Mosaic Overflight Part 5 Riverview Gypstacks & the [Polluted] Alafia River

The Alafia River at its mouth near Gibsonton.   This river is Florida’s shame.

HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY, Fla. (WFLA) – Mosaic’s radioactive, contaminated water that leaked from a sinkhole, is being diluted and dumped into the Alafia river.

Nearly four months ago, Mosaic assured the public that contaminated water it recovered from the sinkhole spill would be kept and used at its Mulberry fertilizer plant.

The above is taken from a WFLA newscast.  In 2016, over 200 million gallons of toxic water fell into the aquifer at Mosaic’s New Wales gypstack.  It now is seen that this water is going into the Alafia River once again.  The U. S. Geological Survey notified the state in 1967  that phosphate mines were polluting the river.

Acid water is nothing new to the Alafia.  In 1997 a retention pond broke:

The December 1997 spill damaged 377 acres of riverine habitat and killed or injured any wildlife that couldn’t get out of the way quickly enough on Skinned Sapling Creek and the North Prong of the Alafia River on the outskirts of Mulberry.
The North Prong begins near Mulberry and joins the South Prong, which begins near Bradley, to form the main river channel in eastern Hillsborough County. The river flows to Hillsborough Bay in Riverview.  http://protectpeaceriver.org/2012/04/1997-alafia-river-acid-spill/

Swimming:

Not recommended in the river due to posted pollution warnings. Swimming is

allowed at Lithia Springs, as long as boats are tied up at the mouth of the spring run.

   The Riverview gypstacks,  Florida’s version of mountains

Port Sutton, Tampa,  a Kinder Morgan terminal;  from here leave the Mosaic products headed for the world.