http://www.orange.wateratlas.usf.edu/Recent news items for Orange County Water Atlas60http://www.orange.wateratlas.usf.edu/news/newsviewall.asp?newsid=11649A new EPA study shows concentrations of toxic chemicals in fish tissue from lakes and reservoirs in nearly all 50 U.S. states. For the first time, EPA is able to estimate the percentage of lakes and reservoirs nationwide that have fish containing potentially harmful levels of chemicals such as mercury and PCBs.UnknownMon, 16 Nov 2009 00:00:00 GMThttp://www.orange.wateratlas.usf.edu/news/newsviewall.asp?newsid=11648Charlotte County Utilities residential customers are now eligible to participate in a toilet rebate program aimed at conserving water. The toilet rebate program, which is cooperatively funded by the county and the Southwest Florida Water Management District’s Peace River Basin Board, offers rebates to replace high-volume toilets with water-efficient, low-flow toilets or high-efficiency toilets. Low-flow toilets use 1.6 gallons per flush or less while high-efficiency toilets use about 1.28 gallons per flush. Residential customers must be current Charlotte County Utilities water customers with toilets that were made and installed before 1995 and use 3.5 gallons of water or more per flush. Up to two toilets per household may be replaced. Participants must request a rebate application and receive approval before replacing their toilet. All program guidelines, including a post-installation inspection of both the old and new toilets, must also be followed. Rebates are available to single-family customers at $100 per toilet. Up to two toilets per household may be replaced. This project is estimated to provide potable water savings of 28,470 gallons per day or 10.4 million gallons per year. This is the second year of a potential 5-year effort. The program is expected to cost $114,020. As part of the agreement, Charlotte County will receive up to $57,010 in grant funding from the District’s Peace River Basin Board. The program includes educational materials that focus on leak detection and proper flapper replacement to help consumers maximize the water-saving capabilities of their toilets. For more information about the Charlotte County Toilet Rebate Program, interested customers should call 1-888-843-9832. UnknownThu, 12 Nov 2009 00:00:00 GMThttp://www.orange.wateratlas.usf.edu/news/newsviewall.asp?newsid=11646Florida homeowners have many reasons to consider converting their existing residential landscape to a Florida-Friendly Landscape. Most importantly, a Florida-Friendly yard is an environmentally sound yard that conserves and protects Florida's waterways, soil, wildlife, and energy. Using the right plants in the right place can filter harmful stormwater runoff, improve the landscape's soil, provide wildlife habitat, and create shade for energy efficiency in the home. Landscaping also adds beauty and creates pleasant outdoor living spaces to increase the value of residential property. (Figures 1A and IB demonstrate a Florida Friendly landscape renovation in a residential development in Osprey, Fla., in 2009.) UnknownThu, 05 Nov 2009 00:00:00 GMThttp://www.orange.wateratlas.usf.edu/news/newsviewall.asp?newsid=11647Many Florida communities experience periodic water shortages or have serious concerns about balancing water usage and supplies (Goodnough 2007). As the state seeks to balance economic growth and development with protection of its natural resources, managing water becomes a high priority for policy makers and utility managers. This document discusses alternative strategies that can be used by water utility managers to balance water demand and supply in the residential sector, which accounts for roughly 37 percent of Florida's freshwater use (Marella 2008). UnknownThu, 05 Nov 2009 00:00:00 GMThttp://www.orange.wateratlas.usf.edu/news/newsviewall.asp?newsid=11635The new Water Quality Contour Mapping Tool is available for use on the Tampa Bay Water Atlas. Funded by the Hillsborough County Environmental Protection Commission, the tool allows users to create their own custom contour map of Tampa Bay using any of the data available on the Atlas. Users can generate maps for any time period for one of the five predetermined water quality parameters, including dissolved oxygen, salinity, chlorophyll, color and secchi depth. Users can also peruse other maps created by other Atlas users. The tool may be expanded for use in other coastal areas and may also be redesigned for use with specific lakes as well. Therefore, your feedback regarding the functionality of the tool is important to us. So, please test it out and let us know what you think. Happy Mapping!UnknownThu, 15 Oct 2009 00:00:00 GMT