Jacksonville Journal 2019 Edition

JACKSONVILLE JOURNAL 2019

“Making Tomorrow Better”

JACKSONVILLE JOURNAL U. S. Army Corps of Engineers Jacksonville District

2019 Edition 1

COMMANDER’S CORNER Innovation. According to the dictionary, it’s the introduction of something new. At the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Jacksonville District, it’s the key element in how we’re going to deliver on the programs and projects that will make tomorrow better for those we serve in Florida, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands.

In the pages that follow, you will read stories about innovation. We looked at new ways to manage water in Lake Okeechobee, we collaborated on methods to restore beaches in Jacksonville (and received an award for our efforts), and conducted research on how a beetle can help control invasive plants that cause problems in Florida.

I am very proud of the work our employees completed in 2019. Once again, we executed more than $1 billion in funds that were entrusted to us by Congress on behalf of the American taxpayer.

We use those funds to turn dirt on projects that are helping restore the ecosystem in south Florida and other projects that are improving ports to help provide economic resiliency for the region. We use those funds to operate structures that facilitate navigation and management of water in Lake Okeechobee, and to regulate development near navigable waters and wetlands.

We are also hard at work reducing risk from floods and coastal storms for people living in Puerto Rico. We completed the work that was requested by FEMA on Guajataca Dam this year. We continue to turn dirt on the Rio Puerto Nuevo and Rio de la Plata projects, and we are studying the feasibility for future projects in San Juan and other parts of the island that can reduce impacts from coastal storms.

As a new decade begins, Jacksonville District staff will continue to innovate, using the latest tools and technology whenever possible, to collaborate on engineering solutions that support national security, energize our economy, and increase resiliency. I greatly appreciate our partners and stakeholders throughout Florida, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands who provide feedback to us and make us stronger.

JaxStrong!!

2

JACKSONVILLE JOURNAL 2019

CONTENTS 2

Commander’s Corner

4

Team Digs in to Reduce Storm Flood Risks

6

Change is Coming

9

A Compelling Perspective

12

Best Restored Beach

14

Lake Okeechobee Regulation Schedule

18

Reopening Ports

20

Panama City Regulatory Office Ready and Resilient

22

It’s What We Do

25

Successful: Great Minds in STEM

28

Unmanned Aircraft Systems Life

29

The Corps’ Tiny Weapon

ON THE COVER

TEAM Corporate Communications Chief John Campbell

Editorial Director Amanda Parker

Editor David Ruderman

Layout & Design Brigida Sanchez Contributors Peggy Bebb Catalina Carrasco

U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Jacksonville District, contractors use a clamshell to prep a trench for a hydromill to dig and mix the concrete used for the new cutoff wall on the Herbert Hoover Dike near South Bay, Fla. Photo: Jim Yocum

Susan Jackson Amanda Parker Brigida Sanchez James Yocum 3

Jacksonville District’s Deputy District Engineer Tim Murphy, along with personnel from the Antilles Area office, join Puerto Rico’s Gov. Roselló; Puerto Rico’s Resident Commissioner, Rep. Jenniffer González-Colón; and Tania Vazquez Rivera, Secretary of the Department of Natural and Environmental Resources; during a groundbreaking ceremony for the Rio de La Plata flood control project, April 1, 2019, in Dorado, Puerto Rico. Photo: Richy Rosado

TEAM DIGS IN TO REDUCE STORM FLOOD RISKS

SUSAN JACKSON

The Corps’ Jacksonville District turned megatons of dirt and sand in the past year as it executed disaster recovery projects in Florida and Puerto Rico. And, by the end of this year, officials anticipate executing 60-plus contracts to keep the focus on reducing risk.

Jacksonville District’s massive effort will make a significant difference in helping protect millions of people and their communities damaged by Hurricanes Maria and Irma.

“This is an opportunity for us to make tomorrow better for many Americans, and we’re in warp drive to get the job done,” said Col. Drew Kelly, district commander.

“From reducing risks to dozens of coastal communities in Florida, to massive inland flood damage reduction projects in storm-damaged Puerto Rico, these projects are improving the safety and quality of life for the citizens and communities that we serve, contributing to the economy, and putting people to work,” he said.

The Bipartisan Budget Act of 2018 (Public Law 115-123) and Flood Control and Coastal Emergencies (FCCE) funds are providing the district with roughly $4 billion 4

for disaster recovery work. The FCCE funds allowed teams to start repairs on federal risk reduction projects immediately. Six county shore projects are in various phases of work today and two more completed.

The district completed the full restoration of the Duval County Shore Protection Project in January, placing sand on eight miles of critically eroded shoreline. The American Beach and Shore Association nationally recognized this project in May as one of the nation’s best-restored beaches for 2019. Outstanding teamwork led to finishing major back-to-back sand nourishments in the wake of two wicked hurricanes – Matthew in 2016 and Irma in 2017 – to ensure protection was in place before the following hurricane season.

“The team’s emergency preparedness and response restored the beach in record time,” project manager Jason Harrah said. The team took advantage of existing beach construction contracts to cost-effectively make the repairs after Matthew, and again following Irma, he said.

Innovation isn’t just a word; it’s a way of doing business to get extensive and challenging work done.

A $387 million base multiple award task order contract awarded in January 2019 expedited construction on 28.6 miles of seepage cutoff wall in the 143-mile Herbert Hoover Dike, which surrounds the largest lake in Florida, Lake Okeechobee. The district also awarded a regional indefinite delivery quantity multiple award task order contract for maintenance dredging and shore protection projects within the South Atlantic Division area of operations. The contract is valued at $450 million and addresses 23 projects, the majority of them in Florida.

JACKSONVILLE JOURNAL 2019

The District team is also making great strides in Puerto Rico on several massive flood risk reduction projects that will help protect thousands of residents. Two examples are the Rio de La Plata project in Dorado and the Rio Puerto Nuevo project in metropolitan San Juan.

In March 2019, a groundbreaking ceremony took place for the Rio de La Plata project. The $17.3 million project will extend the western levee and straighten the existing La Plata River along with providing scour protection to the existing Dorado Bridge. Construction will take place in three phases over the next two and a half years.

“We have the opportunity to build a generation of infrastructure in Puerto Rico,” Col. Drew Kelly

The 2D Wall Contract of the Rio Puerto Nuevo Flood Damage Reduction Project consists of the construction of 700-foot-long right and 350-foot-long left channel walls on Rio Puerto Nuevo. Photo: Brigida Sanchez

The project includes six discreet project segments that will be constructed through separate contracts between now and 2027.

In tandem with the non-federal sponsor, the Department of Environmental and Natural Resources, the Corps hosted several public meetings to inform residents about projects, their impacts, and the benefits they will provide to the communities. Also, “Industry Day” events were conducted both in person and via the web.

“We have the opportunity to build a generation of infrastructure in Puerto Rico to reduce risk and help protect populations from future events,” Kelly said.

“We’re very interested in sharing the projects with members of industry,” said Milan Mora, Antilles Section chief, “as well as hearing what they may bring to the table in terms of workforce expertise, equipment, materials, and more.”

The Corps has extensive flood control experience in Puerto Rico, including the construction of the Portugues and Cerrillos dams, both multi-million dollar projects, to reduce flooding impacts in Ponce from the Portugues and Bucana Rivers. Those Corps projects withstood the devastating hurricane events of 2017.

U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Jacksonville District’s Deputy District Engineer, Tim Murphy, delivers remarks during a groundbreaking ceremony for the Rio de La Plata flood control project. Photo: Richy Rosado

“As we add new infrastructure there, we want to make sure it’s built to the same standards and level of resilience,” said Deputy District Engineer for Programs and Project Management, Tim Murphy.

5

Change is Coming pre paring for a decade of infr astr ucture constr uction CATALINA CARRASCO The Bipartisan Budget Act of 2018 (BBA 2018) or Public Law 115-123, which provides funding and authority for the Corps to address impacts caused by natural disasters, allocated more than $2.5 billion to Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands for several massive flood risk reduction projects and studies that will help protect communities.

“We are on the verge of doing a generation’s worth of infrastructure in the next decade, more than we have done in the last 50 years,” said Jacksonville District Commander, Col. Drew Kelly. “We are going to do it as quickly as possible and, more importantly, we’re going to get it right.”

This meant a significantly busy fiscal year 2019 for the Antilles area, where in addition to issuing contracts for design and construction, other activities took place ranging from hosting “Industry Days” to participating in public meetings which helped inform the community.

Informing the Public In tandem with the non-Federal sponsor, the Puerto Rico Department of Environmental and Natural Resources, the Corps has hosted several public meetings to inform residents about the scope, the affected areas and the benefits the projects will provide to the communities.

In November 2018 and also in June 2019, the Corps hosted scoping meetings for the Puerto Rico Coastal Storm Risk Management (CSRM) Feasibility Study and the San Juan Metro Area Back Bay Study. Each of these two studies have a $3 million cost and will take three years to complete.

The San Juan Metro Back Bay Feasibility Study’s purpose is to determine federal interest in a recom-

6

mended plan to reduce damages to infrastructure as a result of flooding from coastal storms and hurricanes along the San Juan Metro and Back Bay Areas in the municipalities of San Juan, Cataño and Carolina.

The Puerto Rico CSRM Feasibility Study will assess the shoreline problems and provide possible coastal storm risk management alternatives for the benefit of infrastructure located along approximately 15 miles of the island’s coastline.

In March, the Pittsburgh and Jacksonville Districts participated in the public scoping meeting for the $1.2 million Rio Grande de Manatí at Ciales Flood Risk Management (FRM) Feasibility Study, which reviews approaches that will reduce flood risk to structures in the community.

Each of the meetings, which took place in San Juan, Rincon, Aguadilla, Loiza and Ciales, were attended by more than 100 residents in each locality. Following each presentation the panel of presenters urged attendees to provide additional information that could be helpful in assessing possible future projects as well as to express their concerns as residents, which would help the Corps further define future plans.

“We are looking at the different options we have,” Jacksonville’s Deputy District Commander, Maj. Alexander Walker, said. “We want to see which option is most viable, the most cost-effective and the one that will provide the most benefit for the community.”

The Corps also hosted “Industry Day” events in Puerto Rico in December and February, and a webinar in May.

JACKSONVILLE JOURNAL 2019

Another milestone was the release for public comment by the Corps Chicago District of the Integrated Feasibility Report and Environmental Assessment for the Río Guayanilla FRM Feasibility Study at the Municipality of Guayanilla. After the public review period ends, the team will revise the report based on any comments that are received and work toward a Chief of Engineers Report in early 2020.

In the U.S. Virgin Islands, the Corps along with the USVI Department of Public Works, hosted two separate public meetings in April for the Savan Gut Phase II and Turpentine Run projects. The two projects, previously authorized under Section 205 of the Flood Risk Reduction Continuing Authorities Program (CAP), seek to reduce flood damages to the Jane E. Tuitt Elementary School and the central business district in Charlotte Amalie, as well as to the Nadir community along Turpentine Run.

Awarding Contracts More than $45 million in contracts were awarded this year for design and construction projects in Puerto Rico funded by the BBA 2018.

In March 2019, the Corps awarded a $2.34 million contract to Stanley Consultants for the design and preparation of construction plans and specifications for the Upper Margarita Channel improvements, and relocation of the existing 30-foot by 24-foot sewer main siphon, which are part of the Rio Puerto Nuevo (RPN) Flood Control Project.

In April, Option C of the RPN 2D Walls contract was awarded in the amount of $5.89 million, the first BBA 2018 supplemental construction contract awarded in the Antilles.

The RPN project, which was appropriated $1.552 billion under the BBA 2018, includes the Rio Piedras Drainage Basin and its tributaries, which drain 24 square miles. The majority of the project area is highly developed with an affected population of 250,000, and commercial and public structures valued at more than $3 billion. The RPN includes seven discreet project segments that will be constructed through separate contracts between now and 2027.

In September 2019, an $8.75 million dredging contract was awarded to Cashman Dredging & Marine Contracting Co., LLC, for the RPN project.

“Dredging the Puerto Nuevo Channel will allow us to get rid of the sediment that accumulated as a result of Hurricanes Irma and Maria,” said project manager Jose D. Bilbao. “This will in turn provide flood risk reduction to the surrounding communities, as the river will have a larger hydraulic capacity.”

Another contract funded by BBA 2018 was awarded in September to the Advantix Engineering Corporation for the Salud Creek Streambank Protection Project at San Germán, Puerto Rico.

The $1.01 million project consists of clearing and grubbing approximately 420 linear feet of channel embankment, the installation of a high-performance turf reinforcement mat, repairs to two concrete culvert outfalls, and embankment armoring of approximately 100 linear feet of channel with concrete.

Also in September a $3.55 million contract was awarded to Three O Construction, S.E., for the Parcela Suarez, Loiza’s Emergency Streambank and Shoreline Protection Project, which will result in the construction of a continuous rock revetment along approximately 1,050 feet of shoreline.

It is worth noting that there are seven Corps districts working alongside the Jacksonville District in the Antilles. The Chicago, Pittsburg, Huntington, St. Louis, Memphis, Vicksburg and Philadelphia Districts are part of the team of experts working to ensure the success of all the work being done for the betterment of the Puerto Rican and Virgin Islands communities.

Beyond Supplemental Many other significant activities took place in the area this year, including the Regulatory section resuming their interagency meetings in both Puerto Rico and Virgin Islands. The meetings were suspended due to Hurricanes Irma and Maria in 2017.

In March 2019 a groundbreaking ceremony took place for the Dorado Bridge Channel Widening and Scour Protection contract, which was awarded with regular construction funds and non-federal matching funds. It is a segment of the $500 million Rio de La Plata flood control project, which helps manage flood risk in the towns of Toa Baja,

7

Dorado, Toa Alta, Mameyal, Ingenio, Campanilla, Levittown, and other communities in Puerto Rico.

The $17.3 million contract, awarded to Construcciones Jose Carro, includes features to protect the channel along the Dorado Bridge. The construction includes some channel work, portions of the west levee, and erosion protection to the bridge foundation.

Engineering Division continued working on plans and specifications for the first construction contract of the Caño Martin Peña Ecosystem Restoration Project. The first contract calls for construction of the main disposal sites, staging areas, and dredging of San Jose Lagoon and Caño Martin Peña up to the Barbosa Bridge.

In May, the Corps and the Puerto Rico Port Authority signed a design agreement for the San Juan Harbor Navigation Improvements project. The $54 million project will improve the harbor by deepening and widening the channels to accommodate existing and future vessel movement, resolve navigation restriction problems, and present opportunities for economic development.

And finally in September, the Planning Division completed the Municipality of Morovis Water Supply Intake Facility Project Report under the Planning Assistance to States Program (Section 22). The report delivered a preliminary analysis of structural and non-structural solutions, and proposed a feasible solution for local implementation of the project in the study area.

Change is Good According to Kelly, the district commander, there is change coming to the Antilles area due to the volume, intensity and size of the supplemental funded projects.

“It is going to be difficult. We have to formulate a plan and execute efficiently to successfully increase the work while maintaining the same exceptional quality, but we have demonstrated our ability to execute and therefore the work is coming,” he said. “We have a great office and fantastic professionals with many new people coming on board. Change is good, the sky is the limit.”

The Upper Margarita Channel project includes the construction of a concrete U-framed stilling basin, a 30- foot wide and 170-foot long concrete U-framed channel, temporary and permanent steel sheet pile walls, anchor walls, diversion canal, installation of access roads, and channel excavation. Photo: Brigida Sanchez 8

JACKSONVILLE JOURNAL 2019

A Compelling

Perspective BRIGIDA SANCHEZ

I have spent a great part of my life living in South Florida, and have visited the Everglades many times.

I have marveled at its beauty, from Clyde Butchers’ romantic landscapes to the words of poet Campbell McGrath and journalist/ activist Marjorie Stoneman Douglas. I have immersed myself in its monumentality and stood still in its vigor.

9

For generations artists, musicians and poets have been inspired by the wonders of the great outdoors, capturing a fleeting moment of expansiveness to share with the world.

But recently I had the chance to wake up early with the mosquitoes to document the Florida wild. With my boots suctioned in mud I could not help but think how we, the U. S. Army Corps of Engineers, had earned a seat at the ecosystem restoration table and why it is so important.

Here’s a concise history of how the Corps got in to the business of draining South Florida.

In the 1920s the federal government started “draining projects,” seeing Florida not only for its opportunities in tourism, but for its perfect climate for certain types of agriculture. It wasn’t until after two destructive hurricanes devastated the region that we decided to shape the landscape to our needs.

The first was The Great Miami Hurricane of 1926 that destroyed property, leaving thousands of people homeless. The amount of water generated by the storm caused the dikes around Lake Okeechobee to breech and many lives were lost. The second was the hurricane that struck in 1928, the Okeechobee Hurricane. It is estimated that 2,500 people died from this catastrophic event.

A confluence of needs to provide safety, security and economic growth is what drove Congress to authorize the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to work in collaboration with the State of Florida under the Central and South Florida Project to drain the state’s southern wetlands.

Knowing this much led me to Eric Summa, the Jacksonville District Planning and Policy Division chief, who took the time to answer my questions about the importance of ecosystem restoration. Summa explained that ecological restoration helps whole populations. It cleans water for use by humans and wildlife, and makes more water available for consumption and the ecosystem during both wet and dry times.

10

ecosystem restoration efforts.

“When we get the water right, these species become abundant, growing populations and provide benefits to everyone from those that subsist on the ecosystem to those who recreate or depend upon recreation as a commercial business,” said Summa.

According to Markets Insider’s article, 13 Mind-blowing Facts about Florida’s Economy, twothirds of Florida is farmland. The tourism industry contributed $111.7 billion dollars to the state’s economy in 2016. The Everglades generates more than $15.7 billion of direct spending by 292.8 million park visitors in communities within 60 miles of a national park, according to the National Park Service, and this does not include ecological benefits such as carbon sequestration, and an ideal environment for a variety of species to breed.

The congressionally authorized Comprehensive Everglades Restoration Plan (CERP) is a partnership to restore, protect and preserve water resources in the region, in turn providing a sustainable way of life. The Corps has invested $2.4 billion to date into the overarching South Florida Ecosystem Restoration Plan since the restoration process began with a congressional authorization in the 2000s. As we come upon 2020 the Corps has already completed a number of projects toward that end, such as the Melaleuca Eradication and Other Exotic Plants Annex, Picayune Strand and the Kissimmee River Restoration Program.

Being one of the world’s largest ecosystem restoration programs means that there are lots of moving pieces and that it takes time to restore more than 2.4 million acres of the vulnerable wetlands. To drain the marshlands in the late 1920s was simpler in that there were fewer inhabitants, along with the promise of economic growth to come with the environmental modification. Now the number of people has escalated past eight million.

The Corps has four priorities when it comes to ecosystem restoration, which are improving the quality, quantity, timing and distribution of water.

Summa said, “Those populations all enjoy a level of flood mitigation that can’t be disrupted by ecosystem restoration efforts. This balance of trying to achieve restoration, while maintaining flood protection benefits, significantly complicates and extends ecosystem restoration efforts.”

“When we improve the quality and quantity of the water in the ecosystem, life flourishes. Everything from the microbiotic species to small invertebrates, fish, birds, small mammals and deer all benefit from

People and flood risk management aren’t the only challenges that the Corps and its partners face. Of primary importance, the water used for restoration purposes must be clean.

JACKSONVILLE JOURNAL 2019

“So much of the challenge with Everglades Restoration is collecting and treating water first ... so the quality of the water doesn’t change the character of the ecosystem.”

Eric P. Summa, Planning and Policy Division Chief As a consequence, the Corps participates with its non-federal sponsor in the necessary treatment of agriculture, development, septic and waste water for its high nutrient levels.

“High nutrient water causes the ecosystem to react in a dramatically different way than it did in its pre-drainage condition. Where we have poor quality, high nutrient water we have more algal blooms,” said Summa. “Low water quality also converts historic saw grass marsh to nutrient loving cattail and willow. So much of the challenge with Everglades Restoration is collecting and treating water first before distributing it to the Everglades and other natural landscapes so the quality of the water doesn’t change the character of the ecosystem.”

The water must be treated somewhere and land has to be acquired to create Stormwater Treatment Areas (STAs). These STAs function as natural filtration systems, wetlands that work in conjunction with reservoirs such as C44 east of Lake Okeechobee and C43 west of Lake Okeechobee which help to restore and sustain flows and mitigate flooding.

“When shallow water is sheet flowing across the landscape it creates a dynamic ecosystem, where terrestrial and aquatic life work symbiotically supporting diversity, primary production and food webs that ultimately serve human populations.”

When one stands in a field of grass and cypress in the Everglades National Park, the earth seems to slightly swallow and root one down, and the solitude pulls at one’s senses. The smell of the earth, the water that hangs lazily in the air, its lush greens and umbers dancing to the dynamic soundtrack of its creatures and the elements. Being there provides compelling perspective to the unremitting work of conserving a national treasure and searching for the balance between man and nature.

The goal of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is to protect and restore the nation’s ecosystems for the economic, environmental and social well-being of current and future generations. We will continue to collaborate with others to deliver state-of-the-art natural and engineered solutions for many of the nation’s most complex environmental challenges.

Summa said, “What we have learned from our past is that the land serves humans best when it also serves the needs of a broader, diverse ecosystem.

11

Duval County Shore protection project recognized as

Best Restored Beach SUSAN JACKSON

12

JACKSONVILLE JOURNAL 2019

The Duval County Shore Protection Project was recognized by the American Shore and Beach Preservation Association (ASBPA) as one of the nation’s best-restored beaches for 2019. The project includes four county beaches that were recognized: Atlantic, Neptune and Jacksonville beaches, and Hannah Park, too!

680,000 cubic yards (or the equivalent of about 206 Olympic swimming pools) of sand from the beaches in October 2016.

The ASBPA selected the project for many reasons; however, the outstanding and dedicated teamwork that led to back-to-back major sand renourishments on more than eight miles of shoreline after two major hurricanes – Matthew in 2016 and Irma in 2017 – was its greatest success.

The response reduced the impacts resulting from Hurricane Irma, which caused a loss of roughly 660,000 cubic yards of sand less than a year later in September 2017. The Corps of Engineers was able to take advantage of existing beach construction contracts to cost-effectively repair the beaches after Hurricane Matthew, and again following Irma, he said.

“Our beaches are a big part of what makes our city a unique and attractive destination for our residents and visitors,” said Mayor Lenny Curry.

“The team’s emergency preparedness and response restored the beach to pre-storm conditions in record time,” project manager Jason Harrah said.

The goal of engineered shore protection projects is to reduce risk and promote resilience “The Duval County Shore Protection Project was in coastal communities. These federal shore critical to helping our beaches recover from hur- projects help to reduce the damages – economic, ricanes Matthew and Irma. I am grateful for the environmental, infrastructure, human health, and safety – of tropical storms and hurricanes. collaborative efforts from the city, beach communities, and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. Thousands of residents and businesses in Duval County benefit from this shore project because Our beaches are an integral part of our city and storm events erode the beach rather than damplay an important role in our future.” aging or destroying infrastructure.

The project demonstrated how to execute and Coastal communities with engineered beaches succeed in the face of compounding challenges associated with consecutive significant hurricane have historically fared much better than other communities as proven by numerous studies. years and navigating federal, state, and local procedural and procurement environments.

Along with providing economic stability and Multiple stakeholders, including the Corps of opportunities, beach nourishment projects Engineers, City of Jacksonville, Olsen & Associ- also have inherent benefits in restoring critical ates, beach communities and residents, worked habitat for shorebird and marine turtle nesting. to overcome obstacles.

Numerous species rely on wide, healthy beaches State and federal agencies worked tirelessly and accelerated standard process timeframes to ensure protection was in place before the next hurricane season. .

Hurricane Matthew caused a loss of about

as a place to live, feed, rest and nest. Additionally, Florida beaches in 2013 had an annual recreational value of about $50 billion. In areas where eroded beaches were restored, tourist visits and revenues increased.

Jacksonville District completes the Duval County Shore Protection Project for the second time in January 2019, restoring it to pre-Hurricane Irma conditions. Photo: Mark Bias 13

U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Jacksonville District, contractors work to complete construction on culvert C-12A near Pahokee, Fla., on Lake Okeechobee as part of Herbert Hoover Dike rehabilitation. Residents living south of the dike are protected by the 143-mile long earthen dam. Rehabilitation of the 80-year-old structure includes the replacement of 28 culverts with modern construction materials and techniques. Photo: Jim Yocum

Lake Okeechobee

Regulation Schedule changes lead to positive outcome for Floridians Jim Yocum Lake Okeechobee is more than just the second largest lake entirely inside the United States. It’s the heart of a vast and immensely complex water system that makes it possible for Florida to support millions of residents in South Florida. It also sustains billions of dollars in agriculture, recreational fishing that brings tourists from around the world, and the water that is the lifeblood of some of the most diverse and vital ecosystems in the world.

The lake is the central hub for the whole system, and it relies on a 143-mile long earthen dam completed in 1937 and named after our 31st president – the Herbert Hoover Dike.

Since 2008, the district has managed water on the

14

lake using the Lake Okeechobee Regulation Schedule (LORS), a document that seeks to meet the Congressional purposes of the lake to support flood control, water supply, navigation, recreation, and preservation of fish and wildlife resources.

Because of the age and construction of the Herbert Hoover Dike, the Corps is limited in how much water the lake can hold. With hurricanes, tropical storms, or even just higher than normal rains, the lake can rise quickly enough to put the dike and all those who live south of the lake at risk, so LORS provides the district with a tool to help make decisions.

In 2016 and 2018, the district water managers were faced with little choice when high water levels

JACKSONVILLE JOURNAL 2019

coincided with harmful algal blooms on the lake, forcing the release of algae-laden water to the estuaries east and west of the lake to protect the dike and the millions living south of the lake.

Col. Andrew Kelly, district commander, who arrived in Jacksonville around that time, said he saw and heard the impact releases from the lake were having on the coastal communities around the St. Lucie and Caloosahatchee estuaries. He read the reports about the ecological impacts several years of high water had on the health of the lake.

“The past year, we did things a little differently,” he said. “We are operating under LORS. Over the last dry season, we executed operational flexibility under LORS. To positively affect the ecosystem of the estuaries and the lake itself, we changed the timing of water releases to bring the lake down.”

Over several months in the dry season, when the district would usually keep water in the lake, instead, the Corps released water to the estuaries and lowered the lake level for the first time in several years.

“That allowed the submerged aquatic vegetation to grow, and we were able to heal a little bit after some of the devastation of Hurricane Irma,” Kelly said. “We could stop releases to the St. Lucie estuary and continue to feed the Caloosahatchee estuary the way they needed us to (for salinity control). Mother Nature cooperated – it was mostly statistically normal this year.”

While all the data is not in yet, Kelly said the initial reports look promising, that the strategy worked to help the lake recover. He said the district was “using a common-sense approach, allowing us to manage the system making use of what we know over the past few years. Our schedules don’t have memories. They look at very discreet times, and they say ‘if this, then this.’ But they don’t know what happened last year. They don’t know what happened the year before.”

While using flexibility in LORS worked for 2019, Kelly said improvements to the Herbert Hoover Dike itself are going to give the Corps an opportunity that it will not waste.

A dam safety modification report in 2016 gave the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Jacksonville District, the final plans needed to complete the rehabilitation of the Herbert Hoover Dike that has protected South Florida for 80 years. So far, the district has completed 21.4 miles of cutoff wall, replaced 17 culverts, and removed four that were no longer needed. By 2022, the finished project will include a total of 28 culverts and 56 miles of cutoff wall, along with additional armoring on structures and bridges along the dike.

When the dike rehabilitation finishes in 2022, the district will complete a new dam safety report that will provide a new risk assessment to determine what flexibility exists in how water is managed.

That, along with other projects in the system, will allow the district to completely revise how it manages water using the Lake Okeechobee System Operating Manual (LOSOM).

U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Jacksonville District, contractors use a clamshell to prep a trench for a hydromill to dig and mix the concrete used for the new cutoff wall on the Herbert Hoover Dike near South Bay, Fla. Photo: Jim Yocum

“LOSOM is not just a name change. It is literally throwing out the old book and starting new,” Kelly said. “We are taking our time to do it effectively because it is going to marry up perfectly with the HHD completion. The HHD construction will be complete in 2022; I’ll have a dam safety analysis

15

that says how safe the dike is at what level, and what our parameters are, so we can immediately apply the new schedule.”

Partners and stakeholders have expressed excitement about the completion of the rehabilitation and the LOSOM project as well. Rep. Brian Mast, whose 18th District includes areas around the St. Lucie estuary that saw effects of water releases during harmful algal blooms, told a crowd at an event in Stuart how important it is for everyone to be part of the decision-making process for Lake Okeechobee water management designs in LOSOM. “The dike is one step closer to being repaired, the de-channelization (of the Kissimmee) is one step closer to being done,” Mast said. “The change in management style is moving in a direction that the scales are more equally balanced between recognizing the risks on the coast and the risks of water supply and recreation, irrigation, navigation, and flood control, and all of those concerns that the Corps of Engineers have … all of those things are being taken into consideration.”

Florida State Sen. Gayle Harrell from Florida’s District 25, seemed to agree. “The dike is going to be finished in the next two years. C-44 (a reservoir and stormwater treatment area that will hold and clean water) is on the cusp of being finished,” Harrell said. “We are getting there. And now, with the new regulation schedule coming into effect, and some flexibility, we are making huge progress.”

Kelly said the key to LOSOM is striking a balance between the competing purposes of lake water management and listening and accounting for all the people who are affected by decisions to release or not release water.

“That effort is going on between now and 2022,” Kelly said. “We started by asking everyone what they cared most about. We even went as far south as the Keys. They reminded us that all of this connects to Florida Bay. We realize this is the entire system we are talking about here.”

Harrell said that water means more in Florida than in many places because it is so much a part of the way of life for the state, so getting the balance right and looking at impacts throughout the entire system is critical for the state.

“This is who we are. This is the Treasure Coast, and our waterways are our treasures. It defines us. It’s who we are.

It’s our environment, and it’s our economy.”

16

U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Jacksonville District, contracto Dike rehabilitation. Residents living south of the dike are prot 80-year-old structure includes the replacement of 28 culverts

JACKSONVILLE JOURNAL 2019

ors work to complete construction on culvert C-12A on Lake Okeechobee near Pahokee, Fla., as part of Herbert Hoover tected by the 143-mile long earthen dam completed in 1937 and named after the 31st president. Rehabilitation of the with modern construction materials and techniques. Photo: Jim Yocum 17

Reopening Ports Critical to Recovery Efforts Susan Jackson

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Jacksonville District has a unique mission-set as three-quarters of its area of responsibility (AOR) is surrounded by water.

The state of Florida, geographically speaking, juts like a finger into the Atlantic and Gulf coast waters, while the Antilles, which includes Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands, are completely surrounded by water.

This uniqueness is both a blessing and burden, as the AOR is subject to devastating storm events. The secret to response and recovery following these storms is quickly opening major harbors.

Jacksonville District’s navigation mission in Florida

alone covers 27 federal harbors with an additional five in Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Of these, 17 are deep-draft and essential to relief and recovery efforts.

During the 2017 North Atlantic hurricane season, three tropical storms and four hurricanes made landfall in the U.S. Two hurricanes wreaked havoc across the District’s AOR and sunk thousands of tons of debris into harbors and channels.

Hurricane Irma reached maximum sustained winds of 185 mph, tying as the second most intense hurricane on record for the basin according to NOAA.

Tons of debris were removed from Key West Harbor, where the nearby Naval Air Station and Coast Guard Sector Key West are collocated. The military’s defense mission made this harbor a national priority.

Photo: Andrew Kornacki 18

JACKSONVILLE JOURNAL 2019

This storm caused massive destruction in the Antilles before making landfall in the Florida Keys as a Category 4 storm. It then caused havoc on both Florida coastlines as it tracked north, pushing storm surge four to eight feet above ground level.

Ten days later Hurricane Maria made landfall in southeastern Puerto Rico as a Category 4 hurricane, the strongest tropical cyclone to impact the island since 1928. Still reeling from the effects of Irma, Hurricane Maria passed directly over the island, causing widespread destruction.

Both hurricanes crippled transportation, energy and communications infrastructure, as well as relief efforts that were essential to millions of residents.

As they do annually prior to hurricane season, Jacksonville District navigation personnel practice the District’s response plan and coordinate with U.S. Coast Guard, NOAA and other agency officials, preparing for likely scenarios. The end result is an efficient plan to immediately assess, survey, and ultimately clear channels for open navigation.

The District’s Chief of Navigation at that time, Milan Mora, said that following 2016’s Hurricane Matthew, the interagency team conducted an after action review and then implemented a valuable lesson learned.

“We recognized we could work in tandem faster, analyze the work required and open ports quicker if we had Coast Guard specialists onboard the survey vessels. Seven of our survey teams, two (architectural/engineering) contracted teams, and two NOAA survey teams scanned and analyzed the harbors for debris and shoaling in real time. The process was fluid and expedient – it worked extremely well,” he said.

Other lessons learned included better and more efficient communication prior to a storm as well as immediately following one. This resulted in quicker actions and allowed the team to expedite clearing channels.

All major Florida ports reopened within three days of Irma’s passing, some ports with restrictions.

On the same day the Coast Guard reopened deepdraft ports, three petroleum tank ships arrived at Port Everglades to offload 18 million gallons of desperately needed gasoline, 3.5 million gallons of diesel and 14.7 million gallons of jet fuel. A fuel shortage started in south Florida during evacuations prior

to Irma; fuel was also necessary for emergency operations. All of Florida’s deep harbor ports began providing critical services. With Jacksonville Harbor’s JAXPORT serving as Puerto Rico’s primary supplier, it was crucial that port operations recover quickly to provide daily necessities as well as emergency supplies.

Still, more work was necessary to clear debris from the open but restricted federal channels. Then Maria struck, and the same pattern of emergency activity ramped up to open ports in Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Distance from U.S. mainland, isolated locations and catastrophic damages made opening these ports the most difficult and highest priority.

The Thomas Jefferson, a NOAA self-sustaining, 208-foot survey vessel, addressed the condition of 16 ports in the Virgin Islands while the Corps surveyed federal channels in Puerto Rico. In Florida, JAXPORT representatives worked closely with federal officials to prioritize relief cargoes and start daily deliveries.

Jacksonville District’s Lisa Holland played a pivotal role as a liaison for the port recovery efforts. Her 29 years of federal service with the Marine Corps, Coast Guard, Navy and Army, gave her vast insider knowledge of military operations and capabilities. As a civil engineering technician, Holland coordinated, planned and deployed the District’s hydrographic survey assets, and pre-staged those assets for rapid response. She also worked with the Corps’ Mobile District survey teams, and coordinated with Coast Guard and Navy officials for transportation and lodging to position assets throughout the AOR. “What impressed me the most about our team is that we came together as a cohesive unit to accomplish a very critical need for port recovery, and we did it expeditiously, working side by side with our federal, state and industry partners. We witnessed daily the tremendous dedication, self-sacrifice and perseverance by team members to support the recovery mission,” Holland said.

The very long hours crews spent mapping survey data – a behind-the-scenes, little known effort – was integral to the process of opening federal harbors that brought relief and recovery supplies and services to hundreds of communities in need. These major ports were the first-line relief hubs for weeks, until roadways and airports were assessed, cleared of debris, repaired, and re-opened.

19

Panama City Regulatory Office Ready and Resilient One year after Hurricane Michael Amanda Parker

Hurricane Michael made landfall in Florida’s Panhandle October 2018, decimating and leveling the region with its hurricane-force winds and rain. It would be the first Category 5 storm to hit the United States since Hurricane Andrew in 1992.

Most of the staff experienced high levels of personal damage and loss. One employee had to relocate twice due to the impacts. There was severe damage to homes, and team members are still working with contractors to repair and replace what was lost.

Over one year later, Jacksonville District Panama City Permits Section employees are still picking up the pieces after the storm – both at work and at home.

Amid the chaos, the number one priority was employee safety and accountability. Within 24 hours, the office had 100 percent accountability – even

20

JACKSONVILLE JOURNAL 2019

with no cell phones or email communications.

“We went to find employees in person and account for their safety,” said Chief, Panama City Permits Section, Andy Kizlauskas. “The good news story is that everyone was safe and accounted for.”

The Panama City Office building did not survive the storm. “It looked like a bomb went off,” said biologist Lisa Lovvorn.

Over 85 percent of the office building was damaged and uninhabitable. “We did not have a physical location to work out of after the storm,” said Kizlauskas.

U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Jacksonville District’s, Panama City office building suffered 85 percent damage due to Hurricane Michael. Photo: Andrew Kizlauskas

“We had challenges with getting everything set up, and IT was a large challenge. Our network finally came online in August 2019. We didn’t know when we would get a network back.” Employees used Corps-issued cell phones with hotspot capability until the network functioned again.

Even though employees were pushing out emergency permits, most were dealing with their own aftermath from the storm. “Personal life in town became, and still is, a daily challenge. Over 90 percent of the area was down. There were no gas stations, and there are few open to this day,” said Lovvorn.

However, the loss of a building does not mean work stopped for the office. Eight days after the storm, the staff was working within the U.S. Army Corps of Engineer’s Mobile District operations office. Mobile District’s office fared better than the Jacksonville District’s building – although it sustained damage.

“Everyone is still trying to rebuild. The daily commute changes depending on road work. Locally it’s still fresh.

“It was a huge cooperative effort to get us up and running,” said Kizlauskas. “We had no communication, and cell service was out. We would not have had the ability to work or perform the mission if it had not been for the Mobile District, allowing us to share space.”

And carry on the mission is precisely what this brave group of employees did in the face of their own personal adversity. Emergency procedures were in place, and employees were able to issue emergency authorizations for storm recovery work quickly.

Twenty-five emergency permit actions were issued.

These actions authorized an entire power line rebuild spanning a total of 36 miles, the removal of two very large vessels impeding navigation, debris removal, road rebuilds, emergency actions for Mexico Beach and Tyndall Air Force Base, and several other projects. Also, the office continued to issue its regular permits.

“Overall, I think that we have all done exceptionally well adapting our daily changes of working, commuting, and rebuilding our lives. Everyone has done a good job of keeping their chin up,” she said.

The one emerging theme that resulted from Hurricane Michael is a message of resilience. “The main take-home message is our team’s resiliency and their ability to quickly partner with other districts to demonstrate one Corps moving forward to accomplish the mission,” said Kizlauskas.

“We worked with amazing speed to execute permits in light of the personal adversity we all faced because of the storm.

“I think folks did a really good job staying positive given the circumstances. Everyone came together as a team. That was huge,” he said.

21

It’s What We Do

How we support the emergency effort U.S. Army Corps of Engineers personnel deployed after Hurricane Dorian passed over Florida in September 2019. Our focus was on helping citizens recover from the storm– to return communities to normal as soon as possible. The Corps ensured Herbert Hoover Dike was safe, channel floors were clear of debris, and documented the impact on Florida beaches.

Port Mayaca (above left); lock leader Vernon Boyd (above right); and Jeffrey Fallin, chief of operations on Herbert Hoover Dike (above). Next page, left to right from top to bottom: Gary Campbell, civil engineer; William Turner, boat captain; Turner and Campbell navigate the channel; the USACE vessel Boca Grande. Photos: Brigida Sanchez. Geologist Jenn Coor and design engineer Rosie Pinto assess Flagler Beach for Hurricane Dorian impacts. Photos: Mark Rankin 22

JACKSONVILLE JOURNAL 2019

23

24

JACKSONVILLE JOURNAL 2019

Successful Great Minds in STEM Conference nets new hires for USACE enterprise Peggy Bebb A contingent of USACE personnel converged on Disney’s Coronado Springs Resort in Lake Buena Vista, Fla., Sept. 25-29 to attend the Great Minds in Stem (GMiS) Conference.

According to their website, greatmindsinstem.org, GMiS serves as a gateway for young Hispanics to enter fields in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) by focusing on educational awareness programs for students.

It focuses on promoting STEM careers and programs through the recognition of Hispanics and other role models in various scientific fields. The organization collaborates with some of the major STEM employers in the country.

For the conference, the Corps joined forces with NASA, Department of Defense entities, and numerous private-sector companies to engage with college student’s presently studying in STEM-related fields. Participants engaged in speed networking, static displays, the College Bowl, job fairs, and socializing in a fun, fast-paced, environment.

Jacksonville District (SAJ) had the honor of leading the USACE team for this year’s 31st annual GMiS Conference. Spearheaded by USACE event manager Lucy Soto, SAJ’s Equal Employment Officer, team members from all over the USACE enterprise came together to provide support, assist in recruitment and take advantage of the Corps’ current Direct Hire Authority to fill positions, not only in Jacksonville, but across USACE. “USACE presence at the conference and career fair was important because it provided an opportunity to collaborate with GMiS STEM initiatives, allowing us to recruit, develop and retain the most gifted people our nation has to offer,” said Soto.

25

Jose Bilbao, a project manager who participated as a USACE College Bowl team lead and judge, said the conference is “a great opportunity to expose college students to the top engineering organization in the world.”

Attending students came from colleges from coast to coast and Puerto Rico.

“These students are considering careers in their respective fields, and it’s critical to educate them to the broad spectrum of engineering disciplines that the Corps of Engineers provides,” said Bilbao.

The College Bowl team leads had two days of face-toface interaction with the students they recruited for their teams. When picking team members, Bilbao said he went for “civil engineer students first since we are a civil engineer-heavy organization.” But even more important was selecting students who had leadership traits, because these individuals not only tend to excel in the event, but make great professional candidates as well, he said.

These assessments promoted the recruitment aspect of the conference as well as providing USACE personnel the opportunity to mingle and get to know

26

students, introduce themselves and go into detail about what the Corps has to offer. During these interactions, Bilbao met a few of the individuals who would later become part of his team.

To highlight USACE’s past success and ongoing support of the conference, the team brought along students who attended GMiS last year and as a result received offers of employment. One of them was Diego Barreto, a California State University Northridge junior, who is finalizing his studies in mechanical engineering.

Baretto is presently working with the Los Angeles District, instead of being a student searching for a job. “What attracted me to the Corps was seeing how passionate the team was and being exposed to the endless opportunities the Corps can provide,” he said.

As the conference and job fair drew to a close, Soto said it had been a total success as demonstrated by the participation of the college students interested in pursuing STEM careers. USACE successfully came away with more than 15 direct hires, most of whom were students.

JACKSONVILLE JOURNAL 2019

“These students are considering careers in their respective fields, and it’s critical to educate them to the broad spectrum of engineering disciplines that the Corps of Engineers provides,” Jose Bilbao, project manager

Jacksonville District Great Minds in STEM College Bowl team lead, Jose D. Bilboa (top left), and coaches Josinell M. Serrano-Canals (bottom left) and Xoel Castillo Rivera (top right) run through a roster of potential team members for the Corps College Bowl in Lake Buena Vista, Fla. from Sept. 27, 2019.

27

UAS Life

“Seeing the world in a different perspective. It’s always a cool new view!”

Thomas Spencer, project engineer

28

U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) team members, project engineer Thomas Spencer (upper left), and unmanned aerial vehicle technician Travis Barnett (photo above, left), fly a drone above the C44 project site to document progress. The team’s capabilities add value across the full spectrum of USACE programs. Aerial photo: UAS team photos: Brigida Sanchez

JACKSONVILLE JOURNAL 2019

CORPS’TINY WEAPON Winning the BIO CONTROL BATTLE Brigida Sanchez

Bathed in sunscreen and bug spray, a U.S. Army Corps of Engineers team sets out early in the morning with cloth nets, coolers and airboats hitched up to their pickuptrucks. Their mission is to collect the Corps’ tiniest weapon used to wage war on the prolific alligator weed.

“In the 1900s alligator weed was introduced into the continental United States says Chelsea Bohaty, a biologist with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. “It caused a lot of problems in the waterways with plants blocking navigation channels and flood risk management problems.”

Alligator weed kills native flora and fauna. The root system of the plant travels down into the water column, not allowing the water to receive the oxygen it needs to conserve its natural ecosystem.

“In the ’60s the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers understood the impacts of the invasive species. We focused a lot of our treatment toward the alligator weed, and we spent a great deal of money on treating the plant. The alligator flea beetle was a game-changer,” explains Bohaty.

The Corps would spend more than $1 million on managing the environmental impacts of the alligator weed in a given year. Invasive species cause economic losses of more than $138 billion in the U.S. annually.

Utilizing a strategy called Integrated Pest Management (IPM), scientists employ a combination of biological, mechanical and chemical control measures to mitigate the impacts of the invasive plant species.

Biocontrol agents such as the herbivorous alligator flea beetle go through years of rigorous research.

Biologists have to determine if the tiny agent will cause adverse impacts to plants and animals in the U.S. “The alligator flea beetle is a classic success story for aquatic weed biocontrol,“ says Nathan Harms, a research biologist at U.S. Army Engineering Research and Development Center (ERDC).

“There are a couple of things that make it such a good agent. First, both the adults and the larvae feed on the plant. The adults can live a long time, for one to two months, and the female can lay thousands of eggs. So a couple of fecund (productive) females with a short developmental time in all life stages consuming the plant are effective.”

This little beetle measures 5-7 millimeter in length as an adult. Its name, the flea beetle, is an attribution to its flea-like jumping capabilities. Under the right environmental conditions, the alligator flea beetle can make a significant impact. According to the University of Florida’s Entomology and Nematology Department, the alligator flea beetle once fully established can decimate an acre mat of the alligator weed.

“The beetle has already established itself in Florida.

They are doing their job out there right now,” says Bohaty, who coordinates and participates in the collection of the beetles.

She is the lead biologist on the Corps Palatka team.

On this particular morning, the collection takes place on Lake Woodruff with five airboats flying swiftly through the water to each mat of alligator weed.

Each boat goes to a designated location where the vivacious beetles have been scouted out previously 29

feasting on the alligator weed.

There’s a small craft operator and a collector aboard when they reach the mat of alligator weed. The collector stands on the bow of the airboat as it slowly plows through the invasive plants. The disturbance of the craft moving through the green carpet of vegitation sends thousands upon thousands of little flea beetles flying through the air. The nimble collectors sweep their nets back and forth, catching the beetles in the cloth. When enough beetles have been collected, they are placed in cups with some alligator weed and stored in a cooler.

Bohaty says, “We can typically collect anywhere from 10,000 to 50,000 beetles a day.”

So where do all these beetles go? They get shipped to Louisiana, Alabama, Arkansas and as far north as North Carolina to our partners: state and federal agencies, Corps districts, universities and ERDC. These partners not only study the alligator weed, but the beetle as well. ERDC serves as a nucleus of

knowledge for the Corps far-flung districts.

“We have a valuable resource here at ERDC. We have a genetic diversity of all the alligator weed that is present in the U.S.,” explains Harms. “And it lets us address questions about how the flea beetles might work and how they might control alligator weed given its introduction into different parts of the country.”

Jacksonville, Fla., has the right climate to sustain the reproduction of the flea beetles. It is the perfect place to monitor the effects of generations of biocontrol and the ideal place to collect new beetles and send them to places like the Little Rock District in Arkansas, where the alligator weed is aggressively taking over.

At the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Little Rock District, biologists like Cherrie Lee Phillips take the beetles back out into the waters of Arkansas. Using an airboat, they collect alligator weed samples, demark areas to observe both the alligator weed and the beetle, and place the hibernating beetles onto a mat of alligator weed.

U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ Mark Haltiwanger (from left), Will Goodhart and Chelsea Bohaty, collect dozens of tiny alligator flea beetles in nets. The beetles feed on the invasive aquatic alligator weed found in Lake Woodruff, in Deland, Fla. Photo: Brigida Sanchez 30

JACKSONVILLE JOURNAL 2019

The alligator weed has invaded many water systems in the South and is slowly working its way to north and west through the continental United States. This noxious weed blocks transportation routes, threatens native species and reduces water capacity in our reservoirs. Photo: Brigida Sanchez “When we get beetles, we get 250 beetles per cup, and that one cup will cover one acre of the alligator weed,” says Phillips. “Here at Millwood Lake, we have approximately a 1,000 acres (of alligator weed), but that varies year to year depending on the temperature.”

The cooperation between the district and ERDC is just one of the many collaborative efforts that the Corps participates in to help advance the study of the aquatic invasive itself. Researchers want to know: How does the plant evolve, and once introduced how does it spread into an area?

The study also aids with finding the most efficient and sustainable ways to use the alligator flea beetle, especially when colder climates and plant variations become a factor.

The Corps is continuously evolving to combat the challenges of the invasive species problem.

We embrace the philosophy of early detection, rapid response, and finding the best strategies with the least amount of environmental impact.

We understand that complete eradication of an invasive species may not be possible. But by using the Corps collective knowledge, we can employ the best methods to manage the aggressive nonnative species that threaten the native ecosystems and our economy.

Chelsea Bohaty, invasive species management biologist, holds the invasive aquatic alligator weed found in Lake Woodruff.

31

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Jacksonville District, delivers value to the nation by anticipating needs and collaboratively engineering solutions that support national security, energize our economy and increase resiliency.

www.saj.usace.army.mil

32