We must advise Nestle that the water from Ginnie Springs is not being managed in a sustainable way. The flow is way down from past years and it is still declining, it is not improving. The nitrate content in the Ginnie Spring water is three times over the maximum recommended by the Florida Department of Environmental Protection (source is Florida Springs Institute, a non-biased science organization.)
Nestle has no plan nor program to sustain nor restore the flow from the springs. To monitor the wells is not a plan. Nestle’s withdrawal will impact the springs and Santa Fe River in a negative way. The current problem is due in large part to over-pumping, and more pumping with two ten-inch wells will make it worse.
Read the entire article here at First Coast News.
Comments by OSFR historian Jim Tatum.
-A river is like a life: once taken, it cannot be brought back-
Nestlé asking to pump millions of gallons of bottled water from Ginnie Springs
Over a million gallons of water per day.
According to the U.S. Geological Survey, if you built a million-gallon pool, it would be almost as long as a football field — 50 feet wide and 10 feet deep.
A company in High Springs is asking for a permit to pump one million gallons of water per day from Ginnie Springs, Florida in Gilchrist County.
The company would sell the water they gather to Nestlé .
“Any sort of new proposal to withdraw water from the aquifer directly … that’s just a net withdrawal from our entire system that we’re not going to see come back,” Shannon Blankinship said.
Blankinship is the advocacy director for the St. Johns Riverkeeper.
She says what happens in the aquifer can directly impact the river.
It’s concerning to her that Nestlé wants to bottle Ginnie Springs water.
Nestlé adds that they employ a team of natural resource managers, including trained geologists, hydrogeologists and engineers whose focus is to help ensure the sustainability of water sources.
Nestlé states that spring water is a renewable resource when managed correctly and that they have teams in place to regularly monitor the springs.
Environmentalists like Blankinship are skeptical of how long the springs could last.
“Water’s here, it’s always moving, but the ability to recharge, to infiltrate and continue here in the state of Florida, that’s lost when the water bottle goes somewhere else,” Blankinship said.
Is there a way for the public to protest this? Please advise.
Yes – express your option on the Suwannee River Water Management District Portal. Refer to our Action Alert at https://oursantaferiver.org/42912-2/
Also, keep on eye on the OSFR newsfeed.
The definition of priceless. Worth a lot, not for sale!
As sea level rises, salt water intrusion into the aquifers will increase. If our politicians allow large withdrawals such as this, they will accelerate the trend. This is or should be an easy “No.”
I’m sure they have some impressive people working to protect their water source but they will still be on Nestles payroll so I dont trust them to have our communities interest. Profit is the name of the game. We cant afford for them to pump our water dry. I dont know how deep their well is but I know mine will be dry before their’s. Our spring and rivers are priceless.