The Tampa Bay Regional Reservoir was Florida's largest reservoir when completed in 2005. With an impervious embankment stretching five miles, the above-ground reservoir holds roughly 46,000 acre-feet of water, or more than 15 billion gallons, which is pumped from the Tampa Bypass Canal and the Alafia and Hillsborough rivers. The reservoir, located in central Florida southeast of Tampa, was constructed on a 6,500-acre site previously used to raise cattle and mine phosphate. The actual reservoir footprint is 1,100 acres, which required over one million square yards of geomembrane and geotextile fabric lining. A 100-foot water control structure and bridge supported by drilled concrete caissons was included in the construction.

The project location posed several challenges. The project was heavily monitored by Florida's Department of Environmental Protection given that the site included sensitive wetlands and three creeks that had to remain intact. Part of the project included reconstructing 800 acres of wetlands and restoring native vegetation. We also confronted some troublesome waste clays in the reservoir footprint.

The biggest challenge, however, was weather. We met Tampa Bay Water Authority's schedule despite facing some of the wettest weather in Florida's history: nearly 100 inches of rain fell during the first year of construction, not to mention the four hurricanes that blew through in less than three years. Early on, we had to construct an unanticipated water treatment system just to address excessive runoff. This was accomplished expeditiously and affordably by applying ideas put forward by superintendents, foremen, and engineers. Broad-based teamwork proved key to our success.