PALM BAY, Fla. — There's an ongoing effort to reduce pollution from flowing into the Indian River Lagoon.

What You Need To Know

  • More baffle boxes are coming to Palm Bay 

  • They are designed to filter pollutants from getting into the waterway

  •  The program is paid for with a DEP grant

  • Installation begins in next couple weeks

New projects in Palm Bay are on the way thanks to more than $1 million approved by Florida’s legislature.

Once a quarter, Palm Bay Public Works crews head out to clean the city’s 11 nutrient-separating baffle boxes.

At the helm of the project is Operations Supervisor Eric Blount.

Blount is a Palm Bay native who grew up enjoying all the outdoors, and the lagoon has to offer.

He says he went into this field not only to serve the public, but to protect the environment for future generations.

“I have four boys. It makes me feel really good that I’m doing things for the environment that it will be here for them,” Blount said.

Inside the boxes is 95% trash.

“It is amazing the amount of stuff we pull out of these boxes,” Blount said.

That’s what the crew tackles first. Then, the pollutants like nitrogen and phosphorus, soil, biological solids, decaying organic matter is sucked up with a giant vacuum attached to their truck.

The team finds all kinds of unusual things caught in the boxes.

“We’ve found wallets, bicycles, kind of amazing a bicycle would go in there, but, lawnmowers, shopping carts,” Blount said.

Thanks to the Florida Legislature and DEP, Palm Bay will soon nearly double its baffle box stations.

Five new ones will be installed along Turkey Creek because of a $1.2 million grant.

Mayor Rob Medina says revitalizing the lagoon is imperative due to its $7 billion yearly economic impact on the area.

“That’s what we have to focus on, the quality of life for our residents, and that increases for them, but also businesses that would want to come and invest in our city,” Medina said.

The public works team takes their haul to a dumping ground.

Every bit of their haul is waste that would have made its way into the lagoon if not for the baffle boxes.

For Blount, he’s proud of his crew’s work, but also believes everyone can do their part to help the lagoon make a comeback after decades of pollution.

“It’s a team effort to save the environment,” he said.

Installation work on the new baffle boxes is expected to begin in the next couple of weeks.