SOUTH FLORIDA AND TREASURE COAST REGIONAL PLANNING COUNCILS TO MEET FOR “ONE REGION, ONE WATER” DISCUSSION & JOINT WORKSHOP

Hollywood, Fl – The South Florida and Treasure Coast Regional Planning Council (RPCs) will meet vitrually in Joint Session via GoToMeeting on Friday, November 5^th at 10:00 a.m. The Joint Workshop focused on “One Region, One Water” will be co-chaired by Councilmember Mario J. Bailey, Chair of the South Florida Regional Planning Council (SFRPC), and The Honorable Cathy Townsend, Vice Chair of the Treasure Coast Regional Planning Council (TCRPC).

The Council Members will receive important updates on the implementation of the “Clean Waterways Act” (Chapter 2020-150, F.S.) from the Florida Department of Environmental Protection (DEP), and an overview of the Office of Economic and Demographic Research’s responsibilities in the area of stormwater, wastewater, land and water assessments, inland and coastal flooding. Timely updates on the Central and Southern Florida Project Resilience Restudy; South Florida Water Management District’s Resiliency Efforts; Septic Systems and Water Quality Protection; Emerging Wastewater Treatment Technology and the Future of Biosolids Reduction and Disposal; Florida’s Coral Reef; and funding for Affordable Housing will also be presented.

Special guests include DEP Deputy Secretary John Truitt; Amy Baker, Coordinator, State of Florida Office of Economic and Demographic Research; Todd Polk, Lieutenant Colonel, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (ACE); Eva B. Vélez. P.E., Strategic Program Manager, U.S. ACE Ecosystem Branch; Ana Carolina Coelho Maran, P.E., Ph.D., District Resiliency Officer, South Florida Water Management District; Terri Lowery, Senior Vice President/Managing Director, Jones Edmunds & Associates, Inc.; and Kurt A. Pfeffer, P.E., Hazen & Sawyer.  Additional special guests include The Honorable Senator Nan Rich, Broward County Commissioner District 1; Jamie Monty, DEP Southeast Florida Regional Administrator; and Joanna Walczak, DEP Administrator, Coral Protection and Resotration Program. The “One Region, One Water” conversation will be facilitated by Frank Bernardino, Partner, Anfield Consulting.

The public is encouraged to attend and provide comment. The draft agenda, webinar information, and workshop materials are available at SFRPC Joint Workshop and TCRPC Joint Meeting.

“We are looking forward to continuing the long-standing collaboration of the SFRPC and TCRPC on issues of regional importance.  At this meeting we will receive timely updates on a wide range of regional issues related to Southeast Florida’s water supply, water and wastewater infrastructure, and policies. Together the South Florida and Treasure Coast RPCs serve seven counties and 6.8 million residents representing one-third of Florida’s population, therefore, we understand the importance of a regional approach on many major issues. We look forward to advancing our partnership to create a better future and quality of life for our residents. Treasure Coast or South Florida, coastal or inland, urban or rural, water affects us all and we need to work together to ensure we are good stewards of our water resources.”

Mario J. Bailey, Chair, SFRPC & Cathy Townsend, Vice Chair, TCRPC

The membership of the Regional Planning Councils consist of county and municipal elected officials, gubernatorial appointees, and ex-officio members from the Florida of Department of Economic Opportunity, the Florida Department of Environmental Protection, the Florida Department of Transportation, South Florida Regional Transportation Authority, and the South Florida Water Management District. The South Florida RPC represents Monroe, Miami-Dade, and Broward counties. The Treasure Coast RPC represents Palm Beach, Martin, St. Lucie, and Indian River counties. The Councils support the region’s elected leaders and public, private, and nonprofit stakeholders through regional, collaborative planning and the development and implementation of programs and strategies shaping a better future for Southeast Florida. For more information about the programs available through the SFRPC, please visit www.sfregionalcouncil.org and for programs available with the TCRPC, please visit www.tcrpc.org.