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TALLAHASSEE - The Florida Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) today
announced adoption of the Lower St. Johns River (LSJR) Tributaries Basin
Management Action Plan (BMAP). The action plan, developed in partnership with
City of Jacksonville, Duval County Health Department, Florida Department of
Transportation, and JEA (regional utility provider) identifies actions to
decrease fecal coliform bacteria in 10 water bodies within the LSJR Basin. These
water bodies are Newcastle Creek, Hogan Creek, Butcher Pen Creek, Miller Creek,
Miramar Creek, Big Fishweir Creek, Deer Creek, Terrapin Creek, Goodbys Creek,
and Open Creek.
Water quality restoration targets, called Total Maximum Daily Loads (TMDLs),
were adopted by DEP for the 10 water bodies. The TMDLs establish the amount of
reduction of fecal coliform bacteria that is needed to restore the beneficial
uses of these water bodies. The TMDLs require reductions in fecal coliform
bacteria ranging from 60 to 92 percent in order to meet water quality standards.
The BMAP lists the steps that must be taken to reduce bacteria, a schedule for
their implementation, and potential resources to accomplish the reductions.
“This effort demonstrates the commitment of local governments and
stakeholders to the restoration of water bodies in their part of the state,”
said DEP Secretary Michael W. Sole. “To the credit of local government, many
projects have been implemented in advance of finalizing the restoration plan.”
The LSJR Tributaries BMAP was developed under DEP’s comprehensive approach to
identify polluted waterways and build partnerships with local, regional, and
state interests to return the water bodies to a healthy condition. Through its
science-based program, DEP determined that these LSJR tributaries did not meet
Florida’s water quality standards and, therefore, established restoration
targets and worked in collaboration with local stakeholders to create the BMAP.
The local stakeholders identified more than 480 projects to achieve restoration
in these water bodies and have committed to monitoring to ensure restoration
occurs and to identify additional fecal coliform sources.
Jacksonville Mayor John Peyton cites the city’s new Stormwater Utility as a
key to restoration projects in addressing bacterial contamination. “The
stormwater utility fee funds many of the projects and all of the monitoring
activities that will, over time, improve the health of our tributaries and
consequently the St. Johns River. It is another component of the city’s
commitment to restore the health of our waterways under the River Accord, a
10-year multi-agency initiative that charts a path of continual improvement for
local agencies when it comes to water quality. We look forward to partnering
with DEP and other stakeholders on the next phase of the BMAP process, when an
additional 15 tributaries will be the focus,” said Mayor Peyton.
Examples of significant project commitments include:
- City of Jacksonville – Prioritization of septic tank phase-out in these 10
tributaries, inspections of private wastewater infrastructure, capital
improvement projects to reduce flooding issues, and identification and removal
of illicit connections to the stormwater system.
- Duval County Health
Department – Site-specific septic tank inspections in four tributaries that have
areas identified as high risk for failure, septic tank failure area ranking, and
permit reviews.
- Florida Department of Transportation – Maintenance of stormwater conveyances and identification and removal of illicit connections to
the stormwater system.
- JEA – Upgrades, inspections, and maintenance of sewer
infrastructure and implementation of proactive programs to prevent issues with
the wastewater collection system.
“This BMAP represents important commitments by the Jacksonville stakeholders
to address bacterial contamination. A comprehensive effort, it addresses all the
potential sources of bacterial contamination and recognizes the efforts of the
organizations who are managing those sources,” said DEP Deputy Secretary Mimi
Drew. “I commend these organizations for establishing a series of actions to
manage bacteria pollution; together we have established a plan to reduce
pollution in ten of the most at-risk tributaries in the basin.”
Proposed actions include improvements in stormwater management,
implementation of corrective actions for sewer system failures, removal of
failing septic tanks, field investigations to better identify and mitigate
pollutant sources, and ongoing public education programs. The stakeholders have
already implemented many of these actions and the remaining projects will be in
place within the next five years.
To view the BMAP, visit
ftp://ftp.dep.state.fl.us/pub/water/BMAP/LowerStJohns/Tribs_FC_BMAP_I/.
For more information about DEP’s water quality protection and restoration
programs, visit:
http://www.dep.state.fl.us/water/tmdl/index.htm. |
2012 State of Florida