It turns out there’s a reason JEA might want to send its reclaimed wastewater into the Suwannee Basin in Water First North Florida (WFNF), according to the Florida Statutes resulting from SB 64.

All of the Suwannee Basin counties are Rural Areas of Opportunity (RAO), except Alachua County.

None of the SJRWMD counties are RAO, except Nassau in the St. Marys River Basin, and Putnam County. Not Duval, Clay, St. Johns, Flagler, Volusia, etc., or Alachua again.

And Nassau and Putnam Counties do not seem to have any Outstanding Florida Springs.

Why does this matter?

Treated wastewater must benefit both: Outstanding Florida Spring and Rural Area of Opportunity by Florida Statutes

In Florida Statutes 403.064 Reuse of reclaimed water:

(16)(f) A domestic wastewater treatment facility with an approved plan may submit a request to the department to amend the plan to incorporate a reclaimed water project identified in an Outstanding Florida Springs recovery or prevention strategy adopted pursuant to s. 373.805. The department must approve the request within 60 days after receipt of the request if all of the following conditions are met:

1. The identified use of reclaimed water will benefit a rural area of opportunity as defined in s. 288.0656(2).
2. The project will provide at least 35 million gallons per day of reclaimed water to benefit an Outstanding Florida Spring.
3. The project involves more than one domestic wastewater treatment facility.
4. The project implementation and surface water discharge elimination schedule meets the requirements of s. 373.805 and has an implementation date of no later than January 1, 2039.

We see several things related to Water First North Florida (WFNF) in there.

1. What is a rural area of opportunity?
2. 40 mgd is more than the minimum 35 mgd.
3. The source for the treated wastewater for WFNF would include other wastewater plants, not just JEA Buckman.
4. Florida Statutes 373.805 is “Minimum flows and minimum water levels for Outstanding Florida Springs,” so the reclaimed water can’t go to just any old wetland.

Map: Rural Areas of Opportunity (RAO), 2026-01-01 –Florida Commerce
PDF

In 288.0656 Rural Economic Development Initiative (1):

(d) “Rural area of opportunity” means a rural community, or a region composed of rural communities, designated by the Governor, which has been adversely affected by an extraordinary economic event, severe or chronic distress, or a natural disaster or that presents a unique economic development opportunity of regional impact.

(e) “Rural community” means:

1. A county with a population of 75,000 or fewer.
2. A county with a population of 125,000 or fewer which is contiguous to a county with a population of 75,000 or fewer.
3. A municipality within a county described in subparagraph 1. or subparagraph 2.
4. An unincorporated federal enterprise community or an incorporated rural city with a population of 25,000 or fewer and an employment base focused on traditional agricultural or resource-based industries, located in a county not defined as rural, which has at least three or more of the economic distress factors identified in paragraph (c) and verified by the department.

So if I’m reading this correctly, for reclaimed wastewater to go to increase levels and flows, it has to both:

• go to affect the prevention or recovery strategy area of an Outstanding Florida Spring
• and it has to go into a RAO.

Are there any Outstanding Florida Springs (OFS) in Nassau or Putnam Counties?

Map: Springs Locator 2026-06-24 —FDEP

And are there any such OFS with prevention or restoration strategies?

Map: FY 25-26 Springs Restoration Grant Project Locations 2026-06-24 —FDEP

Doesn’t look like it, according to those two maps by the Florida Department of Environmental Protection (FDEP).

If not, and if recent political developments really do mean WFNF cannot export JAX wastewater into the Suwannee Basin, JEA may need to send some lobbyists to the legislature again to carve out another loophole.

WATER FIRST NORTH FLORIDA, 2026-07-08 –SRWMD Staff
PDF

I am not an attorney, so anybody who understands these statutes better, please correct any mistakes.

See also FL statutes give JEA until 2032 or 2039 or 2044 to divert its wastewater –Joe Squitieri @ SCRP 2026-04-02.

And for much more about WFNF, see:

https://wwals.net/issues/wfnf

 -jsq, John S. Quarterman, Suwannee RIVERKEEPER®

You can help with clean, swimmable, fishable, drinkable, water in the 10,000-square-mile Suwannee River Basin in Florida and Georgia by becoming a WWALS member today!
https://wwals.net/donations/

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