SUBJECT
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Approve Amendment #1 to Standard Grant Agreement # 22SRP74 with the State of Florida Department of Environmental Protection (FDEP) to provide funding for the Polk County Parks and Natural Resources Ridge to River Protection of Critical Assets project (no fiscal impact).
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DESCRIPTION
The Kissimmee River Watershed, in Polk County is the headwaters of the Everglades and Lake Okeechobee. Recently several waterbodies, such as Lake Marion, was assigned Total Maximum Daily Loads (TMDL) standards for nutrients, by the FDEP. This triggers the need to address current water quality issues and identify projects that can reduce nutrient loading and improve the water quality. An evaluation of this watershed identified several high priority project areas, one was the eastern shore of Lake Marion.
In response to that evaluation, Polk County submitted an application called "Ridge to River Protection of Critical Assets" to the State's Resiliency Implementation Grant cycle in 2021. As part of implementing resiliency efforts, the state awarded Polk County funding to acquire an approximately 600-acre tract of land. The goals of the project are to protect lake front, manage a living shoreline of vegetation, prevent future septic seepage, reduce nutrient loading into the lake, and provide resiliency from extreme weather events for flood protection.
Through a fully executed agreement, effective December 19, 2022, FDEP awarded Polk County with $3,000,000 towards the acquisition of the project. Matching funds, in the amount of $3,000,000 are provided through partnership funding and the stormwater MSTU. The County recently received a request from FDEP to execute Amendment #1, due to recent Office of General Counsel and Program updates. Bulleted below is an overview of the updates. There are no changes to the amount of the agreement.
Overview of updates included in Amendment:
* Attachment 1, Standard Terms and Conditions
o Updates to the links in 8(d) and 8(i)
* Attach...
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