Collusion at the state level: Get the local money!

When I ask members of the SWFWMD governing board what’s happening with the basin boards and what it’s going to do about the loss of local tax representation and keeping local dollars for local projects, all I hear is a long sigh and maybe an inarticulate mumbling about, “advisory committees.”

So, it was apparent that something needed to be said about a scenario in which the governing board would appoint “advisory committees” to assume the role of the now-banished basin boards and board members that served the district so well for fifty years.  It’s an idea that ought to be flushed before it gets the governing board any further down the road of a bad mistake about to be made worse.

I’ve been noodling how to approach this until today when the answer was just handed to me by The Tampa Tribune.

Don’t be misled by the article’s title, “Tampa Bay Area Lawmakers Fear Fight over Expressway Authorities.”



CEO-governor Rick Scott
("Let'em eat doughnuts!")



It’s all about CEO-governor Scott and the wannabe-power-over-any-and-all-agencies-with-money, JD Alexander, wanting to toss out local control of the local Expressway Authorities. They want the state to control them so their money can be used to build other expressways for powerful legislators, needed or not. 

Sound a little like his plan to grab basin board property taxes so they can be used to build JD’s water system for Polk County?

The Tampa Bay legislative delegation is understandably and correctly livid. What’s so ironic is that the arguments they use to oppose the idea can be used equally as arguments against the governor’s not-so-secret support for disbanding SWFWMD’s basin boards.

CEO-senator JD Alexander

(By the way, I’m hearing more and more about the backroom collusion that took place out of public sight and who the scoundrels were who actually fostered and pushed the idea to get rid of the basin boards.  From a very senior SWFWMD staffer, a prominent water attorney who represents a local entity that has garnered millions of basin board taxes for his client’s projects, and even some stalwart ag officials who often supported basin taxes for ag projects, to JD Alexander’s inner sanctum.  If it’s true, you’ll probably be shocked and dismayed, but you will not be awed.  The nut to crack is, how in the world did they come to the dumbest possible conclusion that it would be a good thing to do away with the basin boards)

Here are some quotes followed by the article itself, the original publication of which can be found at: http://www2.tbo.com/news/breaking-news/2011/sep/26/bay-area-lawmakers-fear-2012-fight-over-expressway-ar-260161/.

(If you know what Orange County commercial property manager Matthew Falconer means about "crony capitalism," please share it with me!  Please!  Maybe I'm woefully ignorant about such things but isn't that what's going on in T-Town?  Can you spell JD Alexander?)

“A pair of powerful senators, Don Gaetz and JD Alexander, tried during budget deliberations this spring to fold Hillsborough's expressway authority along with the Orlando-Orange County and Mid-Bay Bridge authorities into the Florida Turnpike Enterprise.”

“Critics, however, argued that consolidation would eviscerate local control over projects and locally collected toll revenues. Some also claimed the plan was essentially a ploy to skim revenue off financially healthy authorities to shore up troubled roadways elsewhere -- for example, a toll bridge in Gaetz's district.”

“The secretary stressed that this spring's push to consolidate the authorities came from within the Senate, not DOT. But as Prasad also noted, the governor has asked the state Government Efficiency Task Force for recommendations on the subject.”

“The task force, made up of appointees by Scott, the Senate President and House Speaker, included consolidating the local tolling agencies on its list of ideas to streamline government.”

 “Another task force member, Orange County commercial property manager Matthew Falconer, said consolidation would help to root out "crony capitalism" at "quasi-governmental agencies" with tolling or taxing power.”

“Falconer said he believes concerns about local control can be addressed perhaps by establishing citizen advisory boards. And trust accounts or "buckets" could be created so that locally collected revenue would be used on local projects only, he said.”



Sen. Rhonda Storms



“The latter idea held little appeal for (Sen. Rhonda) Storms, who pointed out that state leaders frequently plug budget gaps by raiding state trust funds supposedly dedicated to specific needs.

 "I am never comforted by folks who say, 'oh, but we'll just keep it there,' she said. The same thing would be said about whatever pot of money is generated by the local jurisdiction in toll revenue … Somebody always has their fingers crossed behind their back until the first crisis that we need it, or until the institutional memory is gone. And then it's not there."

Sue Chrzan, Hillsborough authority spokeswoman, said there's no guarantee the DOT will make a citizen advisory board's recommendation a state priority. "Our no. 1 need could be their no. 97."

So the only difference here is that Scott is saying he’ll wait until he hears what his Task Force recommends before supporting or not supporting the idea. 

Too bad he didn’t give the same consideration for the incredibly ill-advised and unwise disbanding of SWFWMD’s basin boards.

Here’s the article:

Tampa Bay Area Lawmakers Fear Fight over Expressway Authorities

By Catherine Whittenburg

The Tampa Tribune

September 26, 2011

There may not be a bill yet, but there's already plenty of concern among Bay area lawmakers that state leaders will try again to seize control of the Tampa Hillsborough County Expressway Authority.

The big question, say critics and backers alike, is whether Gov. Rick Scott will make the issue a priority in 2012.

A pair of powerful senators, Don Gaetz and JD Alexander, tried during budget deliberations this spring to fold Hillsborough's expressway authority along with the Orlando-Orange County and Mid-Bay Bridge authorities into the Florida Turnpike Enterprise.

Lacking support in the House, the effort failed. But rumblings have continued about proponents trying again when the Legislature meets again in January.

"We'll fight the battle," said Sen. Ronda Storms, R-Valrico.

Storms is one of several Bay area lawmakers on the Senate Transportation Committee, which delivered a stern message last week about the proposal to the state's new transportation secretary.

Committee chairman Jack Latvala, R-St. Petersburg, warned against tackling the issue as proponents did this spring — by sidestepping Latvala's panel to handle it in a budget committee then-headed by Gaetz.

Said Latvala on Wednesday, "I'm going to be very hopeful that we're not going to try to do issues like expressway authority consolidation as part of the budget — and I'm going to, certainly, oppose that, if that comes along."

Supporters of consolidation had said this spring that the move would have saved at least $24 million in administrative overhead and poised the state to take advantage of a better bonding position to construct $1.7 billion in additional roads.

Thursday, Gaetz said lawmakers would "rue the day" that they failed to take advantage of those savings.

Critics, however, argued that consolidation would eviscerate local control over projects and locally collected toll revenues. Some also claimed the plan was essentially a ploy to skim revenue off financially healthy authorities to shore up troubled roadways elsewhere -- for example, a toll bridge in Gaetz's district.

Gaetz, R-Niceville, who takes over as Senate president in November 2012, continued last week to deny that allegation, saying that the final proposal this spring would have prevented the money from travelling between regions.

Wednesday, Sen. Jim Norman berated Ananth Prasad for what he described as DOT's dismissal of the expressway authorities' counter-offer to take over state-run toll roads in their region.

That would have allowed local authorities to pay the state up to $5.4 billion in exchange for control of roadways like the Suncoast Parkway, Sunshine Skyway and others.

"They had funding plans that would've … given you cash upfront for reinvestments to go forward," said Norman, R-Tampa. "Y'all just pushed back, you didn't look at the plans. I sat there like, I felt like I was being patted on the head."

Prasad, appointed by Scott in April, said he would review the proposal again.

The secretary stressed that this spring's push to consolidate the authorities came from within the Senate, not DOT. But as Prasad also noted, the governor has asked the state Government Efficiency Task Force for recommendations on the subject.

The task force, made up of appointees by Scott, the Senate President and House Speaker, included consolidating the local tolling agencies on its list of ideas to streamline government.

 Task force vice-chairwoman Lizbeth Benaquisto, R-Ft. Myers, also chairs the Senate budget committee formerly headed by Gaetz that approved the consolidation proposal in the spring. She did not respond this week to a request for comment about potential consolidation legislation for 2012.

Another task force member, Orange County commercial property manager Matthew Falconer, said consolidation would help to root out "crony capitalism" at "quasi-governmental agencies" with tolling or taxing power.



Matthew Falconer, running for Orange County Mayor
 (no, he's on the right, not the one in the middle)



Falconer said he believes concerns about local control can be addressed perhaps by establishing citizen advisory boards. And trust accounts or "buckets" could be created so that locally collected revenue would be used on local projects only, he said.

The latter idea held little appeal for Storms, who pointed out that state leaders frequently plug budget gaps by raiding state trust funds supposedly dedicated to specific needs.

"I am never comforted by folks who say, 'oh, but we'll just keep it there,'" she said. "The same thing would be said about whatever pot of money is generated by the local jurisdiction in toll revenue … Somebody always has their fingers crossed behind their back until the first crisis that we need it, or until the institutional memory is gone. And then it's not there."

Sue Chrzan, Hillsborough authority spokeswoman, said there's no guarantee the DOT will make a citizen advisory board's recommendation a state priority. "Our no. 1 need could be their no. 97."

Gaetz said Thursday that he won't sponsor consolidation legislation in 2012. He continues to support the idea, but "I don't believe the issue has legs at all, unless the governor makes it a governor priority."

Scott told reporters in early August that he wanted to take a closer look at the expressway authorities, how they spend money, incur debt "and if there some synergies in merging them."

Asked if Scott plans to push the idea in 2012, spokesman Lane Wright said the governor would announce his legislative agenda soon. "Previously, he has said this is a perfect example of an idea that should be vetted through the Government Efficiency Task Force. We need to see if it makes sense before moving forward."

Absent a major push from the governor, the idea still appears to be a heavy lift in the House, where Speaker Dean Cannon said this week he remains unconvinced.

Cannon, R-Winter Park, said that he's open to finding "efficiencies" within the expressway system but not by combining the Hillsborough County Expressway Authority and the Orlando-Orange County Expressway Authority into the DOT.

Gird your coins SWFWMD taxpayers because Imperial Polk’s coming to get’em

Today I learned that “…water funding will be Polk County’s top legislative priority for the coming session.”

Polk County is worried that the funding cuts our CEO-governor and J. D. Alexander-led legislature forced upon SWFWMD (apparently without much thought about how it would impact its ability to carry out a “core mission”, Herschel) just might mean there will be no water to assuage the county’s future thirst. 

So, the county’s commissioners are going to the chief head budget czar dude of the Florida Senate, who just so happens to be Polk homeboy, J. D. Alexander, to see if he can’t get the state’s CEO to let SWFWMD generate more money.  Seems the governor’s and Alexander’s now infamous and arbitrarily demanded cutbacks may have been a little too arbitrary, and SWFWMD’s water-project money might not be enough for Imperial Polk’s needs.

Please excuse my reaction:

Ooops!

Wonder of wonders!

Irony of ironies!

Who’d a thunk it? !!

This revelation came about when Lakeland Ledger writer, Tom Palmer, wrote about it in his blog, “Endangered and Drained In Polk” last Thursday, 9.22.11.

So, say it isn’t so, Chairman Senft.  Please tell us your home county isn’t coming to the district looking for a $200,000,000 handout as I predicted back in July.

Please assure us that the basin boards were not vaporized and their members fired so J. D. could fund his hometown’s $200,000,000 water project through the now-controlled-by-the-governor-and-legislature district’s basin taxes, and that it was all just a bad dream.

Or better yet, please reinstate the Basin Boards and the legal integrity of the basins and let them decide if they want to fund Imperial Polk’s future water needs.  So what, if the state CEO-governor doesn’t like making appointments (or maybe just can’t find anybody who agrees with him and he can trust).  Go to him with a list of proposed appointees, and beg.

Go to each of the Commissions of the 16 counties in the district and persuade them to each pass a resolution urging the governor to support the reconstitution of the basin boards and to make the associated appointments immediately.  Isn’t that his statutory duty anyway?

The basin boards can make their own decisions about the advisability of using property taxes from their respective landowners to fund Polk’s water needs.  I’m certain they’ll be neighborly. The template has already been cut. 

It happened for the Partnership Agreement in 1998 that settled the decades long water wars in the Tampa Bay area.  Each basin board passed a resolution saying it supported the agreement for its own reasons.  Some basins were hit heavily, like those directly in the Tampa Bay area because they would benefit more from the agreement than those in the outer areas who ended up contributing much less.

This is the way to get Polk’s legitimate needs met.  It’s okay for the district to participate in funding the cost.  It’s fair.  But the decision needs to be made from the bottom up, not from any CEO-governor or CEO-senator down.

Floral City Water Board Buys Wellfield Site From Board Member

Here’s a little follow up on the wellfield being pursued by Floral City Water in the springshed of the Chassahowitzka River.

First, I’ve learned that the Floral City Water Association’s proposal is for a wellfield only and not, at least for the moment, a waste water treatment facility.  So, I had that wrong.

But, how about this?  The land was owned by a fellow who sold it to the Floral City Water Association, Inc.  This company is overseen by a seven member non-compensated Board of Directors of which he is a member.  So, as a member of the association board, he would obviously have been instrumental in determining a new water source was needed. As a member of the association board, he would have been involved in developing the feasibility and justification for locating a wellfield at that particular location. As a member of the association board, he would have been involved in making the final selection of that particular site.  And, as a member of the association board, he would have been involved in deciding what price the Association would be willing to pay for it.  All while he was also the owner of the property and deciding what to ask the association of which he was a member to pay for it!  Sort of like deciding how much he wanted from himself for his own property but using somebody else's money.

Starts to smell a little, doesn’t it?

Also, the Citrus County Land Development Review Board (LDRB) is the Board that granted the conditional land use permit to the Floral City Water Association to change the use from a platted and deed-restricted property to one that allows for a water treatment and production facility.  The board approved the zoning change despite the objections of hundreds of very vocal and angry residents from the area.

What was the justification for the LDRB to make the decision over the objections of the residents?  Where in the world was the County Commission on such a controversial issue?  How did the staff come to the conclusion that allowing the zoning change was in the best interest of Citrus County?  What consideration was given to other sites or potential sources of supply such as a connection with the City of Inverness water system, and could other alternatives have offered a cheaper way to go?

I don’t know if any of these types of questions were asked and answered.  I do know they should have been.  Any responsible water system routinely would engage in this kind of analysis before making a final decision that could have a major impact on the cost its customers will have to pay for inappropriate folly, if that is what it is.

But my concern here is not whether the decision was made inappropriately, illegally, or even if the unfortunate folks on the Floral City water system are getting a fair deal.  Certainly someone needs to be concerned about those things, but not me right now.

My foremost concern is that the Floral City Water Association has now applied to SWFWMD for a water use permit to withdraw water from the site, or maybe to modify its existing permit so withdrawals permitted from alleged tainted wells located elsewhere can be moved to the new site.

My concern is whether the new withdrawals are from within the Chassahowitzka spring-system watershed.  If they are, where and when the governing board sets the new minimum flow and level for the springs and river will become critical.

If MFLs are set at the level that will allow no further withdrawals within the springshed, as they should be, then this permit request, presumably, will not be granted. But the district will need to make that decision before a final decision is made on the permit request for the denial to be supported by the MFL finding.

If the permit is approved before the board makes its decision on the MFL for the springs and river, and the board sets the levels where it should, the opportunity to prevent any further impacts on the system will have been lost, perhaps forever.

Hopefully, the board will set an MFL level that reflects the position that the river and its contributing springs have been impacted enough and further withdrawals from within the springshed will not be allowed.  Hopefully, this will precede any decision to grant such withdrawals.

If, on the other hand, the district sets the MFL low at a level that allows further withdrawals and grants the permit from within the springshed, then our fears will become justified.  Gallon by gallon we will have methodically begun the reduction of the river to a level that will take it to the brink of “significant harm,” forever.

As they say, timing is everything.

Don't weaken environmental rules

This letter was originally published 9.19.11 in the Daytona News-Journal Online at
http://www.news-journalonline.com/opinion/letters-to-the-editor/2011/09/19/dont-weaken-environmental-rules.html

It reflects growing concern being voiced by many which is certainly part of the reason for the CEO-governor’s low approval in recent polls.  The worry is rightly focused on just how the reduced protection for our natural resources is ultimately, perhaps permanently, going to affect the future of our State and our children who will have to deal with the consequences. 

It is dangerously shortsighted to allow the perhaps permanent loss of natural Florida in exchange for jobs that, in the long term, will not stay because Florida will no longer be an attractive place to work, live and raise children.  Unfortunately, the ill-advised, inexperienced, uninformed, incuding our leaders in Tallahassee, aren’t listening … so far … but the drum beat is rising.

It is reprinted here with the permission of the author, James C Orth.  Mr. Orth is the Executive Director, St. Johns RIVERKEEPER. (www.stjohnsriverkeeper.org)

Don't weaken environmental rules

By JIMMY ORTH, Jacksonville

 September 19, 2011 12:05 AM

Despite the fact that most environmental regulations often provide economic benefits that far outweigh the costs, Florida Gov. Rick Scott and many of our state legislators are working to eliminate or weaken important safeguards that protect our natural resources and human health. Unfortunately, they also fail to acknowledge the significant economic impact from algae blooms and pollution that hurt businesses, cost jobs, impact human health, reduce property values and our tax base, and diminish recreational opportunities and our quality of life.

Eliminating environmental safeguards -- ignoring costly pollution problems that threaten human health and hurt local communities -- is a radical proposition that will have devastating consequences for our state.

These policy changes are also reflected in the budgets and priorities of the agencies charged with managing and protecting our natural resources, such as the St. Johns River Water Management District. The water management district has abandoned efforts to produce an updated water supply plan, once said to be an essential road map to the future. It has also eliminated or significantly cut back on water quality monitoring, research, and critical water conservation and restoration projects, and ended an important rulemaking process that would have established sensible water conservation requirements for permit applicants. Plans are now under way to expedite the permitting process, despite the fact that over-development has played a big role in our current economic problems. Less than a year ago, the SJRWMD was sounding the alarm that we are fast approaching the sustainable limits of the aquifer. However, the district recently issued an unprecedented consumptive use permit to JEA, Jacksonville's water and electrical utility, that could eventually result in a 40 percent increase in groundwater withdrawals by the utility.

While our water management districts certainly had room for improvement, Scott and his colleagues are making matters worse, resulting in agencies that are less capable of managing and protecting our already imperiled water resources. Instead of stimulating our economy, they are enacting policy changes that are actually counter to the economic interests of our state and its citizens and do nothing to address the root causes of our economic woes.

The bottom line is that our economic well-being is inextricably linked to how effectively we protect our environment and preserve our natural resources. Safeguarding our air, waters and natural lands is simply a prudent and wise economic investment in the future of our state and a more sensible and defensible approach to economic recovery.

Orth is executive director of the St. Johns Riverkeeper organization.

SJRWMD seeking new director

The St. Johns River Water Management District needs a new director.  If you know of someone who is qualified and interested, please see the notice below.  Also, here’s a link to the District’s webpage that provides further info: http://floridaswater.com/ED/.

Sandspur

Committee seeking to find new executive director

The St. Johns River Water Management District’s executive director search committee is accepting applications for executive director until 5 p.m. Sept. 21. The search committee, made up of Governing Board members Lad Daniels, John Miklos and Maryam Ghyabi, will review and narrow the field of candidates on Sept. 23 and make a recommendation for the Board to consider during its Oct. 11 public meeting at the District’s headquarters in Palatka. The summary of duties and application instructions are available at floridaswater.com/ED.

SWFWMD to Allow Chassahowitzka River to be Reduced 11% in Flow

Chassahowitzka River, Florida

Sounds unbelievable, doesn’t it?  
 

SWFWMD is supposed to be protecting sensitive coastal river systems, especially those sustained almost entirely by flows from fresh water springs.  How could it be contemplating a planned reduction from any of these fragile natural systems so unique to Florida?

And what’s worse, the legal basis and science being used to set these new levels will be applicable to virtually all coastal river systems sustained by spring flows.  This includes such iconic systems as Weeki Wachee, Crystal, Homosassa, Silver and Rainbow springs as well as the Anclote and Pithlachascotee Rivers to name some of the most prominent along Florida’s west coast.  If SWFWMD gets this policy wrong on one, it’ll be wrong for all.

This is happening because Florida Law (Chapter 373.042, Florida Statutes) requires the water management districts (or DEP) to establish the Minimum Flows and Levels (MFLs) for “aquifers, surface watercourses, and other water bodies to identify the limit at which further withdrawals would be significantly harmful to the water resources or ecology of the area.” (Emphasis added)

MFLs were intended to be, and largely have been, beneficial by setting the limit that man’s activities would be intentionally allowed to negatively impact a designated water body.  While they are beneficial in one sense, however, they can be injurious in another. 

The concept of setting a minimum flow and level was to provide protection and even recovery for levels found to be already below the minimum.  It was placed into law and required of the water management districts (another core mission, Herschel?) years ago when water from many of these natural systems was being pumped or diverted at a rate that would destroy them.  Kissengen Springs  which ceased continuous flow in 1950 is a prime example of what they were intended to prevent.

When MFLs were first pursued, the spring was already too far gone to be recovered.  Today, it’s just an abandoned, trash strewn mud hole.  Stark evidence of what man can do unintentionally and otherwise to his own nest.  Recovery is not feasible because the withdrawals that caused its destruction would be difficult or impossible to replace for those who now use the water.


The near destruction of the lakes and wetlands in northwest Hillsborough and Pasco counties in the ‘70’s and ‘80’s when Pinellas County and the City of St. Petersburg were pumping massive quantities of water and piping it away to their own public distribution systems on the other hand, is an example of MFL’s as they were intended to be used.

Determining that the levels there should be higher was the scientific basis for the historic agreement between the West Coast Regional Water Supply Authority, of which Pinellas and St. Pete were members, and SWFWMD by which over 100 million gallons of permitted pumping per day were given up.  Today the area is well on its way to recovery.

So setting minimum flows and levels can be a good thing but in the case of the Chassahowitzka River it simply isn’t.

At one time in the past and perhaps no longer, a primary test for issuance of a water use permit was whether or not the withdrawal or diversion would cause “harm” to the water resource or ecology of the area.  If harm was going to be caused, the permit was not considered to be in the interest of the public and was either modified or denied.

I don’t know if the law or the district’s administrative rules might have changed over the years in this respect but with the advent of MFLs a new criterion has become operative.  The test for the amount of impact a withdrawal may have now, apparently, is limited by “significant harm.”  

Whereas “harm” was not allowed in the past, it is apparent that under the MFL test whatever “harm” meant then, it will now be allowed up to the point it becomes “significant.”   This is obviously a more liberal test that in my mind creates some kind of legal dichotomy.

It brings about a curious predicament that bubbles up where the district determines an MFL has been set but not yet reached.  By saying the water resources of the area have not yet been “significantly harmed” because the actual levels are higher than a minimum that would cause “significant harm,” it is also effectively saying more of what used to be classified as “harm” can be allowed until it reaches a level of significance. 

In the case of the Chassahowitzka River, therefore, SWFWMD is saying it will allow the river to be permanently lowered by 11% more than its current average flow before the accumulation of “harm” becomes significant enough to allow no more. 
This will become an institutionalized policy of the Governing Board that is nothing short of an invitation to come and pump because we have decided it’s okay to harm the river until the harm is “significant.”  Supposedly, this would occur when the river’s flow is permanently reduced by 15%.

While the springs of the Chassahowitzka system, of which there are over a dozen, are not likely to become the Kissengen Springs of Citrus County, any further reduction of flow at all will move them in that direction … in perpetuity.

The locals will tell you the river has already been significantly impacted by reduction in rainfall and a rise in Gulf water levels which has moved salt water further up river than they can remember.  The resultant invasion of saltier water is degrading the freshwater-dependent growth along the river’s edge and in the river itself, and saltwater barnacles are showing up on boat bottoms where they never have before.  They know this because some have lived there most of their lives, some for generations. 

Unfortunately, the district tends to disregard such “anecdotal evidence” in favor of the scientific data it has gathered from wells in the area, even though the district’s studies state that records for the quantity of water discharged by the spring only go back to 1997, and records for the river’s “stage” (elevation of the river’s surface) only go back to 1999. 

The SWFWMD governing board is a lay body that is about to set an institutional policy to be administered through a legal system that translates science into regulatory criteria and applies it through a bureaucratic filter in order to prevent “significant harm” to a water resource but allow “harm” up to a very narrowly defined point, and, it is attempting to institute this process in order to successfully “manage” river systems that are among the most sensitive in the world.  It is a situation where anything can go wrong at many points.

How can such an extraordinary decision, one which will affect this river in perpetuity, one which requires more common sense than science, be made in such a determined and myopic manner?

It is as if the tsunami of wisdom that strongly suggests this is a very small river and any programmed, intentional reduction in its flow is, by any definition, unwise and not acceptable, is being ignored.  Is it simply agency inertia, an internal momentum, to identify the finest amount of further impact that can be identified, and to proudly and stubbornly say it can be allowed?

Significantly, the river is designated an “Outstanding Florida Waterway”.  Doesn’t that mean anything?  According to Florida’s Department of Environmental Protection,

“An Outstanding Florida Water, (OFW), is a water designated worthy of special protection because of its natural attributes. This special designation is applied to certain waters, and is intended to protect existing good water quality.”

Yes, this statement simply but strongly suggests that such water bodies as “The Chazz”, as the locals call it, should be given extra care not extra impacts from man’s activities.

To say the least, attempting to manage nature so finely in a regulatory environment that is subject to the ever-changing political whims of an ill-informed governor and a vindictive legislature led by special interests, all to achieve such a narrow result can be disastrous, and it will be permanent if it doesn’t work.  It is a very risky thing to do. 

We should not intentionally try to allow planned damage to sensitive natural systems under any circumstance.  There has already been enough.  We should not be planning to allow more.

The action that should be taken by the board is to set the MFL at the river’s current or even earlier levels and allow no further permanent reductions in flow caused by consumptive uses from the springshed.

An interesting side note

Floral City is very small community that truly is nothing more than a stop light at the intersection of US 41 and County Road 48 a few miles south of Inverness in Citrus County.  It is relevant to the issue about MFLs on the Chassahowitzka River because, though the city is very small, it has a central water supply system, the Floral City Water Association, Inc.  The association’s website has this to say about its company profile:

Floral City Water Association Incorporated was formed by the people of the Floral City community in 1969. We initially had 250 members served by a single 4″ well. We are overseen by a seven member non-compensated Board of Directors and are staffed by six employees. We take pride in that we have efficiently operated this member owned utility for over 42 years and through our member’s conservation efforts, we have the lowest per capita usage of any water utility in Citrus County.    We currently have 52.5 miles of distribution line and supply the majority of the water needs for the Floral City town area, Floral City Elementary School, Withlapopka Island, Duval Island, and many outlying areas. Water is provided by groundwater at our facility located on Florida Ave. Our second facility, built in 1984, was unfortunately shut down in 2005 as a result of high organic content in the source water which leads to the creation of TriHaloMethanes. It remains for use only in emergency situations which would threaten the integrity of our system.

The point here is this.  Floral City is located very close to the Chassahowitzka system springshed.  The above suggests they should be looking for a new supply because one of their supply sources was shut down due to contamination of its wells and is used now only for emergency purposes.  The fact is, they are.  And where would you suspect they want to drill new wells?  You guessed it.  From the Chassahowitzka system springshed.

In fact, they have already been granted by the Citrus County Commission a Conditional Use Permit to construct a sewage treatment facility and well field on Stagecoach Trail, a significant distance to the west of Floral City.

The questions that arise in my mind are:

Why would the Floral City Water Association want to build a wellfield so distant from where its primary concentration of customers is located?  The cost of building a major pipeline that long would be significant.

Would all the rural residents along Stagecoach Road be forced to “hookup” to the new system?  Every water utility knows that the only way to finance expansion is to bring on new customers or raise the rates on existing ones but forcing current rural residents to help pay for it would be wrong.

Wouldn’t it make more sense to simply partner with the City of Inverness to provide Floral City water?

Why this particular parcel?  Who owns it?  Why is it considered the only place to build a sewage treatment plant and wellfield so far away.  Were other sites closer to Floral City considered? 

And finally, what impact will this have on “The Chazz”?  It seems very fortuitous an MFL is being set at this particular time that would guarantee water could be pumped from its springshed and which would by rule allow an 11% reduction in the river’s flow, doesn’t it?

A final thought

The assault on sensitive spring-fed river systems will continue given the lack of environmental sentiment prevailing in Florida politics these days.  This issue is not with the scientists in this case as much as it is with the policy makers.  The lack of simple wisdom is insidious and reflective if the illness in Florida’s current political condition.  The future of Florida resides in how these relatively small but cumulatively enormous issues are resolved.  The idea that we can effectively allow an additional 11% reduction in flow of the very small Chassahowitzka River through regulations based upon some alleged scientific measurement of mollusks and worms is ridiculous.  And the fact that the mistake will be permanent if the exercise is wrong, is beyond rational.

Grappling With the Sea Change Rippling From Tallahassee

Following is a very enlightening story (see below) by reporter Dinah Voyles Pulver published in today's (9.11.11)  Daytona Beach News Journal.  It's about the fears and purposes of the new era in water management being mandated by Tallahassee. 

It touches on the obviously drastic actions taken to transform the water management districts, particularly the SJRWMD headquartered in Palatka, and the fears of those who are convinced the outcome will not be good.

On the one hand, the largely accepted view is that Florida's water management districts needed to reform themselves to reflect the new economy, and change their alleged regulatory arrogance.  On the other, is the fear that all the good they have done to date managing and protecting the state’s water resources and all that depends upon a sustainable and healthy supply for both human and natural systems could be undone.



Maryam Ghyabi

 SJRWMD board member, Maryam Ghyabi, an Ormond Beach engineer who made disparaging remarks about the district’s staff at a recent board meeting is now trying to calm the resultant insecurities of the district’s 500-plus employees. 

Unfortunately, words offer little comfort for those who have been “released”, and the proof of what happens next will be in how the district staff and board resolve the district's resource problems that are not going to disapear because of a down economy.   (Hi-liting is added)

                                                                              Sandspur

CEO Meeker Responds To "Unsubstantiated Cries From A Handful of Environmentalists"

Melissa Meeker
Exec. Dir. SFWMD

Letter from Melissa Meeker

St. Petersburg Times 8.3.11

http://www.tampabay.com/opinion/letters/saturdays-letters-south-florida-water-district-returns-to-its-core-mission/1189204

Contrary to the unsubstantiated cries of a handful of environmentalists, reducing spending at the South Florida Water Management District is not bringing Everglades restoration to a grinding halt. Reducing taxes by more than 30 percent, the district is streamlining operations, eliminating unnecessary expenses and getting back to its core mission of flood control, water supply and ecosystem restoration. In doing so, we are saving South Floridians $128 million, the majority of which has been realized by cutting excessive overhead and building a leaner, more efficient agency.

Vinyard Claims No Water Czar in the Works ... sure.

Water Management
CEO Herschel Vinyard

In response to a question from the St. Petersburg Times, new guy secretary of DEP Herschel Vinyard says he hasn’t heard about the idea of a water czar though he’s “very focused on water and water policy because water is so important to the state’s future.”

Well, he’s got that last part right, at least.  But does he really have no plans for centralizing control of water and water management district money in Tallahassee?  Or is he just being coy?