Peace Creek, Peace River May Not Yield Projected Water Supply Bonanza, Polk Water Cooperative Members Told

In addition to drilling into the Lower Floridan Aquifer to find enough water to continue to fuel Polk’s growth juggernaut to handle its projected 1 million residents in the next decade or so, the Polk Regional Water Cooperative was seriously looking at surface water, too.

That involved plans to either directly withdraw water from the Peace Creek drainage canal or from a reservoir along the Peace River near Fort Meade or to store water underground to get credit for recharge. That would allow some utilities to continue using the Upper Floridan Aquifer for their water demands.

Preliminary estimates put the potential from those sources at 40 million gallons a day.

Not so fast, the folks at the Southwest Florida Water Management District have been communicating recently.

The agency recently launched a much-awaited study to get a better idea of how much water the Peace River needs at various flow levels to accommodate not only the need for fish to be able to swim downstream without being stranded on a sand bar—that study was completed in the 1980s– but what various creatures ranging from frogs to aquatic invertebrates need to thrive during typical medium and high flows.

The study will be completed by 2025.

By then the cooperative is scheduled to already be well under way toward building a water plant and a pipeline system in eastern Polk County, relying on water from a series of wells that have been drilled near Lake Walk-in-the-Water east of Lake Wales and another series of wells that will be drilled even deeper to get rid of the water-treatment plant waste.

The estimated capital costs for that project have already topped half a billion dollars and may increase before the so-called alternative water supply begins flowing west toward cities along the U.S. 27 corridor and beyond.

Meanwhile, Swiftmud officials have told the folks at the cooperative that it is unclear how much, if any, water will be available from the Peace River system and have asked and cooperative has agreed to shelve any further studies until the minimum flow study is completed.

Meanwhile, I was curious why the medium and upper flow studies were coming now so many years after the initial work, which had actually been mandated by a 1972 law that apparently allow for long delays.

The answer I received from Swiftmud officials was that this was part of a long-range plan to implement the recovery strategy for something called the Southern Water-Use Caution Area.

For those of you who may relatively new to the region’s water problems, the SWUCA was designated in 1992 to deal with declining aquifer levels, lake levels and river flows caused by overpumping of the aquifer.

This decline had been suspected for some time, but it took a while to gather the data to come up with a regulatory proposal to deal with it that would withstand legal challenges from water permit holders who could be affected by limits to pumping.

Polk County officials and a number of commercial interests did challenge the rule. Following what was described as the longest administrative hearing in Florida history up that time, Swiftmud prevailed. That allowed the agency to work on a plan to fix the problem, but it took awhile to come up with analytical tools to do that in some cases.

Meanwhile, the competition for water resources and uncertainty about the sustainability of the aquifer spread to more areas of central Florida, leading to the initiation of something called the Central Florida Initiative in 2016.

That project, which involved not only Swiftmud, but the South Florida and St. Johns River water management districts as well, yielded a report that concluded that water users in this part of Florida had pretty well tapped out the Upper Floridan Aquifer and had to look for alternative sources.

That is what has led to the Polk water cooperative and similar projects in the region.

The good part is this will at least theoretically prevent the further overexploitation of the Floridan aquifer, whose level had already dropped 50 feet and caused at least one major spring to stop flowing by the time these plans came into place.

The bad news is that the water supply and demand projections go out only a couple of decades.

What happens after that if water demand increases and sea level rise threatens to contaminate some current freshwater supplies is anybody’s guess.

As Yogi Berra once reportedly remarked. The future ain’t what it used to be.

 

 

 

It Was A Record Warm April Or Was It?

The National Weather Service for the Tampa Bay area issues monthly summaries ranking temperature and rainfall throughout the region.

Figures like this are often used to discuss the changing climate.

But a closer look at the figures certainly raise questions. For instance, it was the second warmest April for Lakeland, whose records date to 1915, but the seventh warmest for Bartow, whose records date to 1892.

But when you look at the 10th warmest Aprils, the figures date from between 1929 and 2023 for Lakeland and 1908 (the warmest) and 2023 for Bartow. But the coldest Aprils range from 1915 to 2005 for Lakeland and from 1901 to 1987 for Bartow.

Figures for Winter Haven, whose records date only to 1941, show the 10 warmest Aprils occurred between 1945 and 2023 and its 10 coldest Aprils occurred between 1951 and 2005.

In Wauchula, whose records date to 1933, the warmest Aprils occurred between 1939 and 2023 and coolest between 1950 and 2007.

Rankings for rainfall didn’t come close to records at either end of the spectrum at those locations.

Some Thoughts On The Radon To Roads Bill

It seems clear—it was actually clear the moment the bills were filed given the supine proclivities of his year’s Legislature—that a proposal that would allow state transportation officials to study whether the material from those mountains of phosphate waste byproducts that dot the landscape of Polk County would replace limerock as a road base material was going to pass.

Whether Gov. Ron DeSantis will sign the bill is still unknown. Environmental groups, including Sierra, are arguing for a veto.

This is an odd piece of legislation for a number of reasons.

First, it not as though no one has ever built a road in Florida using this material.

Parrish Road east of Fort Meade was built using this material decades ago. A University of Miami research team looked at how everything worked out. The researchers reportedly concluded they found no problems.

The other question that the curiously incurious staff analyses of the legislation is just how much of this material, which is slightly radioactive and contains a number of toxic elements, is really a practical way to reduce the volume of these stacks and relieve Mosaic—the main owner of these properties—of its eternal responsibility for managing and monitoring these waste stacks.

So far we are left to guess. It is not hard to conclude the lack of staff research may be tied to the perception that the fix was in on these bills and there was no point in putting a lot of effort into the analysis.

Opponents often mention sinkholes, which allows the material to migrate into the aquifer. Sinkholes are rare in Bone Valley, as evidenced by the near absence of natural lakes in the main areas where mining has occurred. However, when they do occur, the results are spectacular. How many remember the aerial photo that showed a helicopter dwarfed by the chasm at the top of the stack at Mosaic’s New Wales plant?

Mosaic argues the environmental effect on drinking water supplies is overblown, arguing they crank up their large pumps and divert the contaminated water in the aquifer to their ponds. This is not a matter of simply being good neighbors. They know that if any of the polluted water gets past the boundaries of their property, they will be in a major violation of their permits.

Then there is the current ban by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, which is significant. State transportation officials can study the issue until they retire, but unless federal environmental policy changes, it is merely an academic exercise.

Meanwhile, Jason Garcia at Seeking Rents reports that legislators are also proposing to fund some sort of study of this waste at Florida State University to see if it is feasible to extract trace elements from the waste, including some of the so-called “rare earth” elements that are used in electronics.

The main element that has been studied for extraction in the past has been uranium, but it never seemed to economically feasible, based on the market price.

There has been research involving the extraction of other elements such a yttrium, but if you’re thinking there is lithium or some other element that’s key making electric vehicle batteries, this material doesn’t seem to be the place for it.

 

 

 

More Land Along Peace River Gains Protection

The Southwest Florida Water Management District agreed this week to purchase a conservation easement over a 771-acre private ranch in Hardee County.

The Frederick Ranch contains 2.5 miles of frontage along the river south of Wauchula. Aerial photos posted on Swiftmud’s website show a substantial amount of the property is in its natural state. The staff report said a substantial amount of the property lies in the floodplain of the river, which bisects the property.

The purchase price for the permanent conservation easement was $3,705,000.

This is the latest in a series of purchases along the Peace River or its tributaries that has occurred in recent years.

Last year state officials agreed to purchase a conservation easement over 11,458 acres in Hardee and DeSoto counties along Horse Creek, one of the Peace’s main tributaries.

Meanwhile, Polk County officials are moving forward with a consultant study to examine needed restoration work along the section of the Peace River in Polk County, which has been impacted by phosphate mining and development.

An update on the plan will be the subject of the May 11 Ancient Islands meeting at 7p.m. at Circle B Bar Reserve.

 

Celebrate Earth Day At EV Event Or On A Trail Near You

Saturday is Earth Day and if you live in or around Polk County, you have some choices for observing it.

Ancient Islands Group’s Clean Energy Committee will be participating in an electric vehicle show-and-tell at Munn Park in downtown Lakeland. From 9 a.m.to 1 p.m.

A number of electronic vehicles will be on display and their owners or dealer representatives will be available to answer questions about these vehicles . Electric vehicles, which generate no tailpipe emissions, are seen as the ultimate solution for reducing greenhouse gas emissions responsible for climate change.

Saturday is also National Trails Day. There are no local special events to celebrate the event organized by the Rails to Trails Conservancy, but it is an opportunity to walk or ride a bicycle along one the many recreational and nature trails in the area.

This is an activity you can do anytime because it is worthwhile to celebrate Earth Day every day.

Polk Commissioners Get Earful On Lands Panel Picks; Assure Public Everything Will Be Run Properly

The selection of 10 people—many of them with ties to the local development industry—to a committee that will make recommendations on the next wave of Polk environmental preserves that need to be purchased drew renewed public criticism at Tuesday’s Polk County Commission meeting.

The committee called the Conservation Land Acquisition Selection Advisory Committee will review applications for purchases under the Polk County Environmental Lands Program. The purchases will be funded with a tax voters approved in a referendum last November. The tax , which was authorized for 20 years, will be collected beginning in the 2023-24 fiscal year that begins Oct. 1. The committee members ‘terms begin May 1. After an initial organizational meeting, the committee will meet as proposals arise to be considered. All meetings will be open to the public.

Travis Thompson, a local hunting and fishing guide who was one of the people who worked on the referendum, renewed his criticism of the people selected to serve on the committee, arguing no one was chosen with backgrounds in water management, land management or outdoor recreation.

He acknowledged he did not know most of the people appointed to the committee, but maintained some well-qualified people did not make the cut.

Several other residents voiced similar complaints, arguing the makeup of the current committee was much different from the makeup of the committee appointed to advise commissioners in spending funds from a previous referendum that was approved in 1994 and funded the purchase of about 25,000 acres.

After listening to the comments, commissioners either challenged the criticisms or sought to assure people that there is nothing to worry about.

Commission Chairman George Lindsey said they could have put the names of the applicants into a hat and pulled out 10 names and still had a good committee.

He said he sent letters to all of the unsuccessful applicants thanking them for offering to serve and urging them to remain involved in the process.

He said the committee will review applications from willing sellers rather than going out and looking for property to buy. That review will be aided by a technical advisory committee that will visit sites and report whether they meet the program’s criteria.

He said the fact that people from the development committee sit on the committee is not important since the lands being considered cannot be developed anyway.

However, that’s not entirely accurate.

Although there likely will be wetlands on some of the properties that will be reviewed, the program also envisions nominations from high and dry land in places like the Lake Wales Ridge, which contains one of the largest concentrations of rare and endangered species in the United States. It also seeks land with potential for public recreation that could involve other upland sites.

In fact, the original program made sure to limit purchases to lands that not only had environmental value, but also could provide public access and could be easily managed. This prevented the program from becoming a dumping ground for property that simply could not be developed.

Commissioner Bill Braswell challenged the idea that people some of the speakers didn’t even know should be ruled unqualified out of hand.

“What do you think they’re going to do?” he asked.

Commissioner Rick Wilson, who will chair the committee, said he has lived in Polk County his entire life and has experience in hunting, fish and land management.

“I will make sure everything is done by the book,” he said.

Gyp Stack Roadbuilding Bill Still Moving Ahead Despite Questions

Legislation that would authorize the Florida Department of Transportation to test the feasibility of using a fertilizer manufacturing waste called phosphogypsum –if the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency decides to allow such things—is still moving toward possible passage during this year’s session of the Florida Legislature.

The basis for this bill seems a bit odd because a couple of roads in Florida—including Parrish Road near Fort Meade—were built years ago and still seem to be in good shape.

The question, then, is not whether you can use this stuff to build roads instead of other conventional road base materials such as lime rock or other unconventional materials such as shredded tires or pulverized glass.

Instead, the question is whether it’s a good idea.

As the Senate staff report understates: “A literature review suggests the existence of opposing opinions relating to the advantages and disadvantages of exposure to phosphogypsum.”

That may have something to do with the fact that it is slightly radioactive and contains all kinds of toxic elements.

It is fair to add that a University of Miami analysis of the Parrish Road project, which was completed decades ago, found nothing alarming regarding potential exposure to residents or the natural environment. The road is bordered by a phosphate pit that attracts all kinds of waterfowl and marsh birds, so if there were effects, you might expect them to have showed up by now.

What the Senate analysis never deals with is why such a project is important to the Florida roadbuilding industry in the first place.

That is, is Florida facing a lime rock shortage? We’re left to guess.

The fertilizer industry’s issue is obvious. Right now the mining/fertilizer companies are required to operate or monitor these mountainous waste stacks forever at considerable cost.

If they could figure out a way to get rid of the stacks by persuading some agency to agree to allow the material’s commercial use, there would be a potential end point for their obligations.

That scenario raises another question.

That is, how long would the construction or reconstruction of how many lane miles of roadway take to make a dent in even one of the24 stacks that dot Florida’s landscape?.

The staff report offers no guidance.

It is hard to believe they are that amazingly incurious.