The Jacks Branch-Long Island Marsh Focus Area includes the Jacks Branch and Long Island Marsh sub-watersheds in eastern Charlotte County. These sub-watersheds were selected as focus areas due to their dual value as sources of public drinking water, and as priority one panther corridors within the Florida Wildlife Corridor.
Our Strategic Focus
The open space in this area supports agricultural uses while functioning as a wildlife corridor, offering habitat for a variety of species and maintaining ecological balance. This focus area has a priority one ranking in the FEGN/Florida Wildlife Corridor. The Florida Ecological Greenways Network (FEGN) is a statewide database that identifies and prioritizes a functionally connected statewide ecological network of public and private conservation lands.
This focus area is also particularly important for protecting surface drinking water supplies, as its wetlands and streams play a key role in filtering and replenishing water within two separate public drinking water supplies. Specifically, Jacks Branch flows southward into Caloosahatchee River and the public drinking water supply at the Olga Water Treatment Plant, and Long Island Marsh flows westward into Prairie Creek and the Shell Creek/Punta Gorda Water Treatment Plant.
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Jacks Branch-Long Island Marsh Focus Area Map
