Most water advocates and independent scientists agree that water transfers are generally not a good idea, and almost always have negative consequences somewhere. We have posted multiple times about the Black Creek project.
The obvious cause here is over-pumping the aquifer and the obvious solution is to stop. This solution will not be considered by the St Johns River Water Management District.
Read the original article with photos here in the Gainesville Sun.
Comments by OSFR historian Jim Tatum.
jim.tatum@oursantaferiver.org
– A river is like a life: once taken,
it cannot be brought back © Jim Tatum
Promote water conservation before building pricey pipelines
Oct. 29, 2021
In June, the Suwannee River Water Management District proposed building such a pipeline at a price tag of up to $457 million for construction and up to $4.4 million annually for operation and maintenance. The pipeline would bring water from the Suwannee River to recharge the groundwater that flows through Ichetucknee Springs and eventually into the Santa Fe River.
The idea attracted widespread criticism, including from the Gainesville Sun Editorial Board. We scoffed at the notion that taxpayers should foot the bill for restoring the depleted flows of springs, calling on regulators to instead start rejecting groundwater withdrawal permits for farmers and other big users such as a water-bottling plant near High Springs.
The $43.3 million pipeline will funnel water from Black Creek into Alligator Creek, with the water intended to move from there to Lake Brooklyn in Keystone Heights and then through a sinkhole into the aquifer. The goal is of
fsetting some of the groundwater pumping by municipalities such as the city of Jacksonville, which pumps 100 million gallons a day on average.
Jacksonville has long been criticized for the effect of that pumping on springs as far away as the Suwannee River Valley. But the City Commission’s contribution to the pipeline project acknowledges Gainesville’s role in contributing to the problem. Gainesville Regional Utilities pumps between 22 and 23 million gallons a day to serve about 200,000 people in the Gainesville area.
Landscape irrigation is estimated to account for 60% of residential water use, much of it used to irrigate lawns and non-native plants that require more water that nature provides. Government limits on lawn watering and fertilizer use are helpful in reducing excessive water use and pollution, but additional steps should be taken.
Alachua County has provided incentives in recent years for residents to swap out their irrigated turf grass with water-conserving “Florida Friendly Landscaping.” Rebates for half the cost of these projects, up to $2,000, have been provided through $150,000 in funding from the Suwannee River Water Management District.
The Gainesville City Commission would better protect the springs and aquifer by developing new ways to promote water conservation, instead of wasting taxpayer dollars on questionable pipeline projects.
