the Bennett Swamp project, please view this PDF Opens in New Window.
Ribbon Cutting
The city’s celebrated the completion of the project with a ribbon cutting ceremony and public tours on Thursday, June 20. Mayor Derrick Henry, Dr. Ann Shortelle, Executive Director of St. John River Water Management District and Aaron Watkins, Central District Director of Florida Department of Environmental Protection with State Representative Elizabeth Fetterhoff, spoke about the project’s dispersal units and participated in a buggy tour ride.
