With the state’s growth management agency dismantled last year by lawmakers and Gov. Rick Scott, agriculture and development interests are seizing the opportunity, he said.

He pointed to the appointment of Peña to the panel recommending changes in wetlands laws as particularly troubling. She’s president of the Las Palmas community association — several hundred small nurseries, ranches and farms west of Krome Avenue long known as the 8.5 Square Mile Area. Residents in the area have repeatedly ran afoul of DERM, racking up some 90 code and wetlands violations in the last decade, according to county records.

“It’s such a grim scenario that when it comes to participating in these county task forces and working groups, I don’t see any point to it,” he said.

The county’s environmental agency, charged with monitoring and enforcing a wide range of county, state and federal laws, has long been a lightning rod for criticism. But the tone has grown more strident.

During last month’s commission meeting, Peña ticked off a long list of complaints: inspectors jumping fences, DERM dragging people to court over unpaid fines and forbidding residents from using portions of their lands.

“Is this America, or are we now going to legitimize Gestapo tactics in this country?” she said.

Several commissioners were quick to share in the disdain, branding regulators as overzealous and out to bolster the agency’s budget by assessing fines. Despite “the best intentions,” Commissioner Bruno Barreiro said, “a great idea has morphed into something that’s basically a monster.”

Complaints grew so heated at early wetlands advisory meetings that the county ordered police protection, said Deputy Mayor Jack Osterholt, who oversees the planning, zoning and environmental agencies.

But Osterholt insisted the administration was looking to overhaul outdated and inconsistent environmental regulations and permitting requirements that cost businesses time and money — not to loosen regulations.

“The focus is unchanged,’’ Osterholt said. “The mission is unchanged.”

Bell, in an interview, insisted her goal in pushing for the wetlands laws wasn’t intended to open the door to more development but to “balance the needs of the average worker and the average small business.”

“I’m not trying to gut anything,” Bell said. “We are perceived as a county that’s unfriendly toward business. We have to change that.”

Environmentalists are skeptical. They contend the verbal attacks combined with shuffling leadership and staff cuts have undermined morale and created a “bunker mentality.” Since 2000, the DERM staff has dropped from 556 to 482, with another 56 cuts proposed for next year.

“There is a lot of pressure on them,” said Laura Reynolds, executive director of the Tropical Audubon Society. “The climate is so bad, they’re afraid to say anything.”

Sara Fain, an attorney for the Everglades Law Center, said the complaints have come largely from landowners who have repeatedly flouted county laws and refused to pay court-ordered fines.

“It would be the same things as if I decided to install new windows in my house and didn’t apply for a permit,” she said. “This idea that DERM is trying to stop them from using their land is a fallacy.”

 

Bruce Ritchie, 03/15/2012 - 05:01 PM

 

Select Committee on Water Policy Chairwoman Trudi Williams, R-Fort Myers, guides the committee. She says she's considering a run for Senate. Photo Credit: Florida House of Representatives 3-11-11

A House committee chairwoman said Thursday that her committee's bill to extend the length of water-use permits seemed like a "no-brainer" and she was surprised it died without a vote in the Senate.

HB 7045 by the Select Committee on Water Policy would have extended permits for alternative water supply projects from at least 20 years to at least 30 years in state law. Supporters said the bill would have encouraged water utilities to protect scarce water supplies by making it easier and cheaper for them to borrow money for water projects.

The bill passed the House 116-0 on Feb. 15 and was never taken up in the Senate. The Senate companion, SB 1178, passed three committees but died awaiting action at its final stop, the Senate Budget Committee.

If the state approves the $47 million plan, it means the aquifer would be depleted a little more slowly. But it also means people in the tri-county area could be drinking treated wastewater every time they turn on the tap.

The concept of recharging the aquifer with treated sewage isn't new, but the city's project is different, said Rick Nevulis, a water reuse coordinator with the South Florida Water Management District. Pembroke Pines will inject the water directly into the ground. West Palm Beach, Sunrise, Tindall Hammock, Pahokee, Wellington and Homestead pump their purified sewage into wetlands, lakes or fields, where it percolates into the aquifer over a period of months or years.

Those six utilities now pump a combined 6.5 million gallons of purified sewage into the water supply each day. Pembroke Pines' plan would double that.

This is a long time coming, Nevulis said. The rest of the state already pumps much of its sewage back into its water supplies, and South Florida is behind.

Only about 71 million gallons of the approximately 640 million gallons of sewage the tri-county area produces each day gets reused in any way, and almost all of that goes toward irrigation.

The plan does have an "ick" factor, admitted City Manager Charles Dodge. But he guarantees the water will be pure and drinkable.

"The water will be very, very well treated," he said. "It's not as if you would know it went through this process."

Pembroke Pines' 7 million gallons a day may go into the ground in the city, but there's no way of telling where it will come out, said Harold Wanless, professor and chair of geological sciences at the University of Miami.

"Aquifers flow," Wanless said. "It's difficult to tell where any particular water will move to. We don't have the large conduits inside the aquifer well mapped."

The plan is necessary to regain the city's water use permit from the South Florida Water Management District. The aquifer — a 4,000 square mile system of underground limestone caves filled with water — is running low and the district has ordered that utilities come up with additional sources of water.

As South Florida's regional water management agency, the South Florida Water Management District is responsible for providing flood control, restoring natural systems and ensuring a sustainable water supply for more than 7.7 million residents.

This can be a daunting task. One of the most challenging aspects of water management in South Florida is not the 50-plus inches of rain that falls in our backyards each year. Rather, it is finding a place to store that water for beneficial use during dry times.

South Florida's flat landscape means that when it rains, without storage, water must be discharged through our extensive canal system to the ocean to prevent flooding. To capture this "lost" water and use it to support Everglades restoration and regional water supply needs, the district is working hard to identify and implement storage solutions. These can come in many shapes and sizes, from aboveground reservoirs and deep injection wells to shallow storage on agricultural lands.

A unique geological formation in Palm Beach County is providing us with one of the more creative water storage solutions. The 950-acre L-8 reservoir is a strategically located former rock mine with a watertight geology. A component of Everglades restoration, this deep-ground reservoir will contribute to cleaner water for the Everglades, restoration of the Loxahatchee River and improved water quality in the Lake Worth Lagoon. Along with environmental benefits, it also offers residential advantages such as flood control and supplementing urban water supplies.

Approved in 2002, this first-of-its-kind project provides 15 billion gallons of water storage, enough to fill 24,000 football fields one foot deep in water. And, at an investment of $6,000 per acre-foot, the rock mine saves taxpayers millions of dollars compared to constructing an aboveground reservoir.

Since its acquisition, various criticisms have been leveled at the L-8 reservoir. The fact is that this reservoir is a viable project capable of delivering results and the return on investment we expect to achieve. When I became the district's executive director last June, I prioritized this project to get it operating as promised. Here's the good news: The district has now issued a Request for Qualifications from firms to design and build the massive pump station needed to move water out of the reservoir and deliver it to the natural system. This is a giant leap forward, and it means we are on our way to project completion — and project results.

It's important to note that instead of sitting idle, the L-8 reservoir has provided interim benefits. During the 2004 and 2005 hurricane seasons, the reservoir provided much-needed water storage that reduced residential flooding.

In 2007, the City of West Palm Beach utilized more than 600 million gallons of water from the reservoir during the drought. Residents were again able to rely on the L-8 reservoir for their water supply this past summer when the city's water resources ran dangerously low. In 2009, FPL used reservoir water for its cooling system, conserving millions of gallons of groundwater. And, most recently, the district utilized small pumps to send fresh water from the reservoir north to the Loxahatchee River during 2011's dry conditions. This pilot project demonstrated that the L-8 reservoir works.

Nearby to the L-8 project, another rock pit is under construction. Known as the C-51 reservoir, this project is being analyzed by the district and a coalition of utilities as a potential public water supply source. Under the right conditions, the C-51 could potentially store water currently lost to tide and deliver it to recharge wellfields. Similar to the L-8 project, it is a viable concept that could be utilized to effectively meet future water supply demands and improve the Lake Worth Lagoon. While the challenges are in the details, the project deserves a thorough evaluation and our continued dialogue.

Balancing the district's missions of flood control, water supply and restoration often requires innovative thinking, which both of these reservoirs represent. Add in creative partnerships, perseverance and continued collaboration, and we have a formula for success.

Melissa L. Meeker is the executive director of the South Florida Water Management District.

Blue Spring. Photo Credit: systemslibrarian

Former U.S. Sen. Bob Graham and Nathaniel P. Reed of Hobe Sound were among the speakers in November during an environmental rally outside the Capitol. They called on Gov. Rick Scott to show leadership on environmental issues and for the Legislature to undo some of the harmful law and budget changes they said occurred during 2011. Environmentalists didn't get what they were calling for, but they may have somewhat begun to turn the tide that has been running against the programs they support. Any success those groups enjoyed during the 2012 session may be better measured not by what was passed as by what didn't pass. Efforts to restrict local fertilizer ordinances and to encourage oil drilling on state lands failed. Other bills were modified to gain environmental support. However, a bill repealing the statewide requirement for septic tank inspections passed. The Sierra Club and Florida Stormwater Association opposed the bill's new restrictions on local septic tank inspection programs. Meanwhile, visitors to state trails and state parks could see advertising and herds of African wildlife. The Florida Forever land-buying program and Everglades restoration received some funding, but not as much as environmentalists had hoped. 

KEY ISSUES

TRAILS, STATE LANDS: SB 268, which is headed to the governor, allows businesses and groups to sponsor trails and put their advertisements at trailheads. The bill still faces opposition because it allows the Department of Environmental Protection to negotiate agreements for trails other than the seven identified in the bill. … HB 1117, which is headed to the governor, would allow giraffes, elephants, rhinos and other zoo animals to roam state parks with approval by the Cabinet.  .... A provision in SB 1998, a budget conforming bill related to transportation that is headed to the governor, requires an expedited hearing process for a legal challenge to the proposed dredging in Biscayne Bay to deepen the port of Miami. ... HB 1103, which environmentalists opposed as a state-lands giveaway by changing the definition of submerged state lands, stalled after its first committee stop. ... HB 695, encouraging oil and gas exploration and drilling on state lands, died on the House calendar.

WATER QUALITY: The 2010 requirement for septic tank inspections statewide will be repealed if Gov. Rick Scott signs HB 1263. That Department of Health reorganization bill contained the language from HB 599. The bill also places limits on local septic tank inspection programs, prohibits inspection requirements when a home is sold, and prohibits local ordinances requiring advanced "performance-based" septic tanks until a DOH study is completed. … The Legislature in HB 7051 waived approval of water quality rules proposed by the Florida Department of Environmental Protection. Those rules, which face a legal challenge filed by environmental groups, would replace federal rules that utilities and industry groups oppose. The bill was signed by Scott on Feb. 16. … There was a fight again this year between environmentalists and the landscaping industry over local fertilizer regulations. SB 604, exempting certified landscaping professionals from local ordinances, was killed by the Senate Committee on Environmental Preservation and Conservation by a 4-3 vote.

WATER POLICY AND PERMITTING: HB 503 resembled an environmental permit streamlining bill that passed the House last year but wasn't voted on in the Senate. Rep. Jimmy Patronis, R-Panama City, was praised by environmentalists for resolving a variety of concerns. The bill also fixes 2010 recycling legislation that would have allowed counties to claim recycling rates in excess of 100 percent. … Environmentalists also backed HB 639 dealing with treated wastewater after an objectionable provision was removed. The bill encourages the use of such "reclaimed water" by exempting it from water management district permitting. … HB 1389, which would exempt landowners from wetland regulations for participating in environmental water storage programs, passed during the final day of the session. … HB 7003 directs the Florida Department of Environmental Protection to undertake writing a statewide Environmental Resource Permit rule. … HB 7045 allowing permits for up to 37 years for alternative water supply projects passed the House 116-0 but wasn't taken up by the Senate.

BUDGET: SB 1986, a budget conforming bill that lifts the property tax revenue caps imposed in 2011 by the Legislature, passed the House and Senate. The Florida Conservation Coalition initially opposed a requirement in the bill for legislative approval but dropped its opposition after the language was modified … After vetoing Florida Forever spending authority last year, Gov. Rick Scott requested $15 million for the program in fiscal year 2012-13. The Legislature provided $8.3 million. … Scott also requested $40 million for Everglades restoration. The Legislature provided $30 million for Everglades restoration plus $5 million for the northern Everglades (north of Lake Okeechobee) and estuaries programs. ... The budget also includes $10 million for beach sand restoration projects, $4.8 million in debt service towards a $50-million wastewater plant in the Florida Keys, $5.6 million for St. Johns River restoration projects, $125 million for petroleum contamination sites and $4.8 million for Lake Apopka restoration.

AGRICULTURE: HB 1197, which gives the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services sole authority to regulate beekeeping, is on its way to the governor. Language from other bills that were languishing was added to HB 1197, including an exemption from local government stormwater fees for farms. Citrus harvesting equipment and fruit loaders would be added to the list of farming vehicles that are exempt from paying state motor fuel taxes. The beekeeping provisions of HB 1197 were prompted by local restrictions on beekeeping cropping up in some suburban areas. People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals is calling for a veto because of a Senate amendment the group says would allow chicks and bunnies to be sold at Easter and then discarded. ... HB 1237, which returns the executive director of the Department of Citrus to being an appointed position without Senate confirmation, also is headed to the governor.

 

A comprehensive list of Environment and Natural Resources legislation that was passed during the 2012 Regular Session can be found here.

 

Reporter Bruce Ritchie can be reached at britchie@thefloridacurrent.com.

  

By NATHAN KOPPEL

AUSTIN, Texas—The state's persistent drought has claimed its latest victims: rice farmers.

Because of low water levels in several lakes that serve as reservoirs here, officials said Friday that they wouldn't release irrigation water to farmers in three counties downstream that produce much of the rice in the state.

Associated Press

Ronald Gertson stands beside one of his John Deere tractors last month at his rice farm in Lissie, Texas.

The rice industry contributes about $394 million annually to the economy of the state, which produces about 5% of the nation's rice. The three counties—Colorado, Wharton and Matagorda—lie west of humid Houston and usually get enough rain to make rice farming practicable.

This is the first time in its 78-year history that the Lower Colorado River Authority, which is based here, has cut off water to farmers. The agency waited until the last possible moment—a minute before midnight on Thursday—to make its decision, hoping that water levels would rise enough to avert a cutoff.

The irrigation ban is not expected to affect the shelf price of rice, but it has forced some farmers to lay off employees and consider diversifying into other crops.

"This is my livelihood at stake," said Ronald Gertson, a Texas rice farmer who projected he would produce only about 40% of his typical rice crop this year.

"It sticks in the craw" of farmers, Mr. Gertson said, that the authority will continue to release water to golf courses and other recreational customers that pay higher rates for a guaranteed water supply.

In a statement, the agency said that farmers "pay considerably less for water than cities and industry. And therefore, their water is considered 'interruptible' during a severe drought."

Texans in the rice business said they could probably stay afloat this year, thanks in part to crop insurance, but they worried about another year of interrupted irrigation water.

"If this happens again, we'll be in much more trouble," said Dick Ottis, the president of the Rice Belt Warehouse in El Campo, Texas, which stores and dries rice. The warehouse plans to store more corn, wheat and other commodities this year, he said, but those crops do not produce the profit margins rice does.

"I have already let go about 20% of our employees, because I knew this day was coming about," Mr. Ottis said, adding that his family had been involved in rice farming for almost 100 years and had lived through droughts, but none this bad.

It always seemed like the good Lord would bless us with more rain," he said.

But there appears to be little relief in sight from the drought that still afflicts 85% of Texas. Temperatures are expected to be above normal this summer, said John Nielsen-Gammon, the state climatologist.

Rainfall levels are harder to predict, he said, but "we are in a dry stretch now, which will be worrisome if it continues. It reminds me of last year."

The water agency said it plans to find new supplies of water to avoid a repeat of this year's problems.

Farmers agree. "The development of new reservoirs is imperative," said Daniel Berglund, a 49-year-old rice farmer in Markham, Texas, who said he woke up at 1:15 a.m. Friday and checked to see whether the lakes, against all odds, had risen high enough to allow irrigation water to be released.

"Consumers only see grocery shelves stacked with food, floor to ceiling," he said. "This is an example of the risks we take as farmers. When you lose irrigation water, it stops everything," he said.

Write to Nathan Koppel at nathan.koppel@wsj.com

A version of this article appeared Mar. 3, 2012, on page A3 in some U.S. editions of The Wall Street Journal, with the headline: Texas Rice Farmers Lose Their Water.

Posted on Thu, Mar. 01, 2012 Everglades may get boost from lawmakers By CURTIS MORGAN AND STEVE BOUSQUET Cmorgan@MiamiHerald.com A year after slashing Everglades funding, Florida lawmakers appear poised to give some back. House and Senate budget negotiators this week agreed to set aside some $30 million for restoration projects. That’s still $10 million short of Gov. Rick Scott’s request but a major leap from the zero the Senate had initially penciled in. Environmental groups praised the move as a positive sign, saying they were cautiously optimistic that it signaled a change in direction from last year’s tough session, when lawmakers and Scott gutted Everglades and conservation land-buying programs, state growth management rules and other long-standing regulations. Now, they’re keeping their fingers crossed the trend will continue with a still-bigger target — a Senate bill that would lift spending caps lawmakers last year placed on the state’s five water management districts, which are largely funded by property tax revenue. The Florida Conservation Coalition calculated that the cap, placed on property tax rates that supply much of the districts’ revenues, wound up shriveling budgets by nearly 40 percent, or $700 million. The law also shifted oversight of the agencies’ spending to the Legislature. Eric Draper, executive director of Audubon of Florida, said that even legislative leaders acknowledge that last year’s measure went too far, threatening to cut into the districts’ “core missions” of providing flood protection and a supply of clean water to the public and natural systems like the Everglades. Senate Budget Chairman JD Alexander, R-Lake Wales, acknowledged the ripple effects had run deeper than desired. The South Florida Water Management District, which oversees Everglades restoration, has tapped reserve funds to cover shortfalls, a strategy that will work only in the short-term. Alexander said he helped put the new bill together “because I felt like we needed to take another look at it and find a more sustainable policy. There are reserves that are just a bit out of balance and I think, longer term, that in order to meet the water resource needs, the water boards must keep the state waters clean.” While the bill would lift the caps on spending, it also leaves a final review of the district’s budget largely to lawmakers — a provision environmentalists hope to see removed. They’re supporting a proposal by Scott that largely restores the system that existed before last year’s changes, leaving oversight of the districts under the governor, who also appoints their governing boards. Kirk Fordham, chief executive officer of the Everglades Foundation, said legislative authority only injects more politics into efforts to maintain funding for Everglades restoration and cleanup projects already expected to take decades. “We certainly don’t want to see the process become pork-barreled where, from session to session, you have a new committee chair that wants to put projects in his own backyard,” Fordham said. “You can’t provide long-term planning with that.” But lawmakers also may be reluctant to give up newly won control over the districts, agencies that collect hundreds of millions of dollars in property taxes and have pursued expensive projects or land-buys without legislative approval. Under Gov. Charlie Crist, the South Florida Water Management District sought an audacious $1.75 billion deal to buy out the sprawling empire of the U.S. Sugar Corp. The deal, heavily criticized by lawmakers, was eventually downsized to a $197 million land purchase of 26,800 acres. But some environmental groups have questioned whether the Legislature’s power grab will stand up under court challenge, saying the system of independent districts was established in the state Constitution. Environmentalists are banking on beefed up support to repair some of the losses from last session. The Florida Conservation Coalition — created in November under the leadership of Bob Graham, a former Democratic governor and U.S. senator, and a number of influential former state executives — has made the water management rollback a priority. They also give some credit to Scott, who told conservation groups in January that he had learned a lot in his first year and was vowing to make Everglades issues a priority. With the state under pressure from federal judges, the governor last year outlined a plan to expand the network of artificial marshes used to reduce the amount of farm pollution flowing into the Everglades. Negotiations with federal agencies continue over the state plan, which was significantly smaller than one proposed by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Scott followed up by proposing $40 million in restoration funding in his budget. That’s still down from a peak of $100 million to $200 million in annual state funding during the administration of former Gov. Jeb Bush but double what Scott proposed the previous year. Scott’s budget proposal also included $15 million for Florida Forever but lawmakers have not yet allocated anything for the land-buying program in their roughly $70 billion proposals. “It does make a difference by him putting it out there,” Draper said.

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© 2012 Miami Herald Media Company. All Rights Reserved.
http://www.miamiherald.com

Judge offers qualified praise for state Glades efforts

Though encouraged by a new pollution clean-up plan touted by Gov. Rick Scott, a Miami federal judge presses state and federal agencies to commit to paying for work that could cost $1 billion or more.

 

By CURTIS MORGAN

Cmorgan@Miamiherald.com

 

A Miami federal judge on Thursday commended Gov. Rick Scott for stepping in with a proposal to bust open a legal logjam that for two decades has hampered efforts to stem the flow of pollution into the Everglades.

 

But the praise from U.S. District Judge Alan Gold was delivered in a cautious tone and included a message that might be summed up by that familiar line from Jerry Maguire: Show me the money.

 

Gold, who has issued a series of rulings blasting the “glacial delay’’ in the federally mandated clean-up, urged state and federal environmental managers negotiating a new Everglades clean-up strategy to come back with a firm plan for both protecting the marsh and — just as important — paying for projects that could easily approach $1 billion or more.

 

While he said he was encouraged by ongoing talks to resolve two long-running federal lawsuits over farm, ranch and yard pollution poisoning the River of Grass, he cautioned that without a firm financial commitment from water managers and the state, “what we’re doing is going around in circles, again.’’