Winter Haven gets $750,000 state grant to improve water quality of Lake Conine

The effort to improve water quality at Lake Conine has been made a bit easier. That's because the city of Winter Haven received a $750,000 grant from the Florida Department of Environment Protection as part of the state's Total Maximum Daily Load Water-Quality Restoration Grant Program.

The funding will go toward the city’s wetland restoration project on Lake Conine's south side.

“Historically, there was a wetland there, but it was ditched and drained,” said M.J. Carnevale, the city’s natural resources program manager. “(Lake) Conine will have a lot to gain from this.”

Carnevale said when storm water runs into Lake Conine, some of the pollutants will be cycled through the restored wetland.

“Wetlands provide a great opportunity to eliminate some of that before it gets into the lake,” he said. “The things we're talking about mainly are nitrogen and phosphorus. Once phosphorus gets into the lake, it is very difficult to get out.”