Chain of Lakes Restoration Project

About the Program

Category: County Resiliency (Best in Category)

Year: 2009

The Palm Beach County Chain of Lakes consists of five once-natural interconnected freshwater lake systems in the east-central part of the County. The system begins with Pine Lake on the north end of the chain, progressing southward to Lake Clarke, Lake Osborne, Lake Eden, and Lake Ida, covering a linear distance of approximately 30 miles. The freshwater lakes serve, directly or indirectly, as sources of drinking water, surface water storage, recreation, and wildlife habitat. In an effort to better manage and restore the natural resources of the COL system, the County’s Department of Environmental Resources Management evaluated the status of its ecosystems and developed a management plan entitled “State of the Lakes” to protect, restore, and enhance the natural resource values the lakes provide. A total of 46 enhancement projects are identified in the plan. The Chain of Lakes Restoration Project is identified as a high priority project in the management plan with an overall goal to preserve, maintain, and restore aquatic and wetland resources in the lakes system within constraints imposed by economics and existing development.