Watch this page for status reports of the BPK wastewater project.

4/22/08   Letter to theEditor

It really disturbs me that residents and public servants of the Keys will look for every excuse not to protect the environment that most of us here enjoy in one way or another. We use every excuse not to support sewering of the Keys as we continue to pollute and kill the waters that we so enjoy. The residents say it’s too expensive and government agencies responsible for waste water treatment in the Keys say some areas remain too difficult to hook-up. Sewers are not a new thing for most of America. The Florida Keys are not a third world country.

Yes septic tanks may work well to filter out solids, but what about nutrients that cause algae to thrive and deplete our canals and near shore waters of oxygen leaving these areas void of other marine life. What about pharmaceuticals that don’t get filtered out and wind up in our canals and near shore waters? And how about viruses and bacteria that remain in the effluent? Do we not think these things affect marine life and contribute to the degradation of our waters?  An EPA study stated that outfall from our septic tanks exists offshore, showing up in deeper water, through wells on the ocean floor. And what about water conservation? Each family flushes thousands of gallons of water away per year. Wouldn’t re-use water help us to conserve? Could that re-use water also be hooked up to a fire hydrant system to protect us from home and brush fires?

Don’t blame Tallahassee for mandating this. Blame ourselves for not paying attention as the deadline is fast approaching. Hold our officials accountable for this mess and don’t re-elect them if they haven’t been paying attention. The county received consideration for implementing a comprehensive plan. That consideration came in the form of building permits and funding from the state because the Keys are designated as an area of critical concern.

Residents of the Keys who do not get hooked up to wastewater treatment should demand equal treatment to those that are hooked up or going to be hooked up. Shouldn't our canals benefit as other areas with advanced treatment benefit? (Reduced algae will restore life to our canals, and the elimination of viruses, bacteria and pharmaceuticals should make swimming in near-shore waters safer.) Shouldn’t we have same hook-up cost as other county residents? Why should we experience a cost two to four times that of other areas by being required to individually purchase the best available technology for 2010? What about freeing up the portion of your property now dedicated for wastewater treatment so that you can use it for other purposes? Residents of this county should be treated equitably. Why shouldn’t the Keys, especially an I S (improved subdivision) have central sewage? Technology does exist.

The economy and the budget deficits will turn around a lot quicker than we can improve our near-shore water quality. Should we not take the steps necessary to protect this fragile ecosystem? Step up to the 21^st century, the ocean is not our dumping ground!

John Nazzaro

President,

Eden Pines Colony Property Owners Association

3/28/08

EDEN PINES WASTEWATER SYSTEM UPDATE   Four more weeks have expired since the last discussion on this page, with no evident progress to report in the Eden Pines wastewater dilemma, so I will simply speculate on where things appear to be headed.   Our elected officials have been visiting Tallahassee to press for grants and borrowing authority, with no reportable results.  The 1% additional sales tax “trial balloon” appears to be gaining traction, but has a long way to go.  Eden Pines is still not on the County radar screen with zero wastewater action to date.  Obtaining grants of any size is very unlikely.  Obtaining borrowing authority ( $400 million is a good guess of need) has some chance, but the Keys would have to pay it back from hook-up and monthly operation fees – a huge burden.  That leaves the sales tax as seemingly the only viable option.  All areas of the Keys would have to vote to tax themselves (even those who have systems already) – a big leap of faith.

Take Marathon for example.  Marathon is closing in on completion  at a final cost of $85 million, and expecting homeowners to pay $6,700 to hook-up and $1,000 yearly to operate – they “have their system” and might be expected to vote no on a sales tax.  The North Lower Keys Regional Wastewater Treatment System (NLKRWS), which is Big Pine, Ramrod, and Little Torch will cost approximately the same as Marathon (when it finally gets done years from now).  The difference is that Marathon (and other areas) has been given preference over NLKRWS including Eden Pines, and has received grants equaling half of the cost of their system -- Eden Pines has received no grants and it doesn’t look good to get any.   This may mean that, if the Marathon estimates are accurate, Eden Pines owners will be looking at $15 thousand to hook-up and $2 thousand each year to operate ( Ouch! ).

However, there is speculation that Eden Pines, being somewhat remote, won’t be part of a central system and will have to go it alone – this is the worst case scenario!

 Sorry about the absence of any good news.

                                                                          ********

Please use this petition to gather signatures for our County Government to take action.