They Can’t Lay Off a Bad Pitch

By Diane Johnson

 

On May 20, Dr. Henry Briceno, Florida International University, Dr. Jim Fourqueran, Water Quality Protection Program, and Chris Bergh, South Florida Director of the Nature Conservancy attended the Board of County Commissioners (BOCC) meeting. These well-respected Marine Sanctuary scientists spoke about using shallow wells at the Cudjoe Wastewater Treatment Plant. At issue is disposal of the treated effluent. Even more alarming, the plant and the wells sit on an old unlined landfill. Dr. Briceno said: “We already know that waters injected at that shallow depth will boomerang back to interact with surficial ecosystems. Ecosystems we have never studied at Cudjoe Key. We do not know with certainty what biodiversity is there, its water quality, and how impacted it is already from those juices coming out of the unlined landfill. In what conditions are the fisheries, mangrove forests and seagrasses around the treatment plant? What would be the added damage? will the system go beyond the point of no return? ….how much could be injected without causing damage? What and how much will be re-mobilized from under the landfill? We simply, do not know. It is this the unknown devil, the dragon under the landfill?”

 

Despite that discussion, which was less than a month ago, this past week on Wednesday, June 10, our Commissioners discussed crafting a letter to the Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) to tell them that the BOCC wants the plant started up now. Commissioner Nugent and Kevin Wilson, the Monroe County Director of Public Works, led the discussion. Two significant factoids emerged: 1) FKAA asked DEP if they could start-up the Plant, and 2) DEP’s response was to request that additional testing be conducted on the shallow wells, ground water levels and fluctuations based upon tidal flows.

 

It’s apparent that FKAA does NOT want to be held responsible for the decision to start-up the Plant with shallow wells. In addition, FKAA has been frustrated that the facts are not supporting their position that the shallow wells will do the job and not harm the environment. First, there was a viable legal challenge to their permit; witness the Sugarloaf Shores and Cudjoe Gardens Property Owners Associations (POA) lawsuit. Second, FKAA paid Dr. Briceno to test the shallow wells, only to find out the effluent did indeed migrate laterally into the near shore waters. Despite the scientist’s concern for the environment, during their May 20th meeting, the BOCC decided to file with the Court as interveners in the POA’s lawsuit.

 

Why the urgency to startup the plant? Commissioner Nugent pointed to a state mandate that dates back to 1999, requiring the Keys to complete the sewers and use Advanced Wastewater Treatment by the end of 2010. The “deadline” has been extended to the end of 2015 and there are no consequences for not meeting the date identified in the statutes. Once the plant starts up, letters inviting residents to hook up will go out. Sixty days later billing will begin for those neighborhoods. Now I see the light, its all about the money, they don’t care about the science.

 

To learn what the current schedule is for completion of the sewer lines, I called the FKAA Project Hotline. In speaking with Joe Ivey, I learned that Big Pine won’t be completed until sometime next year and the transmission lines are only installed up through Ramrod. Monroe County is not going to meet the deadline of the end of this year.

 

Just like a batter who can’t lay off a bad pitch, Commissioner Nugent and Kevin Wilson just can’t help themselves from swinging.

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