PALM CITY, Fla. — Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis on Wednesday celebrated the completion of the C-23 Canal Estuary Discharge Diversion Project in Martin County, calling it part of the largest environmental restoration effort in U.S. history.
The project, located at 10297 Southwest Martin Highway, will reroute excess water from the C-23 Canal away from the South Fork of the Saint Lucie River — where it had previously contributed to harmful algal blooms — and instead send it through a nearly 7-mile interconnect canal to the C-44 Reservoir and Stormwater Treatment Area.
DeSantis was joined at the ribbon-cutting by Florida Department of Environmental Protection Secretary Alexis Lambert and South Florida Water Management District Executive Director Drew Bartlett, along with district board members Chairman Goss, Ronnie Bergeron, Ben Butler, Charlotte Roman, Tom Hurley and Robert Spotswood Jr.
Since entering its operational testing phase in May, the project has diverted nearly 5 billion gallons of water away from the Saint Lucie Estuary. When operating at full capacity, the pump stations can fill an Olympic-size swimming pool in just under 6 minutes.
Lambert said the project is projected to prevent 55,000 pounds of nitrogen and 14,000 pounds of phosphorus from entering the Saint Lucie River on average each year, and will divert 6.3 billion gallons of water from the river to the C-44 Reservoir and Stormwater Treatment Area.
"Florida's waterways are a deeply interconnected system and preventing these harmful discharges will further improve the health of the estuary and the lagoon," Lambert said.
DeSantis said his administration has invested close to $10 billion in Everglades restoration and water quality since taking office in January 2019 — a figure he said has never been matched in state history. He said his administration set an initial funding goal, beat it by nearly $1 billion in his first term, then set a second-term goal of $3.5 billion and has reached nearly $6 billion.
The governor said his administration has completed or broken ground on more than 90 Everglades projects and has reached more project milestones than any previous administration in Florida history. He cited reductions of 5.6 million pounds of nitrogen per year and nearly 1 million pounds of phosphorus per year as among the tangible results of those investments.
DeSantis also highlighted progress on the Everglades Agricultural Area reservoir south of Lake Okeechobee, which he said was originally scheduled for completion in 2034. Through a partnership with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers announced after President Donald Trump took office in January 2025, the project is now projected to be completed by 2029 and at nearly half the original federal cost estimate.
"Isn't that something — what you want — under budget, ahead of schedule," DeSantis said.
The EAA reservoir is designed to store 78 billion gallons of water and deliver 270 billion to 470 billion gallons of clean freshwater each year to the Everglades and Florida Bay.
Bartlett said the pump station at the C-23 project site is capable of moving 166 million gallons of water every day — comparable in capacity to Miami's drinking water system — and has been operational since May 14.
"We haven't had a lost summer since you've been in office, Governor," Bartlett said. "Have not had a lost summer."
Lambert pointed to measurable environmental improvements since DeSantis took office, including seagrass returning to stable levels in the Indian River Lagoon and Saint Lucie Estuary, supporting fish and manatee populations as well as the ecotourism industry. The Indian River Lagoon and Saint Lucie Estuary are home to more than 4,000 species of plant and wildlife.
DeSantis said the broader Everglades restoration effort is the largest and most ambitious restoration project in U.S. history.
"When you think about America 250 — a massive country that spans a continent from sea to shining sea — there have been a lot of things that have been done over those 250 years, and there's never been a project of this magnitude that has been attempted, much less brought to fruition like we have," DeSantis said.
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