Streams or ditches? DEP considers waterways reclassification

Few people who drive along Franklin Boulevard east of the state Capitol notice a ditch between the lanes of traffic or realize it may have historical significance.

The ditch was once a stream called St. Augustine Branch that flowed towards a waterfall that became a landmark in the siting of Florida's capital city in 1823. But the waterfall eventually was wiped out when railroad tracks were built in the 1850s and the stream was ditched years later to reduce flooding.

But the ditch is still known as St. Augustine Branch to the Florida Department of Environmental Protection. And it's rated by DEP as Class III, or fishable and swimmable -- a classification under the federal Clean Water Act that city officials say could establish unrealistic and expensive cleanup requirements.

Now the Florida Stormwater Association, which consists of city and county officials across the state, is asking DEP to create a new waterway classification system so that local governments are not required to spend millions of dollars improving water quality in ditches and canals rather than the lakes and rivers downstream.

"There are examples like that all over the state -- these urban conveyances that have really little or no human or aquatic benefit," said Kurt Spitzer, executive director of the Florida Stormwater Association. "You can't go fishing, you can't go swimming -- yet they are Class III."

But some environmentalists are concerned that the state may allow more pollution in too many waterways, including canals that people fish in and some streams where people swim or float in inner tubes. And they rankle at stormwater officials using the Franklin Boulevard ditch as an example.

"It's not a creek, it's not a stream -- it's not a Class III water body," said Linda Young, director of the Clean Water Network of Florida. "They continue to act like it is and use it as a poster child to say all these water bodies (should be declassified)."

DEP says it is revising its waterway classification rule in response to the Florida Stormwater Association petition filed in July. Public hearings must be held and any rule change must be approved by the state Environmental Regulation Commission.

The department had proposed changes to the waterway classifications in 2007 but faced opposition and the proposal was shelved, according to environmentalists. DEP Secretary Michael Sole in 2007 sent a letter to local officials across the state denying that the department was trying to reduce water quality standards.

The Class III designation brings with it a requirement to meet certain minimum water quality standards that are not attainable and are unnecessary in many manmade waters, Sole said.

But Monica Reimer, an attorney with the Earthjustice law firm, said the state shouldn't revamp the whole waterway classification system because of concerns.

"The Clean Water Act is about clean water," said Monica Reimer, an attorney for the EarthJustice law firm. "If you want to deal with ditches, deal with ditches."

Young, of the Clean Water Network, said the reclassification could be used to allow more pollution in any river or stream that may have been altered at one time. DEP, however, says the reclassification would allow it to better protect pristine waters and establish more realistic goals for artificial waterways.

In Orange County, the Little Econ River, Shingle Creek and the Little Wekiva Canal all are Class III even though local officials say they have been substantially altered. Shingle Creek is a ditch through Orlando on its way to Lake Tohopekaliga at the headwaters of Lake Okeechobee and the Everglades, said Julie Bortles, program manager for ecological assessment in the Orange County Environmental Protection Division.

"A lot of these areas, at least in Orlando are older and still don't have stormwater ponds in them.," she said. "The primary means of getting rid of stormwater is straight into these ditches. We are trying to put more (stormwater treatment) in but financially it's not possible to put stormwater ponds in everywhere."

Not everyone in Tallahassee agrees that Franklin Boulevard is just a ditch. Sean McGlynn, a Tallahassee aquatic biologist, said the former St. Augustine Branch is fed by small springs in surrounding neighborhoods when it's not being flushed with dirty stormwater runoff on its way to Lake Munson.

McGlynn says the stream and floodplain should be restored on one side of Franklin Boulevard and the traffic lanes should be moved to the other side. The city has delayed plans for enclosing the stream in culverts.

Enclosing the stream in culverts or removing its fishable-swimmable designation could doom historic St. Augustine Branch, McGlynn said.

"There are fish, there are frogs. There are aquatic plants -- because they (city maintenance workers) keep scooping them out," McGlynn said. "By making it a ditch, you are destroying the habitat that's there."

John Cox, Tallahassee's water quality planning chief, said removing nitrogen and phosphorus to achieve water quality standards could cost $15 million or more, and he said it isn't worth it.

"The more of those kinds of waters that you identify as impaired," he said, "the more you take away resources from actually protecting and restoring waters that actually have more of a chance to support a well-balanced aquatic community -- if you lower the pollutant load."

View DEP's web page on the classification process by clicking here.

View the Florida Stormwater Association's petition and Soles 2007 letter by clicking here.

Climate panel rejects scrapping energy test

A state climate panel today rejected a commissioner's recommendation for Florida to replace its test for analyzing energy programs -- a test that environmentalists have argued is a barrier to conservation.

The Florida Energy and Climate Commission instead voted to recommend that the Public Service Commission use a revised version of the "rate impact measure" test, or RIM test, that the PSC already is using. The climate commission rejected Commissioner Debra Harrison's proposal to scrap the RIM test, which environmentalists say fails to consider the societal costs of pollution and greenhouse gas emissions.


"I would like to see the state of Florida no longer 28th in the nation in energy efficiency but to move into the top 10 states in this country in moving forward with energy efficiency," said Harrison, who is Florida program director of the World Wildlife Fund. She also said Florida is one of only two localities that rely solely on the RIM test.

But others on the eight-member commission backed Executive Director Jeremy Susac, who said the commission is required to recommend a least costly strategy for most rate-payers. He said the alternative test proposed by environmental groups, the Total Resource Cost (TRC) test, ignores the cost to all utility customers of some incentive programs, such as rebates for solar power, that are provided only to participating customers.

The climate panel, however, did recommend packaging some solar incentive programs with other more cost-effective measures to achieve greater energy efficiency at less cost. That's consistent with state law and the Florida Climate and Action Plan, the panel said.

The Public Service Commission is reviewing the conservation goals of seven utilities subject to the Florida Energy Efficiency and Conservation Act: Florida Power & Light Co., Florida Public Utilities Co., Gulf Power Co., JEA, the Orlando Utilities Commission, Progress Energy and Tampa Electric Co.

The Natural Resources Defense Council and the Southern Alliance for Clean Energy have told the PSC that House Bill 7135 in 2008 required the agency to consider replacing the RIM test. But representatives of utilities disagreed with that interpretation and said replacing RIM would be costly to all customers of utilities.

During the Climate and Energy Commission hearing today, some commissioners other than Harrison said they also were concerned about the cost of replacing the RIM test, particularly now. Today was the deadline for submitting a recommendation to the PSC.

"The burden on the general rate-payer would be extraordinary at this time given the economy," said Nicholas C. Gladding, an attorney who has represented corporate clients in environmental permitting cases.

Commission Chairman James F. Murley said now is not the time to be recommending an alternative that provides the most change.

"I think the state is in a worse financial state than many of us want to recognize," he said.

(Top photo courtesy of the National Renewable Energy Laboratory. Story copyrighted by Bruce Ritchie and FloridaEnvironments.com)

Ag Commissioner Bronson pushes conservation easements

During Tuesday's Cabinet meeting, Agriculture Commissioner Charles H. Bronson and Smokey Bear presented a national wildfire prevention award to Melissa Yunas, wildfire mitigation specialist in the Florida Division of Forestry's Okeechobee District office.

Gov. Charlie Crist and the Cabinet on Tuesday approved a new conservation lands purchase list but only after Agriculture Commissioner Charles H. Bronson insisted that the elected panel also should approve a state work plan for buying land.

Florida Forever and its predecessor land-buying program is the largest in the nation, having acquired more than 2.6 million acres of state forests, state and local parks and hunting preserves. But the program is at risk of running out of money as the state has been slow to borrow money because of a weak bond market, and the Legislature declined to provide new money in 2009-10.

Bronson has urged the state to buy development rights from farms and rural landowners rather than take ownership of the property. And he made that point again Tuesday in requesting a change in state law to require Cabinet approval of the Florida Department of Environmental Protection's land acquisition work plan.

"It is possible the trustees (Cabinet members) may want to decide -- of the different various plans for acquisition -- less-than-fee-simple processes (conservation easements) may be more important to get the same amount of protection and keep those lands on the tax rolls and so forth," he said.

Bronson has said that buying conservation easements is cheaper than purchasing land and avoids future land management costs while landowners continue to pay property taxes. But those land deals rarely include public access.

The new Florida Forever list consists of 2 million acres in 119 proposed purchase areas, one-third of which are conservation easements, according to DEP Secretary Michael Sole. The estimated value of all the land is $22 billion.

The two new projects both are conservation easements: Triple Diamond Ranch, 7,991 acres in Okechobee County, and Kissimmee Billy Strand, with 4,694 acres in Hendry County.

Kissimmee Billy Strand, which was added to the Panther Glades project and moved up from the B to the A priority list by the Cabinet, includes 2,312 acres of Green Glades Ranch owned by Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission member Ronald Bergeron. Commission officials have said DEP will handle the purchase, avoiding any potential conflict of interest for Bergeron. (Click here for related story).

The Florida Forever trust fund had $84 million in it this week and could run out of money by Oct. 1, Deborah Poppell, director of DEP's Division of State Lands, said earlier this month. (Click here for related story).

Sole said Tuesday he's not worried about running out of Florida Forever money, but he added, "I'm watching it like a hawk."

And he said with the estimated value of all the land the state is considering compared to the expected $3 billion to be sought for Florida Forever through 2020, prioritization and oversight by the Cabinet is reasonable.

"Without question the needs are very high (and) the costs are very high," Sole said. "We need to make sure as we move forward we do so in a way that achieves our priorities."

(Photo and text copyrighted by Bruce Ritchie and Florida Environments.com. Do not redistribute without permission.)

EPA, groups settle water dispute; Industry groups threaten challenge

Environmental groups say this algae bloom July 31 on a tributary of the St. Johns River was fueled by excessive nutrients, such as nitrogen and phosphorous.

Environmental groups say a settlement agreement in a lawsuit over Florida's water quality standards will help begin the restoration of springs, lakes and rivers across the state.

Under a settlement with groups including the Florida Wildlife Federation, the Sierra Club and the St. Johns Riverkeeper, the U.S. Environmental Protection agency will set numeric limits for nitrogen and phosphorus, which can cause algae blooms in Florida waters. Sources of nitrogen include fertilized lawns, agricultural operations and sewage treatment plants.

Environmental groups said the agreement was long overdue.

"This will be the engine that drives the restoration of Florida's rivers," said David Guest of the environmental law firm Earthjustice.

The EPA announced earlier this year that it would set those standards unless the state agreed to do so first. DEP officials said they agreed with the action and began work on setting limits earlier this year, including holding a pair of public hearings in June on a proposed rule.

Meanwhile, industry groups sent letters today and earlier this month warning of possible lawsuits challenging EPA's determination earlier this year. They said EPA based its decision on factors beyond the scope of the federal Clean Water Act.

With the EPA now moving forward, DEP said it's considering whether to continue moving forward with the rulemaking process.

"Florida has made a tremendous investment to collect and analyze the data necessary to define how nutrient enrichment affects the biological health of our surface waters," DEP Secretary Mike Sole said in a statement. "To ensure that there is no duplication of work, we will continue to work with EPA in the same manner they have worked with us as they develop the criteria."

Industry groups have raised concerns about DEP's approach, saying it arbitrarily places many water bodies in the "impaired" or polluted category without considering the geology and ecology of each waterway. The Florida Minerals and Chemical Council and the Florida Water Environment Association Utility Council have sent letters warning of possible lawsuits against the EPA.

The city of Tallahassee plans to spend $160 million to clean up its wastewater treatment plants to meet advanced treatment standards to reduce pollution of Wakulla Springs. Some proposals being floated by the state would establish even stricter standards than advanced treatment could meet, said attorney Winston K. Borkowski of the Hopping Green & Sams law firm in Tallahassee. He represents the industry groups that sent warning letters to EPA.

"It's like setting a 25-mph speed limit on an interstate highway," Borkowski said Monday. "It is certainly protective, but it is not rational."

On Friday, Earthjustice's Guest said concerns about cost from industry are predictable and overstated. But Guest also said that meeting numeric criteria likely will require additional treatment by sewage plants and could change the way homeowners use fertilizers and the way that farms dispose of their manure.

"There is an economic gain," he said. "Clean water makes money."

(Photo by Chris Williams, GreenWater Laboratories/CyanoLab, provided by environmental groups involved in lawsuit. Story copyrighted by Bruce Ritchie and FloridaEnvironments.com. Do not copy or redistribute without permission.)

Fla. could run out of land-buying money by Oct. 1

Florida could be out of money for buying conservation lands by Oct. 1 unless new bonds are issued to allow purchases.

The Florida Forever land-buying program is the largest in the nation. But the state has delayed borrowing money -- despite Legislative approval to do so -- because of the weak bond market, according to Deborah Poppell, director of DEP's Division of State Lands.

So the Florida Forever Trust Fund, which had $87 million remaining recently, could run out of money by Oct. 1, Poppell told the state Acquisition and Restoration Council last week.

"The Division of Bond Finance lets us know (when) the market is good enough where we can draw down bonds again or get bonds." Poppell told FloridaEnvironments.com.


"It might be late fall, (or) late late fall," she said. "It might be the first of the year."

But DEP also said the remaining trust fund balance is not unusually low. The department will continue to work toward land acquisitions as long as there is some money is available, DEP spokeswoman Amy Graham said.

Ben Watkins, director of the Division of Bond Finance, could not be reached this week to comment on when new Florida Forever bonds could be issued.

Gov. Charlie Crist and the Cabinet next Tuesday will be asked to approve a new state lands purchase list with new projects and expanded boundaries for existing projects. But much of the money appropriated last year already has been committed -- before the bonds have been issued.

Under Florida Forever and its predecessor program, Preservation 2000, the state has bought 2.6 million acres since 1990. The land includes state forests, state and local parks, water management district lands, state wildlife preserves and preservation agreements with private landowners.

The Legislature this year provided no money for the land-buying program, which had received $300 million a year since 1990. The Legislature was facing a revenue shortfall because of the slow economy, but some critics also say the state has borrowed too much or has bought too much land already.

Environmental groups say conservation lands are needed to protect water supplies and wildlife and provide recreational opportunities when growth resumes in Florida. And they say the state is missing the opportunity to buy land now with prices going down.

The Legislature in FY 2008-09 provided $300 million in bonding authority but only $50 million in bonds were issued, Poppell said. A weak bond market meant the state would have had to pay more in interest to borrow the remaining $250 million.

Even if new bonds are issued, there may be few new land deals involving DEP's $105 million portion of Florida Forever. Of the $97 million remaining unspent (once bonds are issued), all but $21.8 million has been obligated to other purchases or expenses.

The lack of cash on hand from last year and the lack of new money this year will create uncertainty for landowners willing to sell and for communities that want to submit grant requests to the state, said Andrew McLeod of The Nature Conservancy.

"It's particularly regrettable because this is the most favorable market for conservation in a long time," he said. "It obviously coincides with a recession. But the state is not in a position to maximize the current real estate dip for the purposes of conservation."

(Story text and photograph copyrighted by Bruce Ritchie and FloridaEnvironments.com. Do no copy or redistribute without permission.)

Crist considers meeting with Ala., Ga. in water dispute

By MICHAEL PELTIER
THE NEWS SERVICE OF FLORIDA

Gov. Charlie Crist is mulling over dates to meet with his counterparts from Alabama and Georgia as leaders of the three neighboring states try to resolve a longstanding feud over how to divvy up water coming from Lake Lanier.

With a federal judge saying Atlantans aren’t entitled to water from the reservoir, Georgia Gov. Sonny Perdue and Alabama Gov. Bill Riley have agreed to meet but are waiting for Crist to respond on acceptable dates. The request to meet follows a federal court ruling last month that may end the Georgia capital’s future prospects for pulling water from the reservoir to quench the collective thirst to the teeming city.

Alabama and Florida officials are concerned about lack of water flowing from Lake Lanier, a big federal reservoir north of Atlanta. Florida’s oyster fishery is especially vulnerable because a drop in fresh water into Apalachicola Bay makes the water too salty.

“I have always believed that a negotiated settlement that protects the rights and resources of all three states is the most lasting solution,” Perdue said in a letter to Crist and Riley.

Crist spokesman Sterling Ivey said the governor was reviewing the 19 dates acceptable to Riley and Perdue over the next three months.

Nine weeks after taking testimony in a water war between Florida, Alabama and Georgia, Senior U.S. District Judge Paul Magnuson in July called on Congress to settle the dispute within three years. If not, water distribution would revert back to a baseline arrangement forged in the 1970s when Atlanta was a fourth its current size, leaving a huge metro area to try to find a new source for water.

Georgia officials have asked that more water from Lake Lanier be allowed to remain within the state to quench the thirst of Atlanta, now home to about 5.3 million people.The three states and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers have been in litigation over sharing the waters for nearly two decades.

The disputes have focused primarily on the operation of federal reservoirs on the Chattahoochee River. The largest is Buford Dam, which forms Lake Lanier north of Atlanta. Local officials, with the Corps approval, have been diverting more water from the reservoir as the region booms.

Audubon's Draper drops out of ag commissioner race

Democrat Eric Draper says he's leaving the race for agriculture commissioner to devote more time to environmental issues.

Draper, who is deputy director of Audubon of Florida, was one of four Democratic candidates in 2010 seeking to replace Republican Charles H. Bronson, who cannot seek re-election because of term limits.

"I knew when I got in my biggest challenge was going to be balancing my work particularly my environmental advocacy," Draper told FloridaEnvironments.com. He announced his decision in an e-mail to campaign supporters.

"I gave it three good months to see if I could do that effectively," Draper said. "I felt the conditions changed a little bit and I needed to refocus on Audubon."

Draper lacked the farming background that past commissioners and several of the other candidates have had. When he announced his candidacy, Draper stressed his work with Audubon to preserve farms as part of the environmental landscape.

Fund raising wasn't a problem, Draper said, though he indicated that it could require more of his time in the future. He said the $40,000 he raised will be redistributed to campaign donors.

"Money comes with time," he said. "Money is just a result of getting in front of people and making your case."

Draper, who said he had enjoyed campaigning, was meeting Monday with other environmentalists to discuss countering the political and media campaign in support of oil drilling.

"I look at the money being spent by these drilling companies, lobbyists, public relations and their campaign contributions (and) I realize I need to fight the battles in front of us right now rather than positioning myself to fight a battle in the future," he said.

The remaining Democratic candidates in the race are former state Rep. Rick Minton, former Suwannee County Commissioner Randy Hatch and former Tallahassee Mayor Scott Maddox. The Republican candidates are state Sen. Carey Baker and U.S. Rep. Adam Putnam. James Harlin Carter is running as a candidate of the Real Food Party of the United States of America.

(Photo and text copyrighted by Bruce Ritchie and FloridaEnvironments.com. Do not redistribute without permission)