Defend Wakulla Springs

UPDATE Aug 8 2023: Over 2,000 of you sent in emails, and 400 people showed up to the meeting.

"The largest turnout for a Wakulla County Commission meeting anyone can remember coupled with excessive heat produced a stunning victory Monday night for a coalition of spring defenders.

They were able to delay and possibly derail plans by the Southwest Georgia Oil Company to construct a mega-gas station four miles from the famed Wakulla Springs.

The announcement that the commission was pushing the pause button on an amendment to the comprehensive plan and a request to change the zoning of ...

UPDATE Aug 8 2023: Over 2,000 of you sent in emails, and 400 people showed up to the meeting.

"The largest turnout for a Wakulla County Commission meeting anyone can remember coupled with excessive heat produced a stunning victory Monday night for a coalition of spring defenders.

They were able to delay and possibly derail plans by the Southwest Georgia Oil Company to construct a mega-gas station four miles from the famed Wakulla Springs.

The announcement that the commission was pushing the pause button on an amendment to the comprehensive plan and a request to change the zoning of a parcel came after less than 30 minutes of public testimony in opposition to the proposal. - James Call, "Sweltering standoff with Wakulla Commission over gas station leads to hope for springs" Tallahassee Democrat Aug 8 2023

ASK DEP NOT TO BACK USING WASTE WATER CLEANUP FUNDS TO SUBSIDIZE DEVELOPERS

In recent years, the state has made an impressive multimillion-dollar commitment to clean up our rivers, fisheries, and Wakulla Springs, largely by removing high-polluting septic tanks in key areas of Wakulla County.

But now, after spending millions of state dollars to remove septic tanks, Wakulla’s commissioners are set to allow more septic tanks into the same area. Taxpayers, not the developer, will be tasked witih the steep cost of dealing with the resulting pollution.

Use this form to send an email to DEP (copied to Wakulla's commissioners) to ask them not to support this proposal.

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Earlier this month, the Wakulla commissioners amended their planning rules to allow a new high-polluting subdivision. It would add 88 conventional septic tanks to the bullseye of the County’s most vulnerable groundwater zone. The development would undo about $2.6 million worth of cleanup efforts and add more than 2,000 pounds of excess nitrogen to the water annually. That’s the same as injecting 105 tons of manure into the groundwater every year, not far from Wakulla Springs.

Most Wakulla County Commissioners are supporting the plan to place 88 conventional septic tanks in the bullseye of Wakulla’s “most vulnerable” groundwater zone. Not only will this erase $2.6 million worth of cleanup efforts, but taxpayers will eventually have to spend millions more to restore the water to its current condition.

The proposed subdivision should be connected to sewer, not septic tanks. We can make this happen, but the commissioners MUST HEAR FROM US. So please take a moment to send this email and urge someone else to do the same.

Development location: Northwest of the intersection at 98 and Spring Creek Highway, bordering land that was recently found unsuitable for the County’s wastewater dumping site.
Cost calculation: The average cost per connection in the ongoing septic-to-sewer project at Wakulla Gardens is about $29,332.48, according to Wakulla County’s engineering firm. We used this number for the expected cost to remove each of the 88 septic tanks at the proposed subdivision. That comes to $2,581,258.24, rounded to $2.6 million.

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Email Wakulla County Commissioners

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Subject:

Dear Commissioner,

Wakulla County is blessed with one of Florida’s great environmental treasures. Although Wakulla Springs belongs to the people of Florida, it is up to you to protect it for current residents and future generations. Unfortunately, Wakulla Springs is already impaired by excessive nutrients from septic tanks, urban fertilizer, and wastewater treatment effluent.

The Wakulla Springs Basin Management Action Plan identifies “Priority Focus Areas” where Wakulla Springs is most vulnerable to pollution. Any proposal for new pollution loading inside the Priority Focus Areas, like the proposed wastewater disposal site, must be carefully studied and alternatives fully considered.

Thus far, the County has not undertaken the necessary due diligence to determine the impact of the proposed wastewater disposal site on Wakulla Springs or the viability of alternative disposal sites like the Wildwood Golf Course. It would be financially and environmentally irresponsible to move forward without a scientific analysis comparing the costs and benefits of each site.

We can’t afford to get this decision wrong. Please postpone funding the design and permitting for the proposed effluent disposal site until an impartial scientific analysis of the costs and benefits of both properties is completed and presented to the residents of Wakulla County.

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