Governors to meet over tri-state water dispute

The governors of Alabama, Florida and Georgia likely won't have a proposed water-sharing agreement in hand next week when they meet to discuss the Apalachicola-Chattahoochee-Flint river system, a Florida official said today.

The three states have been battling in federal court since 1990 over the river system, which is a source of drinking water for the metro Atlanta area. Florida depends on fresh water to maintain fish and wildlife along the Apalachicola River and the seafood industry at Apalachicola Bay.

Alabama Gov. Bob Riley and Georgia Gov. Sonny Perdue requested a meeting of the governor after U.S. District Judge Paul A. Magnuson ruled in June that federal law does not authorize cities to withdraw water from Lake Lanier, the huge federal reservoir north of Atlanta. The governors announced Monday they will meet in Montgomery, Ala. on Dec. 15 to discuss the water dispute.

Florida Department of Environmental Protection Secretary Michael Sole said today there is no draft water-sharing agreement.

"I don't expect a draft initially but I'm hopeful that we get progress on the 15th," Sole said at the Capitol after appearing before the Cabinet on unrelated issues.


"This is a good opportunity," he continued," for the governors to get together and re-engage dialogue both because of the court decision -- the Magnuson decision -- as well as where we are with regards to water." He pointed out that both Lake Lanier and the rivers have been full in recent months.

The states have been divided in the past over the use of computer models to predict how lack of rainfall will affect reservoir levels and flow in rivers. That's amplified disagreements about how much water to keep stored in reservoirs to protect against drought and how much to release for downstream needs.

Asked whether Florida's negotiating position has changed, Sole said, "I think we have been pretty reasonable in our recommendations and we look to continue to address what is a fair allocation of water and acknowledging a shared adversity."

"We acknowledge during times of drought there will be less water, but it is something that needs to be shared," he said.

(Story copyrighted by Bruce Ritchie and FloridaEnvironments.com. Do not copy or redistribute without permission.)

Fla. delegation weighs in on EPA water standards

Twenty-five members of Florida's congressional delegation have signed a letter urging the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to work closely with state officials and industry in setting limits for nutrients in Florida waterways.

Scientists say nitrogen and phosphorus feed algae that have choked springs, rivers and lakes and have contributed to red tide in coastal waters. Sources of nitrogen and phosphorus can include industries, sewage treatment plants, farms and stormwater runoff from cities and suburban areas.

The EPA in August announced it will set more specific numeric limits for Florida waters, replacing the statewide narrative standard that prohibits discharges that create an imbalance of plants, fish and wildlife. Environmental groups sued the EPA to force the change and said the state standard failed to prevent waterways from becoming degraded.

Florida is the first state where EPA has moved to set statewide numeric standards. But the EPA move set off protests from business and industry groups along with Agriculture Commissioner Charles H. Bronson. They say the new standards will be costly to businesses, cities, utilities and consumers.

In their letter, the congressional representatives asked EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson to have her agency work with DEP "in an open, collaborative manner and utilize its extensive resources of science and data on this issue." They stopped short of calling on EPA to let the state set numeric standards, as Bronson and industry opponents have requested.

The letter points to the Florida Nutrient Technical Advisory Committee having met 22 times to openly evaluate data with input from industry including manufacturing and agriculture. The Florida Department of Environmental Protection was working to propose numeric criteria when the EPA agreed to set the criteria to settle the lawsuit filed by environmental groups.

"The proposed rule will have a widespread effect on Florida's industry and economy, and all concerned parties should be heard," the congressional representatives wrote.

Two Democratic representatives, Kathy Castor and Robert Wexler, did not sign the letter.

There was no immediate response today from EPA. Last month, EPA spokeswoman Enesta Jones said the federal agency is considering several options and approaches to setting numeric criteria for Florida and that much of the data it is using was provided by the Florida DEP.

Monica Reimer, an attorney for the nonprofit Earthjustice law firm that represents the environmental groups, called the letter "very reasonable."

"I was pleased that the delegation was taking a measured approach," she said. "It appears they understand that EPA understands this is a big task they have taken on."

To download a copy of the letter, go to :http://www.donttaxflorida.com/docs/epa.pdf

(Story copyrighted by Bruce Ritchie and FloridaEnvironments.com. Do not copy or redistribute without permission.)

Florida delegation going to Copenhagen amid climate warnings

A group of 25 business and government officials is going to the United Nations climate change conference in Denmark next week to push for green jobs for Florida.

Meanwhile, a former U.S. climate negotiator told a Tallahassee audience on Tuesday that climate changes threatens the global economy and security. Florida State University scientists presented evidence that hurricanes are growing stronger and polar ice is melting as the world's climate warms.

President Barack Obama plans to attend next week's conference in Copenhagen, where a follow-up agreement to the 1997 Kyoto Protocols will be negotiated. The United States never adopted the Kyoto Protocols to restrict greenhouse gas emissions because of criticism that developing countries were not included.

An unofficial delegation that includes Enterprise Florida will be led by Kathy Baughman McLeod, a member of the Florida Climate Commission and public policy group director at the Bryant Miller Olive law firm in Tallahassee. The delegation will be meeting with renewable energy industries and delegations from other states and nations.

"Our state's economy is in a state that requires doing things differently," McLeod said. "A diverse group of 25 Floridians is taking a trip to Copenhagen next week to find out what a new economy means to Florida."

The delegation was announced in Tallahassee at Danfoss Turbocor, which produces energy-efficient refrigerant compressors. Ken Cooksey, international trade representative for Enterprise Florida, said his agency was delighted to partner with the delegation. (To see a list of the delegates, click here.)

"We are hoping for a great round of meetings during this conference," he said.

Florida's elected Chief Financial Officer Alex Sink also weighed in later, congratulating the group on targeting green jobs for the state. Sink is running as a Democrat for governor in 2010 and she touted her efforts to focus the state on renewable energy.

"I am hopeful that this strong delegation will help bring new, green jobs back to Florida as we work to harness our state's resources and make Florida an international leader in the green energy economy," she said.

On Tuesday, Frank E. Loy, who was under secretary of state for global affairs during the Clinton administration, warned that warming temperatures would threaten crops in developing nations, leading to migrations and unrest that could drag the United States into more armed conflicts. He placed the blame on dependence on oil for transportation. He spoke at FSU's "Human Rights & National Security in the 21st Century" lecture series.

The U.S. depends on a risky supply chain of foreign oil that also strengthens hostile nations such as Russia, Iran and Venezuela, Loy said. While that argument has been made by supporters of offshore oil drilling in Florida, Loy also warned that increasing the domestic supply will have a minimal effect -- though he said he didn't want to take sides in the "local issue."

"I'm certainly not hostile to it (drilling), but I will say this, it's not going to affect these numbers very much," he said. "We in the United States have about 2 percent of the world reserves of oil and supply about 10 percent of our production. So if we increase that by a good deal -- and that will take years and years -- it doesn't affect what I am talking about."

(Photo by Heidi Truitt Campbell, courtesy of Bryant Miller Olive. Story copyrighted by Bruce Ritchie and FloridaEnvironments.com. Do not copy or redistribute without permission.)

DEP delays sewage sludge action after business complains

The Florida Department of Environmental Protection today delayed action on proposed stricter rules over the land disposal of sewage sludge after one disposal company said the changes could cost it more than $1,000 per day.

DEP has been working since 2002 on proposed rule revisions in response to public complaints and environmental concerns about sewage sludge, which regulators call "biosolids." The state Environmental Regulation Commission today was scheduled to consider voting on the proposed rule revision.


But DEP officials asked for a delay after attorney Al Ford, representing Shelley's Environmental Systems in Mount Dora, submitted a letter saying the department is required by state law to study other alternatives.

"The letter proposes a lower-cost regulatory alternative," said Phil Coram, deputy director of DEP's Division of Water Resource Management. "We need to evaluate that."

The proposed rules include requiring permits, nutrient management plans and testing for some forms of sewage sludge while maintaining an exemption for those that are dried, processed into pellets and sold as fertilizer.

Ford said Shelley's Environmental Systems' disposal of biosolids on farm fields is beneficial recycling and that agricultural-use guidelines should apply instead of DEP regulations.

"If we start putting these restrictions and regulations on them (farmers), it's not going to happen," Ford said. "I think it comes down to -- if it's not broke, don't fix it."

The company processes 100 pounds of dry biosolids per day, Ford said, and the new regulations could cost the small business an additional $1,000 each day.

Representatives of Lee County and Harvest Quest, Inc., both of which use sewage sludge to produce compost that can be sold as a soil amenity, also called for excluding their operations from the regulations.

Audubon of Florida representative Charles Lee said the proposed rules don't go far enough in protecting the environment, including Lake Okeechobee, the Everglades and the Caloosahatchee and St. Lucie rivers in South Florida. The group issued a report earlier this year calling on the state and utilities to end the land disposal of sewage sludge in the Lake Okeechobee basin.

Lake Okeechobee, Lee said, already is close to exceeding state limits on phosphorus in waterways. Dumping more sludge in the form of fertilizer on crops could further harm the Everglades ecosystem, he said.

"They're not hauling it out there in pickup trucks," Lee said. "They're hauling it out there in tractor trailer loads -- sometimes in tandem tractor trailer loads, sometimes a long string of tractor trailer loads."

(Photo copied from DEP PowerPoint presentation. Story copyrighted by Bruce Ritchie and FloridaEnvironments.com. Do not copy or redistribute without permission.)

PSC picks chairman, adopts conservation goals

By The News Service of Florida
and FloridaEnvironments.com

On a busy day at the Florida Public Service Commission, the panel selected its chair for 2010-2012 and set energy conservation plan and fuel recovery costs for the investor-owned utilities.

In a widely expected move, the PSC chose Commissioner Nancy Argenziano to lead the panel when beleaguered current PSC Chairman Matthew Carter is replaced next month. The PSC also lowered the fuel recovery costs for customers of the state’s third largest power company and hiked the fees for customers of another large company, though bills for customers of both companies will increase because of other charges.

The commission also completed a review of conservation plans required by the Florida Energy Efficiency and Conservation Act, known as FEECA.

The panel also approved a Progress Energy contract for buying biomass energy.

Argenziano, a former Republican state senator from Dunnellon who will chair the PSC for a two-year term beginning Jan. 2, downplayed her ascension and cast herself as equal to the other members of the PSC.

“I appreciate the challenge and realize that the chairmanship is purely an administrative charge,” she said in a statement. “All PSC Commissioners are equal and independent appointees. Now, let’s get to work on the important decisions that lie ahead.”

Argenziano’s nomination was led by Carter, who has headed the panel since 2006 but was passed over for re-appointment this year by Gov. Charlie Crist when scandal rocked the PSC this fall.

Also, weeks after deciding that staff recommendations on the conservation goals of utilities were not stringent enough, the PSC completed today its every-five-year review of those goals, which FEECA requires the panel to do.

Created by the Legislature in 1980 to guard against weather-related increases in electricity demand and reduce overall statewide consumption, FEECA applies to the four major publicly-regulated power companies - Florida Power & Light, Progress Energy, Gulf Power and Tampa Electric - as well as the Florida Public Utilities Co., Orlando Utilities Commission and JEA.

The original staff recommendation took issue with proposals from both the utility companies and several environmental groups to minimize the use of expensive resources like petroleum fuels and control the growth rates of electric consumption and weather-sensitive peak demand, saying that the utilities' suggestions had an "inconsistent inclusion of costs for unregulated greenhouse gas emissions" and used "inconsistent cost estimates."

But Tuesday, the PSC leaned more toward the robust goals favored by environmentalists, choosing an aggressive Enhanced Total Resource Cost test for measuring conservation over an Enhanced - Rate Impact Measure test, which focuses on the price of electricity by measuring savings from avoided use, but ignores related benefits to society at large. The panel also encouraged the utility companies to expand their conservation education and authorized up to $24.5 million dollars in incentives for customers who adopt solar water heaters and other energy efficient equipment.

Outgoing PSC chairman Carter hailed the decision for threading the needle between not costing customers too much money and not being tough enough on utilities.

“Energy efficiency is an effective conservation resource in Florida and should play a key role in meeting our growing electric energy needs,” Carter said in a statement after Tuesday’s meeting. “The goals we approved today are achievable, and customers who implement the programs will save on their energy bills by reducing utilities’ fuel costs and their need to build more power plants.”

Still, some environmentalists were disappointed that the PSC left other conservation options out of its adopted goals.

“The resulting goals leave a lot of customer savings on the table," Susan Glickman, a consultant with the Natural Resources Defense Council and Southern Alliance for Clean Energy, said in a statement. “Sadly, this keeps Florida in the back of the pack when compared to the leading states on energy efficiency.”

(Story copyrighted by FloridaEnvironments.com. Do not copy or redistribute without permission.)

Florida commission considers sewage sludge rule changes

The Environmental Regulation Commission on Tuesday will consider changes to regulations dealing with "biosolids." That's the term used to describe the waste from sewage treatment plants, also called sewage sludge.

Spreading biosolids or sewage sludge on land has raised health and safety concerns in some counties. The National Academy of Sciences says the use of biosolids on crops presents a "negligible risk" to consumers when used in accordance with existing federal guidelines and regulations. (See links at end of story)

Sarasota County restricted sludge dumping in 2002 while DeSoto County that year banned the spreading of Class B sludge, which receives less treatment than other biosolids, according to media reports.

The proposed DEP rule changes are designed to improve the management of biosolids, address concerns about nitrogen and phosphorus getting into waterways and support public confidence in the beneficial use of biosolids, according to the department.

DEP began holding hearings in 2002 on rule changes. The draft rule changes require permits for biosolids application sites. Biosolids can only be applied to permitted sites after Jan. 1, 2013.

Changes in site boundaries will require permit modifications as will changes in agricultural operations that affect nutrient loading or application rates.

The ManaSota-88 environmental group in Southwest Florida wanted DEP to follow Sarasota County's lead and require landowners who allowed sludge dumping to disclose that to land-buyers, said Glenn Compton, the environmental group's chairman.

"We thought that would be a good idea to get that on the state level also," he said. "Apparently we fell short on the state level."

Representatives of the Florida Water Environment Association, which includes wastewater utilities, and the Florida Cattlemen's Association could not be reached for comment. Representatives of those groups served on a DEP committee that worked on the draft regulations.

Florida DEP biosolids rule revision site:
http://www.dep.state.fl.us/water/wastewater/dom/resmake.htm

U.S. EPA biosolids site including FAQ:
http://www.epa.gov/OWM/mtb/biosolids/

"Florida sludge victims" opposition web site:
http://www.sludgevictims.com/States/Florida_sludge_victims.html

(Photo copied from DEP PowerPoint presentation. Story copyrighted by Bruce Ritchie and FloridaEnvironments.com. Do not copy or redistribute without permission.)

Florida planners face legislative scrutiny on growth

State planners say it would take 268 years of population growth to use up the new home lots that already are allowed in Tallahassee and Leon County.

In DeSoto and Jackson counties, it would take even longer: DeSoto would require 328 years of growth and Jackson County would require 996 years.


Despite -- or perhaps because of -- what the Florida Department of Community Affairs says is an over-allocation of residential development in some counties, the department's process for reviewing projects is facing legislative scrutiny.

DCA reviews development projects proposed by cities and counties as amendments to their comprehensive plans. As part of that review, the department wants cities and counties to conduct a "needs analysis" showing that population growth supports changing the land use designation.

But some legislators and landowners say they don't like the needs analysis and its reliance on population estimates. They say it infringes on new development that would create jobs during tough economic times.

"It appears to me we should get rid of the needs analysis or make it tighter so there is more certainty for the developer going through it," Sen. Mike Bennett, chairman of the Senate Committee on Community Affairs, said during a committee hearing earlier this month.

"I don't think the needs test deters people from moving to Florida," he said. "They still want to come down here. So I'm trying to understand -- why we have a needs analysis that would take away economic development and economic incentives?"

A report published last month by the Senate Committee on Community Affairs staff says the needs assessment is a fundamental part of land use planning and a key indicator of urban sprawl. But the committee staff also said it is only one factor to consider along with economic development, urban infill and locating development where it is most efficient to receive local services.

DCA Secretary Tom Pelham suggests that the department is getting a bad rap from its critics. He says projects usually are denied for multiple reasons -- including lack of infrastructure -- which he said are caused by overallocation of development.

"I challenge anyone to find department decisions where need was the only issue raised," Pelham told the committee hearing. "It simply is not the case."

Bennett today told FloridaEnvironments.com that he's not sure whether his committee's review of the needs analysis will result in legislation. He also said that the proposed Destiny development project in Osceola County could create more than 10,000 jobs, yet it must go through the uncertainty of the needs analysis.

"You have a group of investors willing to put millions and millions and millions of their own money into the project," Bennett said, adding, "A needs analysis does not work in that situation."

In response, Pelham said today the Destiny developers still could build 8,500 homes on more than 40,000 acres -- and they haven't submitted an application to build more. So the department, he said, hasn't denied any project there.

And claims of jobs that could be created at Destiny are simply "wild rumor and speculation," Pelham said, adding, "No hard evidence of any kind has been presented to back that up."

In its report, the Senate Committee on Community Affairs suggested that DCA or the Legislature begin rulemaking to clarify the criteria used in the needs analysis. DCA earlier this month held a hearing to solicit comment on a possible rule but no timetable has been established for adopting one.

Earlier this month, Pelham told Bennett's committee that it shouldn't be hard for a developer to provide data showing that a good project is needed.

The needs analysis, Pelham said, lies at the heart of the planning process. And he noted that Florida has a history of "speculative" development projects that wind up failing -- and government then is called in to bail them out.

"I worked for the private sector for a long time and was honored to represent some of the top developers in this state," Pelham said. "But they are doing their job, which is to take care of their bottom line.

"That's their job -- I don't criticize that at all," he said. "That's why someone has to take the big picture and look out for the public interest. Because it may be the public that winds up holding the bill."

(Story copyrighted by Bruce Ritchie and FloridaEnvironments.com. Do not copy or redistribute without permission.)