News - Seminole.WaterAtlas.orghttps://seminole.wateratlas.usf.edu/Recent news items for Seminole County Water Atlas60FDEP invites public input on new water quality credit programhttps://seminole.wateratlas.usf.edu/news/newsviewall.asp?newsid=22859<p> Florida&rsquo;s Department of Environmental Protection (FDEP) is inviting the public to a rulemaking workshop Thursday [March 21st] to share feedback on a proposed water quality credit trading program.</p> <p> The program would allow government entities to buy &ldquo;enhancement credits&rdquo; to compensate for negative impacts to water quality from development projects. An &ldquo;enhancement credit&rdquo; represents a quantity of pollutant removed as a standard unit of measurement, <a href="http://www.leg.state.fl.us/statutes/index.cfm?App_mode=Display_Statute&amp;Search_String=&amp;URL=0300-0399/0373/Sections/0373.4134.html#:~:text=%E2%80%94As%20used%20in%20this%20section,a%20quantity%20of%20pollutant%20removed." target="_blank" title="FS 373.4134 (2023)">per Florida Statute</a>.</p> <p> Florida&rsquo;s existing <a href="https://floridadep.gov/water/submerged-lands-environmental-resources-coordination/content/mitigation-and-mitigation-banking" target="_blank" title="FDEP program webpage">mitigation banking program</a> relies on similar credits intended to offset negative wetland impacts from development. But Gabrielle Milch of St. Johns Riverkeeper has concerns about both programs, saying they&#39;re designed to prioritize speedy development approvals when environmental health should come first and foremost.</p> <p> &ldquo;It&#39;s easier to keep pollution out of the water than it is to take it out of the water,&rdquo; Milch said, also adding &ldquo;it&#39;s a lot cheaper.&rdquo;</p> <p> Milch previously worked for the St. Johns River Water Management District, where she says her role included helping oversee and enforce development permitting regulations.</p> <p> Back then, in the 1980s, Milch says development permitting in Florida wasn&rsquo;t perfect. But she thinks it&rsquo;s worse today: &ldquo;more generalized and more streamlined,&rdquo; allowing for rapid, potentially unvetted development.&rdquo;</p> <p> FDEP&rsquo;s move to establish the new program follows state lawmakers&rsquo; unanimous approval of HB 965 in 2022, authorizing the creation of water quality enhancement areas (WQEAs), for which credits may be used to compensate for a lack of water quality treatment available onsite.</p> WaterAtlas.orgThu, 21 Mar 2024 00:00:00 GMTCity of Casselberry aiming to protect lakeshttps://seminole.wateratlas.usf.edu/news/newsviewall.asp?newsid=22851<p> CASSELBERRY &ndash; With the coming of spring, the rainy season is not all that far away.</p> <p> While our yards and landscapes need rain, some of the fertilizer and stormwater runoff can foul area lakes.</p> <p> There&#39;s a new partnership in Casselberry, where they hope to keep the lakes there as clear as possible.</p> <p> &ldquo;This is a beneficial plant obviously for shoreline stabilization, nutrient uptake,&quot; said Nick Cooper, Casselberry&#39;s natural resources officer.</p> <p> We met Casselberry&#39;s natural resources officer at Secret Lake.</p> <p> From a drone, we could see just one of 24 lakes the city hopes to protect by partnering with lakefront homeowners.</p> <p> They can register with the city for up to 30 plants free of charge, and the city will do the planting.</p> WaterAtlas.orgWed, 20 Mar 2024 00:00:00 GMTState seeks to speed up decision in wetlands permitting casehttps://seminole.wateratlas.usf.edu/news/newsviewall.asp?newsid=22843<p> TALLAHASSEE &ndash; Florida is asking a federal judge to speed up a final ruling in a high-stakes case about permitting authority for projects that affect wetlands, as the state sets the stage for a likely appeal.</p> <p> U.S. District Judge Randolph Moss on Feb. 15 ruled that federal officials did not follow required steps in 2020 before transferring wetlands-related permitting authority from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to the state. Moss vacated the shift but said the state and the federal government could seek a stay of his ruling. He also did not decide certain legal issues in the case.</p> <p> In a filing Monday, attorneys for the state urged Moss to issue a final judgment, which would help clear the way for an appeal. The filing said Moss&rsquo; Feb. 15 decision has effectively resolved the case&rsquo;s key issues in favor of environmental groups that challenged the shift.</p> <p> &ldquo;This single judicial ruling, which gave complete relief to plaintiffs, immediately placed over 1,000 projects across Florida (including permit applications for environmental restoration, roads and bridges, hospitals, schools, affordable housing, senior living facilities, and grid reliability, among many others) in regulatory limbo with no clear timeline or expectation for a permit decision,&rdquo; the state&rsquo;s 21-page filing said. &ldquo;The situation was immediately urgent and becomes more so with each passing day.&rdquo;</p> <p> The state on Feb. 26 also filed a motion for a stay of Moss&rsquo; decision. The judge has not ruled on the motion and has scheduled an April 4 conference in Washington, D.C. The plaintiffs have opposed a stay.</p> <p> The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency approved the transfer of the permitting authority to the state in December 2020, about a month before former President Donald Trump&rsquo;s administration ended. Florida became the third state, after Michigan and New Jersey, to receive the permitting authority.</p> WaterAtlas.orgWed, 13 Mar 2024 00:00:00 GMTSeminole County ramps up studies for proposed septic to sewer conversionshttps://seminole.wateratlas.usf.edu/news/newsviewall.asp?newsid=22841<p> SEMINOLE COUNTY &ndash; Seminole County commissioners met Tuesday on the topic of converting homeowners who are on septic tanks to sewer.</p> <p> This process is in its very early stages, as Tuesday&rsquo;s presentation on this topic was the first of many</p> <p> Staff say they&rsquo;ve identified at least 26,000 septic tanks in the entire county</p> <p> The county is working with a consulting firm to conduct engineering studies on where septic tanks are in the county as well as developing a septic to sewer program for the county to discuss.</p> <p> The county started this process in 2019, and Seminole County Commissioner Lee Constantine says this is a something that will benefit everyone in the county.</p> <p> According to CHA Consulting Firm, converting a septic tank to a central sewer would eliminate direct discharge to groundwater and Wekiwa Springs.</p> WaterAtlas.orgWed, 13 Mar 2024 00:00:00 GMTEnvironmental groups oppose a stay in the fight over wetlands permitting in Floridahttps://seminole.wateratlas.usf.edu/news/newsviewall.asp?newsid=22829<p> Environmental groups Thursday pushed back against a request by Florida for a partial stay of a ruling in a legal battle about a 2020 decision that shifted permitting authority from the federal government to the state for projects that affect wetlands.</p> <p> U.S. District Judge Randolph Moss on Feb. 15 ruled that actions by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in approving the shift violated the Endangered Species Act.</p> <p> Moss issued an order vacating the approval of the shift.</p> <p> Such permitting authority is usually held by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.</p> <p> Saying permits were in &ldquo;regulatory limbo,&rdquo; the state filed a motion for a limited stay of Moss&rsquo; ruling to keep the &ldquo;bulk&rdquo; of Florida&rsquo;s permitting program in place until a new plan can be put in place or until further court decisions.</p> <p> But in a 22-page filing Thursday, environmental groups argued the state&rsquo;s request would &ldquo;create confusion and perpetuate violations&rdquo; of the Endangered Species Act.</p> <p> &ldquo;The least disruptive path forward, which would also serve developers&rsquo; interest in clarity &hellip; is therefore to deny a limited stay, leave permitting authority with the (Army) Corps, and allow Florida to propose a new program subject to EPA approval,&rdquo; Thursday&rsquo;s filing said.</p> <p> The Center for Biological Diversity, Defenders of Wildlife, the Sierra Club, the Conservancy of Southwest Florida, the Florida Wildlife Federation, Miami Waterkeeper and St. Johns Riverkeeper filed the lawsuit in January 2021 against the federal government.</p> <p> The state later intervened.</p> <p> The U.S. Department of Justice has opposed the state&rsquo;s request for a partial stay of Moss&rsquo; ruling, but Florida business groups have supported the request.</p> WaterAtlas.orgMon, 11 Mar 2024 00:00:00 GMTCentral Florida leaders and advocates want local control of fertilizer usagehttps://seminole.wateratlas.usf.edu/news/newsviewall.asp?newsid=22813<p> Fertilizer runoff from lawns during rain season can cause things like algae blooms and harmful pollution that impacts local waterways.</p> <p> And since 2007, counties like Orange and Seminole have enforced regulations limiting the usage of nitrogen and phosphorus fertilizers.</p> <p> However last year, Governor Ron DeSantis passed a budget which included a year-long moratorium on new fertilizer bans as scientists from the University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences studied the effectiveness of such ordinances.</p> <p> With the legislative session nearing an end, advocates are concerned another last-minute addition to the budget will continue to limit their ability to control fertilizer runoff locally.</p> <p> Seminole County Commissioner Lee Constantine said fertilizer usage directly affects people locally and home rule is the standing law of the land.</p> <p> &ldquo;These are not things that happen at the state level,&rdquo; said Constantine, who previously served in the Florida House and Senate. &ldquo;These are things that are locally decided. And please remember that as you&#39;re finishing these last few days of the legislature, we need your help to continue to have a strong local government in Florida.&rdquo;</p> <p> Eighteen Florida counties and over 100 municipalities have adopted fertilizer restrictions since 2007, with Sarasota County being the first to enact the regulations.</p> WaterAtlas.orgFri, 08 Mar 2024 00:00:00 GMTSanford mayor: We remain diligent on water qualityhttps://seminole.wateratlas.usf.edu/news/newsviewall.asp?newsid=22812<p> Art Woodruff serves as the mayor of the city of Sanford and is a lifelong resident of Sanford. You can find more information and answers to important questions on the City&rsquo;s website, <a href="https://www.sanfordfl.gov" target="_blank" title="City of Sanford website">www.sanfordfl.gov</a>.</p> <p style="margin-left: 40px;"> <em>While the Sentinel&rsquo;s spotlight on water contamination in Central Florida, especially through last year&rsquo;s &ldquo;Toxic Secret&rdquo; series, has faded in recent months, the issue remains no less important and efforts by the City of Sanford to address drinking water quality are no less diligent. Sanford constantly works to safeguard its drinking water for the public, but there are limits to what one city can achieve by itself.</em></p> <p style="margin-left: 40px;"> <em>I was encouraged when Sens. Jason Brodeur and Linda Stewart along with Rep. Rebecca Plakon took up the issue with bills in this legislative session. Brodeur&rsquo;s bill would have required identification of sources, helping prevent further contamination throughout the state. Stewart&rsquo;s and Plakon&rsquo;s legislation would have required the Florida Department of Environmental Protection to set a legal limit for 1,4-dioxane and set in motion funding to help utilities deal with the contamination. Unfortunately, the Legislature as a whole failed to recognize the importance and the bills died. The City of Sanford will work with our legislative delegation to reintroduce and adopt these bills next year because state action is needed.</em></p> <p style="margin-left: 40px;"> <em>Only state and federal agencies &mdash; the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Florida Department of Environmental Protection and the Florida Department of Health &mdash; have the legal authority, background, and expertise to study and regulate acceptable levels of chemicals in public drinking water. Sanford, like all local governments, relies on these agencies to set appropriate standards and Sanford consistently meets or exceeds these standards for monitoring and water quality. Although there is a health advisory level, the state&rsquo;s residents would best be served by a regulatory limit.</em></p> WaterAtlas.orgFri, 08 Mar 2024 00:00:00 GMTThe Atlantic is hotter, earlier. That&rsquo;s a bad sign for hurricane season, Florida coralshttps://seminole.wateratlas.usf.edu/news/newsviewall.asp?newsid=22807<p> It&rsquo;s only February, but sea surface temperatures in the Atlantic Ocean are already hitting early summer levels, a worrying trend that could indicate an active hurricane season ahead &mdash; or another marine heat wave.</p> <p> Brian McNoldy, a senior research associate at the University of Miami, called this early season heat &ldquo;very, very exceptional,&rdquo; and said it&rsquo;s a strong sign that the upcoming hurricane season could see an above-average number of storms.</p> <p> In the North Atlantic, he said water temperatures are running three months ahead of schedule, at May-level temperatures. In the main development region of the Atlantic, where most hurricanes are born, McNoldy said sea surface temperatures are closer to July levels.</p> <p> &ldquo;That is like hurricane season out there right now,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;We&rsquo;re just blowing past all the other years, there&rsquo;s no comparison.&rdquo;</p> <p> But hurricane season doesn&rsquo;t start until June 1, leaving plenty of long weeks of heating between now and the official start date. High sea surface temperatures are closely connected with more storm formations and an earlier start to the season. Scientists have suggested that climate change-driven warming has pushed the start of the hurricane season above two weeks earlier, to mid-May.</p> WaterAtlas.orgFri, 01 Mar 2024 00:00:00 GMTUF Study: About half of Floridians not aware of local water restrictionshttps://seminole.wateratlas.usf.edu/news/newsviewall.asp?newsid=22801<h4> Water restrictions can be set by cities, counties and the state&rsquo;s water management districts</h4> <p> GAINESVILLE &ndash; Half of Florida residents don&rsquo;t know about their local water restrictions, but those who are aware can be persuaded to abide by them, new University of Florida research shows.</p> <p> Water restrictions can be set by cities, counties and the state&rsquo;s water management districts.</p> <p> But if homeowners don&rsquo;t know the local or regional rules, it&rsquo;s logical that they cannot develop favorable perceptions about these policies. Residential buy-in is the key to less irrigation, said Laura Warner, a UF/IFAS associate professor of agricultural education and communications.</p> <p> &ldquo;I think the most important finding is that we can now understand who intends to comply with irrigation restrictions in the future,&rdquo; said Warner, lead author of the paper.</p> <p> There are lots of reasons half the public doesn&rsquo;t know about local water restrictions, Warner said.</p> <p> &ldquo;A simple explanation would be that there are either not enough educational messages, and/or the messages that do exist are not reaching the people they need to reach,&rdquo; she said. &ldquo;But another element is potentially that we have so many new residents to Florida.&rdquo;</p> <p> Even if people are aware of the restrictions but don&rsquo;t fully understand them, that&rsquo;s also a problem.</p> <p> &ldquo;Perceived complexity is the biggest barrier to compliance among people who are aware of these policies,&rdquo; Warner said.</p> WaterAtlas.orgThu, 29 Feb 2024 00:00:00 GMTFWC invites public to attend 29th Annual Tenoroc Youth Fishing Derbyhttps://seminole.wateratlas.usf.edu/news/newsviewall.asp?newsid=22799<p> <img alt="FWC logo" src="https://cdn.wateratlas.org/img/logos/FWC-logo.jpg" style="float:left;margin-right:10px;width:150px;" /></p> <table> <tbody> <tr> <td> <p> The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) invites you to a free youth freshwater fishing derby at the <a href="https://myfwc.com/fishing/freshwater/sites-forecasts/sw/tenoroc/" target="_blank" title="Tenoroc Fishing Info"><strong>Tenoroc Fish Management Area</strong></a> in Lakeland on Saturday, April 6, from 8 a.m. until 1 p.m. Pre-registration is required for the derby, beginning March 1. A fishing license is not required on this particular weekend because it falls during a state-designated license-free freshwater fishing weekend.</p> <p> This special event will be conducted on Derby Lake Recreational Facility, a 16-acre former phosphate pit stocked with a variety of freshwater sport fish and catfish. The lake has seven fishing piers and a 200-foot boardwalk for fishing that is accessible to anglers of all abilities.</p> <p> There will be a casting contest, exhibitors and other outdoor activities for youth participants. A free lunch will be provided by Publix Supermarkets and the Fish &amp; Wildlife Foundation of Florida. Bait and a limited number of loaner rods and reels will also be provided free of charge to youth ages 15 and younger. A parent or guardian must accompany youth participants.</p> <p> To pre-register, call the FWC at 863-648-3200 Monday through Friday between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. Pre-registration will end on Friday, April 5, at 5 p.m.</p> <p> If you would like more information on freshwater fishing, visit the <a href="https://myfwc.com/fishing/freshwater/" target="_blank" title="FWC freshwater fishing webpage">FWC Freshwater Fishing</a> webpage at MyFWC.com or call the FWC&rsquo;s Lakeland office at 863-648-3200.</p> </td> </tr> </tbody> </table>WaterAtlas.orgThu, 29 Feb 2024 00:00:00 GMT