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OUR SANTA FE RIVER, INC. FILES LEGAL CHALLENGE AGAINST SUWANNEE RIVER WATER MANAGEMENT DISTRICT

Our Santa Fe River, Inc. is a not-for-profit 501-(c)(3) organization incorporated in Florida on December 18, 2007. Our organization is composed of concerned citizens working to protect the waters and lands supporting the aquifer, springs and rivers within the watershed of the Santa Fe River by promoting public awareness pertaining to the ecology, quality, and quantity of the waters and lands immediately adjacent to and supporting the Santa Fe River, including its springs and underlying aquifer.

Our Santa Fe River, Inc. is a not-for-profit 501-(c)(3) organization incorporated in Florida on December 18, 2007. Our organization is composed of concerned citizens working to protect the waters and lands supporting the aquifer, springs and rivers within the watershed of the Santa Fe River by promoting public awareness pertaining to the ecology, quality, and quantity of the waters and lands immediately adjacent to and supporting the Santa Fe River, including its springs and underlying aquifer.

Our Santa Fe River, Inc.
Michael Roth, President
352-316-4705
Michael.roth@oursantaferiver.org

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

August 26, 2020

 

OUR SANTA FE RIVER, INC. FILES LEGAL CHALLENGE AGAINST SUWANNEE RIVER WATER MANAGEMENT DISTRICT

Fort White, Florida August 26, 2020

 

Our Santa Fe River, Inc. (OSFR,) along with President Michael Roth and board member Merrillee Malwitz-Jipson, filed with the Division of Administrative Hearings  as third party petitioners, to challenge the Suwannee River Water Management District (the District) on the Seven Springs Water Company  application to renew their water withdrawal permit from Ginnie Springs, on the Santa Fe River.

Though supportive of the District staff’s denial recommendation on administrative grounds, OSFR seeks a denial of the permit by the water district because they allege that Seven Springs does not meet, on several counts, the criteria required by Florida Statutes to obtain a Consumptive Use Permit.

“There are issues of damage to the resource and public interest that the staff failed to address” said Mike Roth, President of Our Santa Fe River. “We firmly believe for this permit and for future permits that they should be a part of the record.”

Seven Springs currently holds a permit to extract water which they sell to Nestle Waters North America for bottling at their plant located near Ginnie Springs. Even though the permit formally expired in June, 2019, pumping has been allowed to continue while the renewal application is considered.

At this time the Administrative Law Judge has not set a date for the hearing.

 

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2 Comments

  1. I, Tara Malzahn, as a concerned citizen, would like to demand Nestle and Seven Springs to Cease and Desist all operations for withdrawal of any water from the Santa Fe river for the duration of any current hearing from the time and date that the complaint is filed.

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