Governor Ron DeSantis attended a groundbreaking ceremony for the new inflow pump station at the Everglades Agricultural Area (EAA) Reservoir Project in Palm Beach County. The EAA Reservoir, located south of Lake Okeechobee, is designed to store over 78 billion gallons of water and deliver up to 470 billion gallons of clean water annually to the Everglades and Florida Bay. The project also supports the Biscayne Aquifer, which provides drinking water for South Florida.
The event marks the 80th milestone since 2019 related to Everglades restoration projects under Governor DeSantis’ leadership, making it the most in state history.
“Florida reached a historic agreement with the Trump Administration earlier this year to expedite and advance Everglades restoration,” said Governor Ron DeSantis. “Today, I was pleased to announce a milestone in Everglades restoration made possible by our cooperation with the federal government. Florida is now breaking ground on the new EAA Inflow Pump Station, an essential component of the EAA Reservoir project. This is the second Everglades restoration project to commence since the agreement with the Army Corps of Engineers last summer, which has empowered Florida to step up our Everglades restoration efforts. Today’s groundbreaking marks the 80th milestone event in Everglades restoration that has taken place since 2019, thanks to our leadership and commitment to getting this done.”
Department of Environmental Protection Secretary Alexis Lambert added: “The EAA Reservoir is a critical component of Everglades restoration and Governor DeSantis has led the charge on getting this project done. Restoring America’s Everglades is one of the most ambitious environmental restoration projects ever undertaken and will restore the natural flow of clean water south to where it’s needed most. With every project we are delivering real results on time, under budget and with strong returns for Florida’s taxpayers.”
The new inflow pump station will feature nine pumps and will be among the largest in Florida, capable of moving approximately 3 billion gallons of water per day from Lake Okeechobee into the reservoir.
Historically, changes made to Florida’s water system were intended to prevent flooding but disrupted natural water flows into the Everglades. The EAA Reservoir Project aims to address these issues by redirecting water southward, restoring ecosystems, and reducing harmful discharges into local estuaries.
A recent agreement signed in July 2025 between Florida and the U.S. Department of the Army accelerates construction timelines for key projects like this reservoir by five years—from 2034 to 2029—and seeks to streamline federal processes for faster completion.
Since 2019, several milestones have been achieved: completion of both C-44 and C-43 reservoirs; annual removal of significant amounts of nitrogen and phosphorus from waterways; and tripling South Florida’s water storage capacity.
Governor DeSantis made restoring the Everglades a priority early in his administration by issuing Executive Order 19-12, which committed $2.5 billion over four years toward these efforts—a goal surpassed during his first term with $3.3 billion invested. In his second term, an additional $1.4 billion was included in this year’s budget for FY 2025-26, bringing total investment since 2019 close to $8 billion.
