The St. Johns River Water Supply Impact Study (WSIS) final report was recently released by the St. Johns River Water Management District (SJRWMD). The 4-year, multimillion dollar study was initiated by the SJRWMD after legitimate concerns were raised by St. Johns Riverkeeper and the public regarding plans to withdraw up to 155 million gallons of water a day (mgd) from the St. Johns River and nearly 100 million gallons a day from the Ocklawaha River.

In 2008, St. Johns Riverkeeper, St. Johns County, and the City of Jacksonville legally challenged the proposed Seminole County Yankee Lake permit to remove an average of 5.5 million gallons of water a day from the St. Johns River.  Although the permit was eventually approved by the SJRWMD, widespread opposition to withdrawals from the St. Johns and Ocklawaha served as a catalyst for the study.  See a list at the bottom of this post of the numerous governments and organizations that signed resolutions opposing withdrawals.

We commend the SJRWMD for conducting the study and are pleased that an independent peer review was undertaken by a respected group of outside experts, the National Research Council (NRC). Scientists and policymakers are now more knowledgeable about the St. Johns River and have a better understanding of this complex aquatic system. The study will be a helpful tool for future planning efforts.

However, the study does not provide a green light for withdrawals. The study has significant shortcomings, emphasizing the need for further research and analysis and the need to focus on a much safer and cost-effective alternative, water conservation.

We must not allow the study to divert our attention away from what should be our first priority – using our current water supply sources as prudently and efficiently as possible. Until we have sufficiently exhausted all of the viable conservation and reuse options that are readily available to us, we should not focus on the pursuit of new supply sources, especially our St. Johns River.

Here are some of the concerns and study limitations that were identified in the peer review by the National Research Council:
 

• "In conducting the WSIS, District scientists found that the lack of basic data (e.g., certain kinds of benthos and fish information) and the inadequacy of basic analytical tools (e.g., on wetland hydrology and biogeochemical processes) limited what they were able to achieve and conclude.”
• "…data needed to understand surface water–groundwater interactions and for the environmental impact analyses were not as readily available. In some cases data were very limited…. the lack of data impeded the progress of some workgroups and led to uncertainties about some of the WSIS conclusions."
• "…the relatively short period (ten years) of the rainfall record used for the hydraulic and hydrodynamic modeling and the assumption that it will apply to future climatic conditions is a concern.”
• “…the workgroups did not appear to consider the possibility of back-to-back extreme events in their analyses, e.g., two or three years of extreme drought in a row, which the Committee considers to be reasonably likely future situations."
• "The Committee continues to be somewhat concerned with the basis for the final conclusion that water withdrawals of the magnitude considered in the WSIS will not have many deleterious ecological effects. In large part, this conclusion was based on the model findings that increased flows from the upper basin projects and from changes in land use (increases in impervious urban/suburban areas) largely compensated for the impacts of water withdrawals on water flows and levels….The generally poor quality of surface runoff from such land uses is well known."
• “…runoff resulting from increases in urban/suburban land area in the basin was assumed to affect watershed hydrology only….The modeling conducted by the District did not have a water quality component, and the District considered the potential ecological effects of significant increases in degraded stormwater runoff, as well as changes in the frequency distribution of stream flows in urbanized areas, to be outside the scope of the WSIS."
• "Although the District included water withdrawals from both the main channel of the St. Johns River and from the Ocklawaha River in its withdrawal scenarios, the WSIS focused only on potential effects of the withdrawals on the hydrology and ecology of the St. Johns River (and associated riparian wetlands). The Committee expressed concern from the outset of this study about the exclusion from the WSIS of potential effects of withdrawals on the Ocklawaha River (NRC, 2009)."
• "Uncertainties about future conditions over which the District has no control (e.g., climate change, sea level rise, land use) also lead to concerns about the reliability of the conclusions."
• " If there is an extended drought in the future, when increased water supply demands have led to surface withdrawals, water suppliers might not be able to withdraw water from the river for months or even years on end. It is not obvious that this would be socially acceptable."
   

Click here to read the comments submitted by St. Johns Riverkeeper to the SJRWMD regarding the Water Supply Impact Study (WSIS).

Here is a list of the organizations and governments that previously passed resolutions opposing withdrawals:
Governments
City of Neptune Beach
Jacksonville Beach
Jacksonville
Keystone Heights
Atlantic Beach
Jacksonville Planning Commission
St. Johns County
Jacksonville Environmental Protection Board
Jacksonville Water and Sewer Expansion Authority
Jacksonville Waterways Commission
Town of Hastings
Town of Callahan
Nassau County
Clay County
Duval County Soil and Water Conservation District
Bradford County Legislative Delegation
Seminole County Soil and Water Conservation District

Organizations
St. Johns Riverkeeper
Shrimp Producers Association
Putnam County Environmental Council
Northeast Florida Sierra Club
Clay Action Network
Turtle Coast Sierra Club
Jacksonville Civic Council, Inc.
Central Florida Sierra Club
Polk Sierra Club
Suwannee-St. Johns Sierra Club
Florida Chapter Sierra Club
William Bartram Scenic & Historic Highway Corridor Management Council
NW St. Johns County Community Coalition
Beaches Watch
St. Johns County Roundtable
Greater Arlington & Beaches CPAC
South Anastasia Community Association
Environmental Youth Council
Save Our Lakes
Greater Arlington Civic Council
Mandarin Community Club
Duval County Democratic Executive Committee
Santa Fe Lake Dwellers
Northeast Florida Association of Realtors
Clay County Chamber of Commerce
Florida Lure Anglers
Southside Business Men’s Club
Democratic Women’s Information Network
Gulf Restoration Network
Downtown Council of the Jacksonville Regional Chamber of Commerce
West Volusia Audubon
Late Bloomers Garden Club
Friends of Wekiva River

Adena Springs Ranch has submitted a consumptive use permit (CUP) application to withdraw 13.267 million gallons of water a day (mg/d) from the aquifer for a cattle and slaughterhouse operation near Ft. McCoy in Marion County.

This is more water than the 12.85 mg/d used by the entrie City of Ocala. The water would be used to irrigate pasture land for 30,000 head of cattle and for the meat processing plant.

The proposed cattle operation would be located within the springshed of Silver Springs. Unfortunately, Silver Springs is already impaired.  This project could cause further harm to this treasured natural wonder, a Florida Outstanding Waterway.

According to Dr. Bob Knight, Director of the Florida Springs Institute, and a 50-year retrospective study of Silver Springs:

• Flows have declined by 32% during the past decade and 50% since 1965
• NO3-N has increased by 176% (2,600% over the entire period of record of more than 100 years)
• Water clarity has decreased
• Nighttime dissolved oxygen has declined by about 19%
• Submerged aquatic plant biomass has declined by 21%
• Total algal biomass has increased by 371%
• Ecosystem productivity has declined by 27%
• Insect productivity has declined by 72%
• Fish biomass has declined by 92%
   

Withdrawing such a large quantity of groundwater could further reduce the spring's flow. 

Nutrient-rich waste created from the cattle manure and fertilizers used on the property could reach the groundwater that ultimately discharges from Silver Springs. This would only exacerbate the existing problem of elevated nutrient levels in the spring.

The CUP application #129419 is currently under review at this time and public comment is being accepted.

The St. Johns River Water Management District (SJRWMD) has issued a Request for Additional Information (RAI) and the applicant has submitted some but not all of the requested information. Once they have a completed application, then the District staff will prepare a Technical Staff Report (TSR) that will provide analysis and a recommendation to the Governing Board.

Here is how to access the permit application, supporting documents, and correspondence:

1.  Go to the SJRWMD permitting page and select "search by Application/permit number" in the right-hand column.
2.  Enter the application number 129419 and click submit.
3. Then, click on the Permit Number in far left cell to access the permit documents and to comment and receive notifications.
4. Click "To comment or receive notifications" in the middle of the page to receive updates and to voice your opposition.

You can also send comments to applicationsupport@sjrwmd.com.

Learn more about this issue by reading this article from the Ocala Star-Banner.

St. Johns Riverkeeper and our numerous partners collaborated to install the City of Jacksonville’s first bioswale along Lasalle Street in front of the San Marco Library. A bioswale collects stormwater runoff from roads, rooftops, and parking lots and uses soil and plants to remove pollution before the water reaches the St. Johns River.

Funded by a grant from Coca-Cola, the bioswale was installed to demonstrate how Low Impact Development (LID) or Green Infrastructure strategies can be effectively utilized to manage and treat stormwater. A portion of the runoff from Lasalle Street and the surrounding area will now be diverted into the bioswale, helping to clean the stormwater before it enters our river.

Previously, this water was diverted into storm drains and went straight to the river untreated, carrying with it fertilizers, chemicals, and other pollutants.

This project was made possible by the generous contributions of numerous partners, including enVision Design + Engineering, Coca-Cola, San Marco Preservation Society, Greenscape, Jacksonville Zoo & Gardens, MetroVerde, Content Design Group, Petticoat-Schmidt, Media Works, PMB Constructors, Superior Trees, City of Jacksonville, Council Member Lori Boyer, and Jacksonville Public Library.

The project will soon get even better when Florida Roads installs a pervious concrete walkway at the site.

Click here to vote for this project in the Innovate Northeast Florida Jax Boldest contest!

Bill Belleville Tribute to Neil Armingeon

If there has ever been an orphan of a natural system in Florida, it's the St. Johns River. Once worshiped by the Timucua and later, revered by the white settlers who floated their economy atop it, the St. Johns flowed tentatively into the late 20th century with scant real-life stewardship.

Technology and institutionalized "caring" simply weren't cutting it. This river—- which had given so much to so many for so long—- was sick. It didn't need officious help. It needed a deep-hearted guardian, one who would transcend safe, socialized behaviors and stand up for it, like a good parent would stand up for their child.

Certainly, "Father of the River" wasn't in the job description when Alabama native Neil Armingeon was hired as the St. Johns Riverkeeper in early 2003. Neil had been educated with a masters in environmental management at Duke, had been trained as an ecologist and hydrologist, and had spearheaded support for Lake Pontchartrain in New Orleans.

For most, that would have been enough. Many would have been content just to give public talks and ride up and down the river in a spiffy RK boat.

But Neil—-with his very real down-home Southern style, his energetic caring, and inextricable sense for fairness—- realized that getting the job done was far more than repeating the steps of a meaningless socio-political quadrille.

Sadly, many veterans in science, law, and resource management in Florida had danced this Orwellian charade for decades. With rare exceptions, most simply repeated that two-step with little regard for whether it made a difference in the health of the river.

When Neil figured out what was going on and called them on it, they seemed outraged that anyone would dare question their short-term motives. Rocking the boat wasn't safe economically, they cried. Jobs are at stake. We're doing what we can, and that's good enough.

But those platitudes were disturbingly hollow. The truth is Florida is a place where promises are routinely bought and sold—-regardless of what is needed to sustain the ecological wholeness that really underpins the economy.

We live in a time when real heroes are rare. If you revisit the words and deeds of our earlier champions of nature, it becomes apparent what a hero might be.

For 18th century artist-philosopher William Bartram, it was someone who came to commune with nature and not to exploit it.

For the great Florida naturalist Archie Carr, it meant a person who had the passion to really care about what lived or died—-one who "preserves things that stir him.”

And for Edward Abbey—-the gutsy, iconoclastic bard of wild places—it was this: “Caring without action is the ruin of the soul.”

As a corollary, I’m figuring that Neil Armingeon's soul is incandescent and righteous and true. It’s a courageous, real-world soul that’s been put to the test—-one that's scarred and weathered and character-driven, with little danger of ruin.

I steadfastly believe that Neil’s spirit—-and the spirit of all who care in their hearts for this river—- will prevail.

Thanks for being here as long as you have, Neil, and for working and feeling as fully as you could to "parent" our river, to be confident enough to allow yourself to be stirred by its liquid embrace.

Your caring and ethic will endure, buddy, as long as folks have the courage to listen to what their own gut-driven conscience has to say.

We are excited to announce that Lisa Rinaman has been selected to succeed Neil Armingeon as your next St. Johns Riverkeeper.  Lisa will assume the role as St. Johns Riverkeeper after Neil steps down at the end of January.

As a former senior staff member for Jacksonville Mayor John Peyton, Lisa Rinaman has extensive experience building consensus around issues and helped implement numerous environmental initiatives and policies. Lisa was instrumental in leading the effort to develop and implement irrigation, fertilizer and Florida Friendly landscaping ordinances to better protect the St. Johns and local waterways. She also played a key role in securing state funding for water quality improvements, organizing the city's successful Manatee Protection Plan, and pushing for programs necessary to fulfill the River Accord restoration plan for the Lower St. Johns River.

For the past two years, Lisa has also served as a valuable member of the St. Johns Riverkeeper Water Policy Group (WPG), a group that advocates for water conservation and reuse and policies that are more protective of our water resources. She has provided critical expertise, helping the WPG to formulate its priorities and develop and implement effective strategies.

We are fortunate that someone with Lisa’s relationships, talents, integrity and commitment will be representing our organization. She’s tough-minded yet tactful, passionate yet pragmatic, and has outstanding communication skills, experience, and a successful track record of getting things done.

Lisa will be a tremendous asset and highly-effective advocate for the St. Johns River. She has the skills and experience to successfully build on Neil’s outstanding work and to carry on the tradition of excellence that he has helped to establish.

So, please join us by enthusiastically welcoming Lisa aboard and lending your support as she leads us forward in our campaign for a clean and healthy St. Johns River.

Watch this video interview with Lisa to learn more about her passion for the river and plans for the future.

The Florida Theatre
February 16, 2012

Celebrate the outstanding work and service of Neil Armingeon.  Support your next St. Johns Riverkeeper, Lisa Rinaman.

On Thursday, February 16, 2012 at 8 p.m., a special musical event will be held at the Florida Theatre in Jacksonville to honor Neil, benefit the St. Johns Riverkeeper organization, and show support for Neil's successor, Lisa Rinaman.

The evening will feature full musical sets from luminaries Van Dyke Parks and Billy Joe Shaver. Parks has a lengthy list of credits as a composer, arranger, producer and musician. He is perhaps best known for his collaborations with the Beach Boys’ Brian Wilson. Shaver is a fabulous honky tonking country outlaw, whose songs have been recorded by Elvis Presely, Bob Dylan, Allman Brothers, Waylon Jennings, Allison Krauss, Emmylou Harris, Jerry Lee Lewis, Patty Loveless, Willie Nelson & Johnny Cash, just to name a few.

Come see these true American originals, as we honor Neil Armingeon, celebrate the accomplishments of St. Johns Riverkeeper during his tenure, and welcome our new Riverkeeper.

For tickets or information, please call the Florida Theatre Box Office at (904) 355-2787 or visit www.floridatheatre.com.

VIP tickets are $100 and include premium seating, wine and hors d'oeuvres with Neil and Lisa before the show, and a meet and greet with the artists after the show.  For VIP tickets, call the Florida Theatre Box Office at (904) 355-2787.

100% of profits from the event will be donated to St. Johns Riverkeeper.

This is a Flying Saucer Presents production. For event sponsorship information, contact Tib Miller at tibmiller@yahoo.com.

by Kelly Savage, Community Outreach Director

I want to take a moment to thank all of our volunteers for dedicating so much of their time for the river.  With only our small yet passionate staff of 4 full-time and 2 part-time employees at St. Johns Riverkeeper, we would be limited in terms of what we could accomplish with community outreach.   However, this is not the case and for one important reason - volunteers. We all know that volunteers are critically important to non-profit organizations, but looking at the end-of-year-totals really paints a picture.

Total Volunteer Occurrences: 473

• 473 times I sent out a call for help, and 473 times someone raised their hand and gave up their personal time to help the river.

Total Volunteer Hours: 1,974

• The total hours are nearly equivalent to having another full-time employee on staff!

Total Estimated Outreach: 21,112

We have 165 volunteers in our database.   The following folks volunteered for 25 hours or more in 2011.

Roger Linville – 121
Kathy Vaughn – 107
Walton Chenney – 101.5
Lori Shad – 100
Amanda Howen – 90
Chandler Burroughs – 80.5
Jennie Busey – 50
Beverly Chapman – 33
Dunncan Pullen – 32
Brian O'Shea – 30
Paige Slade – 28.5
Mike Field – 27
Natalie Schoof – 27
Louann Williams – 25.5
Sarah Nan – 25

We also had 102 people volunteer less than 25 hours!

So thank you St. Johns Riverkeeper volunteers!

Interested in volunteering with us? Learn more and fill out the application by clicking here. 
 

As we have previously reported, Jacksonville City Council Member Jim Love introduced a resolution opposing the issuance of the Georgia-Pacific (GP) wastewater discharge permit until all outstanding questions have been answered, including those regarding dioxin.

Considering the fact that significant pollution problems at the Palatka paper mill have yet to be resolved, Love’s resolution was a legitimate attempt to ensure that the St. Johns River will be sufficiently protected and wildlife and people will not be exposed to cancer-causing pollutants.
.
Love’s resolution was by no means anti-GP, anti-jobs, or unreasonable. If anything, it was pro-river and pro-Jacksonville.  The Councilman simply sought to protect the people and the businesses of Northeast Florida that could potentially be put in harm’s way, if Georgia-Pacific is allowed to begin dumping its wastewater directly into the St. Johns River before these pollution problems are resolved.

Jacksonville and the communities downstream of the mill have so much to potentially lose from this important permit decision, so simply seeking assurance that a thorough analysis has taken place and all questions about pollution have been adequately answered seems more than justified.

After all, the St. Johns is critical to our economy and quality of life. The river sustains a significant number of businesses and thousands of jobs related to commercial and recreational fishing, tourism, real estate, boating, and other marine-related industries that depend upon a clean St. Johns River. Property values on and near the river are directly impacted by the river’s health.

So, surely the rest of Councilman Love’s colleagues shared his concerns and were supportive of his efforts to seek certainty for the citizens of Jacksonville, right? Wrong.

Georgia-Pacific and its hired guns from the Dalton Agency PR firm went all out to influence council members and defeat the non-binding resolution. Representative Lake Ray, the new director of the First Coast Manufacturers Association, used predictable anti-job rhetoric, making claims that Governor Scott may look unfavorably upon Jacksonville if it goes against GP.

Councilman Robin Lumb also jumped on the GP bandwagon, claiming that you would have to drink 400 gallons of GP’s wastewater in order to ingest the amount of dioxin that we are already exposed to from other sources on a daily basis.

As a result, the Love resolution was unfortunately shot down in committee, even after he offered to soften some of the language to make it more palatable to some of the committee members.
Councilman Robin Lumb introduced an alternative resolution that served to undermine Love’s efforts to hold GP and DEP accountable, putting an end to any further discussions about the ongoing pollution problems at the mill. Lumb’s resolution fails to mention dioxin or address the legitimate questions that have been raised by two highly-regarded experts, one a chemical engineer with over 50 years of experience in the pulp and paper industry and the other a chemist at JU hired by the Florida Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) to assist with the evaluation of the mill’s effluent.  

Lumb’s substitute resolution passed the City Council by a vote of 10-6.  Those joining Lumb were council members Bill Gulliford, Greg Anderson, Bill Bishop, Lori Boyer, Doyle Carter, Stephen Joost, Don Redman, Matt Schellenberg and Clay Yarborough.  Those standing with Councilman Love and voting against it were Reggie Brown, John Crescimbeni, Ray Holt, Warren Jones, and Kimberly Daniels.

While it is disappointing that Love’s resolution did not prevail, we are grateful to Councilman Jim Love for standing up for the St. Johns River and successfully facilitating much-needed dialogue about this important issue.  

Click here for City Council contact information, if you would like to express your support for those who stood with the river and disappointment to those who did not. 

Recently, Earthjustice filed a legal challenge on behalf of St. Johns Riverkeeper and several other groups against Florida’s Department of Environmental Protection (DEP), because the state agency is failing to protect residents and tourists from dangerous toxic algae outbreaks.

“Toxic algae outbreaks are a public health threat and they also affect Florida’s bottom line,” said Earthjustice attorney David Guest. “These outbreaks can cause rashes, breathing problems, stomach disorders, and worse. Health authorities have had to shut down drinking water plants, beaches and swimming areas. Toxic algae can kill fish, livestock and pets, and we need to be cleaning it up."

“The DEP’s decision to weaken pollution standards is an economic slap in the face to the thousands of Floridians who work in the tourism industry,” said St. Johns Riverkeeper Neil Armingeon, who has watched businesses suffer as the St. Johns gets covered with repeated toxic algal blooms. “This pollution hurts people who work in restaurants, hotels, beach concessions, the fishing industry, the boating industry, the dive industry, and the real estate sales and rental markets.”

After years of seeing toxic algae outbreaks on Florida tourist beaches like Sanibel Island and at fishing destinations like the St. Johns River, Earthjustice filed a Clean Water Act federal lawsuit in 2008 on behalf of the Florida Wildlife Federation, St. Johns Riverkeeper, the Conservancy of Southwest Florida, the Environmental Confederation of Southwest Florida, and the Sierra Club.   As a result, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) was compelled to step in and set numeric limits for the excess phosphorus and nitrogen in Florida waters that comes from wastewater discharges, failing septic tanks, manure, and fertilizer.

The rule that the EPA set for Florida was a “speed limit sign” that gave everyone fair notice of what specific level of pollution would be allowed in a particular water body.  If the speed limit was exceeded, regulators could take action to prevent toxic algae outbreaks. 

However, the state DEP has now decided to propose its own weaker rule that doesn’t provide that certainty and won’t protect public health.

To demonstrate the extent of the nutrient pollution problem in Florida, the Sierra Club created an interactive map of Florida’s slimed waterways, which stretch from South Florida to the Panhandle.  Click here to access the "Florida Slime Crime Tracker" map.
 

At a November 30th press conference on the steps of the Capitol in Tallahassee, Senator Bob Graham announced the formation of  the Florida Conservation Coalition (FCC), a non-partisan group of non-profit organizations and concerned citizens who will work together for the protection of our state's environment.  Senator Graham, a former two-term Florida governor and three-term U.S. Senator, called on Governor Scott and state legislators to join in the protection and management of the state's natural resources. 

Other speakers included: Senator Paula Dockery (R-Lakeland); Nathaniel Reed, Chairman Emeritus of the 1000 Friends of Florida Board of Directors; Eric Draper, Executive Director for Audubon of Florida; Manley Fuller, President of the Florida Wildlife Federation; and Samantha Ruiz, co-president of the University of Central Florida student organization Intellectual Decisions on Environmental Awareness Solutions (I.D.E.A.S.).

You can Senator Graham's address from the FCC press event by clicking here. 

St. Johns Riverkeeper is proud to be a charter member of the Florida Conservation Coalition.

Click here to learn more about the FCC and sign up for e-mail updates.

Florida Conservation Coalition Principles

• Florida’s water belongs to the people and must be maintained as a public resource.
• We must maintain effective state safeguards to ensure that we have abundant and clean water for us, our children and grandchildren.
• It is essential to protect Florida’s rivers, streams, springs, lakes, aquifers, sinks, and wetlands and their associated systems to safeguard our water resources, fish and wildlife, and the many recreational benefits they provide.
• We must protect Florida’s estuaries and near-shore waters of the Atlantic Ocean and Gulf of Mexico as they are dependent on clean fresh water flowing from the land and are the basis of recreational and commercial fishing and Florida’s seafood industry.
• It is imperative that we protect Florida’s significant natural lands as they cleanse and store our drinking water as well as the water needed to support agriculture and the environment.
• We must protect our water supply from over use which can be caused by over-development, over-pumping for bottled water, agriculture and other uses, and is made worse in times of drought.
• To accomplish these principles, Florida’s regional watershed-based system of managing and protecting water needs to be maintained for the benefit of all Floridians and avoid a one size fits all approach that would disrupt current and future efforts to protect critical clean water supplies.

Florida Conservation Coalition Priorities

• Restoring reasonable funding for Florida’s regional water management districts to provide for water quality protection, adequate water supplies, flood protection, and natural resources protection.
• Funding Florida Forever including acquiring land for water resource protection.
• Reaffirming Florida’s commitment to restore the Everglades, upon which South Florida’s water supply and quality of life depends.
• Managing Florida’s water resources at the regional, not state level. 
• Ensuring that growth management laws and policies support sustainable use of water.
• Promoting efficient use and conservation of water.
• Opposing efforts to privatize Florida’s water.