 |
| Silver Springs - 2013 |
Jacksonville, FL – On Monday, June 2, 2014, St. Johns Riverkeeper
and Sierra Club Northeast Florida filed a petition for an administrative
hearing to challenge the permits sought by Sleepy Creek Lands (formerly Adena
Springs Ranch). The two organizations are collaborating with
concerned citizens, Karen Ahlers and Jeri Baldwin, who are also challenging the
permits.
The legal challenges are in response to the recent announcement
that the St. Johns River Water Management District (SJRWMD) staff has issued an
Environmental Resource Permit (ERP) and recommended approval of a Consumptive
Use Permit (CUP) for this massive cattle operation located in the watershed of
the Silver and Ocklawaha Rivers and the springshed of Silver and Salt Springs.
 |
| Silver River - 2012 |
The SJRWMD Governing Board would have decided upon the CUP permit
request at its next meeting on June 10, but the legal action taken by St.
Johns Riverkeeper, Sierra Club Florida, Ahlers, and Baldwin will postpone any
decision by the Board.
In the first of three phases of a 30,000 acre
beef operation that will ultimately withdraw 5.3 million gallons of water per
day (mgd), Sleepy Creek Lands is seeking a permit to withdraw 1.46 mgd from an already over-tapped aquifer.
According to the petition, the SJRWMD staff has failed to account
for the significant impacts to the flow of Silver Springs, Silver and Ocklawha
Rivers and Salt Springs and the increased nutrient loading that will result
from the manure of 9,500 head of cattle and the use of large quantities of
fertilizer and water. The petitioners also question the validity and accuracy
of the modeling upon which the challenged permits are based. As a result,
the SJRWMD has not provided reasonable assurances that water resources would not
be significantly affected.
Unfortunately, Silver Springs and the Silver River, which flows
through the Ocklawaha into the St. Johns River, are already under severe stress
with flows in significant decline and nitrate levels exceeding the State of
Florida’s pollution limits. In 2012, the State mandated a 79% reduction
from existing nitrate loading, in order to restore the health of these
waterways.
“Silver Springs and the Silver River are already in serious
decline,” said Lisa Rinaman, the St. Johns Riverkeeper. “How could we
possibly allow such an intensive project that will only make the existing
pollution and flow problems worse and restoration efforts more expensive and
difficult for us to achieve? It defies logic and is certainly not in the
public’s best interest.”
 |
| Silver Springs - 2012 |
Linda Bremer of Sierra Club Florida added, “It’s unfortunate that
we must resort to legal action to hold our state agencies accountable and
protect these iconic waterways. However, we are committed to making sure that
our aquifer is not further exploited, and more harmful pollution is not
permitted. Our springs and rivers belong to all the citizens of Florida
and are much too valuable to sacrifice for the fortunes of a few.”
“Impacts to the Ocklawaha River from groundwater contamination and
surface water runoff have been all but ignored,” said Karen Ahlers, a private
citizen and long-time advocate for Florida’s waters. “The ranch was
historically used to grow pine trees and provided significant habitat for
wildlife. It has now been denuded to make way for irrigated pasture to support
9,500 head of cattle. The pollution runoff from this site will be horrific.”
The legal petitions that
were filed are available upon request.
