The Gold Standard in Green

• 
• 
• 
• 
• 

LARGE-SCALE WATERSHED PLANNING

JOE has pioneered large-scale planning and permitting to protect Northwest Florida watersheds by collaborating with a range of community leaders, government regulators, planners and environmentalists.

West Bay Sector Plan. In a unique public-private partnership designed to permanently protect West Bay, JOE helped develop the West Bay Sector Plan, a 75,000-acre land-use plan that will guide growth and protect the resources in northwestern Bay County for the next 100 years. The cornerstone of the plan is the 41,000-acre protection area that encompasses 33 miles of bay frontage and 44 miles of creek and tributary frontage.

Bay–to-Bay Greenway. JOE partnered with the state of Florida and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to create a watershed protection plan that avoids piecemeal environmental impacts on more than 48,000 acres of JOE land that stretches from St. Andrews Bay to Choctawhatchee Bay. Through this partnership, JOE is helping to protect the water resources of 19 sub-basins in the Western Bay County and Walton County watershed. Known as the Regional General Permit and Ecosystem Management Agreement, the agreement directs development to appropriate areas while protecting wetlands and creating a wildlife corridor that connects the two bays.

Water Quality. Across Northwest Florida, JOE communities work to exceed regulatory requirements for water quality protection and stormwater management. Lands critical to the protection of public drinking water supplies have also been transferred into permanent protection.

Public Water Supply. Land transfers, including Econfina Creek sandhill forests, creek frontages, springs and lake frontage in many Northwest Florida counties, have helped to protect aquifer recharge, surface runoff and spring-run stream corridors. These areas sustain, transport and collect the primary source of drinking water for many of the counties in the region.

Coastal Dune Lakes. At WaterColor in Walton County, JOE exceeded the regulatory requirements to protect a rare coastal dune lake system and created covenants to protect the indigenous trees and vegetation surrounding the lake.

Master-Planned Communities. By master-planning our communities, we are able to cluster homes to provide open space, design stormwater ponds to filter water runoff, and provide sewer and drinking water systems that meet or exceed all water quality requirements.

Crooked Creek. At RiverCamps in Bay County, JOE provided an average 500-foot buffer along the length of Crooked Creek, well in excess of the required 30-foot setback. No individual docks are allowed along the creek. This helps to protect the creek's natural beauty and filter stormwater before it enters the creek.