Coastal & Heartland National Estuary Partnership - CHNEP

Coastal & Heartland National Estuary Partnership - CHNEP Uniting Central and Southwest Florida to protect water and wildlife.

The Coastal & Heartland National Estuary Partnership (CHNEP, formerly the Charlotte Harbor National Estuary Program) has been protecting the natural environment of southwest Florida since 1995. It is one of 28 Congressionally-designated organizations in the US EPA National Estuary Program, established to protect and restore “estuaries of national significance.” CHNEP is uniting Central and Southwest Florida to protect water and wildlife, covering an area spanning 10 counties and 27 cities.

You are invited to two incredible resiliency events in our region that are open to the public and will provide the lates...
08/10/2026

You are invited to two incredible resiliency events in our region that are open to the public and will provide the latest information on how communities in our region can and are building more resilient infrastructure to protect people, the environment, and our quality of life here in Central and Southwest Florida.

The first is the sixth annual SOUTHWEST FLORIDA RESILIENCY SUMMIT on September 22, 2026 at the Charlotte Harbor Event & Conference Center (75 Taylor St, Punta Gorda, FL 33950) hosted by the COASTAL & HEARTLAND NATIONAL ESTUARY PARTNERSHIP. Tickets are free but space is limited so advance registration at https://www.chnep.org/swfl-resiliency-summit is required. This in-person event will have numerous networking opportunities to allow participants to build new connections and collaborations. Topics will include Assessing and Addressing Vulnerabilities and Risks, Local Water Management District Updates for the Region, Adaptation Planning for More Resilient Communities and Implementing Adaptation Using Innovative Approaches. Experts from a variety of organizations will be presenting, including City of Venice, Conservancy of Southwest Florida, Ecosphere Restoration Institute, University of Florida, Dewberry, Central Florida Regional Planning Council, South and Southwest Florida Water Management Districts, WSP, HighTide AI, and more!

The second is the FLORIDA RESILIENCY CONFERENCE on September 23-25, at the Sunseeker Resort (23317 Tamiami Trail, Port Charlotte, FL) hosted by FLORIDA SHORE & BEACH PRESERVATION ASSOCIATION and RESILIENCY FLORIDA. This 3-day event is located walking distance from the Resiliency Summit and does require advance paid registration at https://floridaresilienceconference.org/registration. The draft program schedule can be viewed online at https://floridaresilienceconference.org. This statewide conference will feature a variety of speakers on Smart Planning, Beaches, Energy, and Infrastructure with speakers from a multitude of private, governmental and industry entities.

The Coastal & Heartland National Estuary Partnership has been working with the other partners to advance resiliency on a regional scale. We hope you can join us in attending these important events.

Today CHNEP hosted our Technical Advisory Committee Meeting where leading scientists and resource managers from across C...
08/06/2026

Today CHNEP hosted our Technical Advisory Committee Meeting where leading scientists and resource managers from across Central & Southwest Florida come together to hear the latest new science and technical information, discuss how to protect water and wildlife, and share important updates with each other.

We post all the guest presentations on the CHNEP YouTube channel at https://youtube.com/?si=LetJLb1sGVG6A9aa and all our meetings are open to the public.

This is what hydrological restoration looks like in action. Today CHNEP, SFWMD, FWC and private contractors and landowne...
08/05/2026

This is what hydrological restoration looks like in action.

Today CHNEP, SFWMD, FWC and private contractors and landowner representatives went out to look at potential flow paths to move water from the Babcock Webb Wildlife Management Area (WMA) that has too much water backed up on it over to the Yucca Pens WMA that needs more water to rehydrate wetlands and support the deer, bear, and other wildlife on site. This meeting was to look at potential flow paths across a private property to be developed that would allow this water flow between these two WMAs to be restored.

CHNEP is funding and starting a project to design ditch blocks to restore sheet flow on Yucca Pens. This multi-agency and municipality partnerships as well as working with private landowners are needed to move water from where it can be harmful to where it is beneficial and needed.

CHNEP staff pictured are Sarah Jooste (CHNEP Restoration Manager) and Jennifer Hecker (CHNEP Executive Director).

CHNEP, as part of the US EPA National Estuary Program under the Clean Water Act, is the coordinator of the Coastal Charl...
07/27/2026

CHNEP, as part of the US EPA National Estuary Program under the Clean Water Act, is the coordinator of the Coastal Charlotte Harbor Monitoring Network (CCHMN). This involves gathering water quality samplers who monitor estuaries along Charlotte and Lee Counties (including FDEP, Lee County, City of Cape Coral, SWFWMD and others) together to collectively update standard operating procedures and quality assurance plans to ensure water quality is sampled as consistently as possible across the region. Then trained CHNEP staff go out to "audit" the sampling to check those protocols and plan requirements are being implemented year to year.

The past few weeks, our staff including Sarina Barnard (CHNEP Research & GIS Coordinator) and Sarah Jooste (CHNEP Restoration Manager) conducted those audits and are presenting the findings at an annual CCHMN meeting. The meeting serves as an opportunity to collaborate and discuss ways to continue to maintain and improve water quality sampling. We would like to thank the various CCHMN governmental partners who work continuously to make sure our sampling is sound and we are pleased to share their data with the public on the CHNEP Water Atlas. We encourage you to go to https://chnep.wateratlas.usf.edu/ to see what water sampling is happening in waters near you.

We are glad to support community organizations who engage citizens to protect the natural resources in their community! ...
07/24/2026

We are glad to support community organizations who engage citizens to protect the natural resources in their community! 💪💦🐟 The Calusa Waterkeeper rangers are doing their part to protect Lee County's exceptional waterways and we appreciate their efforts! 💙

Happy 4th of July from the Coastal & Heartland National Estuary Partnership! 🇺🇸 We hope you all have a safe and fun holi...
07/04/2026

Happy 4th of July from the Coastal & Heartland National Estuary Partnership! 🇺🇸 We hope you all have a safe and fun holiday celebrating the United States' 250th birthday! 🎉

Happy 4th of July from the Coastal & Heartland National Estuary Partnership! 🇺🇸 We hope you all have a safe and fun holi...
07/04/2026

Happy 4th of July from the Coastal & Heartland National Estuary Partnership! 🇺🇸 We hope you all have a safe and fun holiday celebrating the United States 250th birthday! 🎉

Today we are in West Palm at South Florida Water Management District's Resiliency Coordination Forum quarterly meeting t...
06/24/2026

Today we are in West Palm at South Florida Water Management District's Resiliency Coordination Forum quarterly meeting to learn and share the latest resources and best practices to advancing resiliency planning and project implementation.

This is where the rubber hits the road to making our region better prepared and able to withstand changing weather and stronger storm events while protecting people and our environment.

Yesterday, CHNEP staff visited the Pine Island Flatwoods Preserve Wetland Habitat Enhancement project that is nearing co...
06/23/2026

Yesterday, CHNEP staff visited the Pine Island Flatwoods Preserve Wetland Habitat Enhancement project that is nearing completion on a Lee County Conservation 20/20 preserve. CHNEP funded the removal and recontouring of old shrimp ponds into restored, tidal wetlands. This water source will support wildlife year-round as well as improve water quality and flows to other downstream waterbodies.

Swipe through to see the restoration progress onsite! Thank you to our project partner Lee County and their contractors. CHNEP continues to fund and support restoration throughout Central and Southwest Florida to enhance both water and wildlife habitat quality.

Address

1050 Loveland Boulevard
Port Charlotte, FL
33980

Opening Hours

Monday 9am - 5pm
Tuesday 9am - 5pm
Wednesday 9am - 5pm
Thursday 9am - 5pm
Friday 9am - 5pm

Telephone

+19418336580

Website

,

Alerts

Be the first to know and let us send you an email when Coastal & Heartland National Estuary Partnership - CHNEP posts news and promotions. Your email address will not be used for any other purpose, and you can unsubscribe at any time.

Contact The Organization

Send a message to Coastal & Heartland National Estuary Partnership - CHNEP:

Shortcuts

Share

Category