Tag Archives: Ichetucknee Headspring

Treated wastewater must benefit both an Outstanding Florida Spring and A Rural Area of Opportunity 2026-04-17

1 Reply

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]
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: Continue reading →

SRWMD has no comment on WFNF alleged cancellation 2026-05-15

If it was really cancelled, you’d think SRWMD, SJRWMD, and JEA would say so, and announce they have cancelled any outstanding contracts, such as the one SJRWMD let on November 12, 2025, for $2.17 million for a consultant to study WFNF for three years.

Instead, we’ve heard nothing from JEA or SJRWMD, and the Executive Director of the Suwannee River Water Management District (SRWMD) has no comment.

For much more about WFNF, including which Suwannee District counties oppose it (all 12 of them) and which have passed their own letters or resolutions of opposition (7 of them), as well as who you can contact, see:

https://wwals.net/issues/wfnf

[SRWMD has no comment on WFNF alleged cancellation; Nothing from JEA or SJRWMD or FDEP 2026-05-19]
SRWMD has no comment on WFNF alleged cancellation; Nothing from JEA or SJRWMD or FDEP 2026-05-19

Stew Lilker, Columbia County Observer, May 15, 2026, Water First North Florida: The $1.1 Billion Project That No One Likes, Except Insiders, Is on the Ropes
Where is it now and how did it get there?

Continue reading →

More about WFNF funding in how it got ratified by sleight of bill 2026-02-25

Update 2026-05-19: SRWMD has no comment on WFNF alleged cancellation 2026-05-15.

Vigilance, please!

Yesterday, Tuesday, May 12, 2026, we heard from Florida State Senator Corey Simon that “the Water First North Florida project is being canceled in its current form.”

That’s good news, as far as it goes. And it wouldn’t have happened without all of you who have opposed it.

But it ain’t over ’til the fat lady sings, and the SRWMD Governing Board said nothing about this that same morning. I was there and spoke against WFNF along with about half a dozen other people.

Nor have any of SRWMD, SJRWMD, or JEA said anything since that I’ve seen. And what happened yesterday did nothing to repeal huge financial support for WFNF by JEA and SJRWMD.

So please don’t stop now. Keep on speaking to cities, counties, the state, members of Congress, and the unelected boards that are pushing WFNF: SRWMD, SJRWMD, JEA, plus the Jacksonville City Council.

For much more about WFNF, see:

https://wwals.net/issues/wfnf

[More about WFNF funding in how it got ratified by sleight of bill, SB 7034 into HB 1417]
More about WFNF funding in how it got ratified by sleight of bill, SB 7034 into HB 1417

We also heard yesterday from Florida State Representative Chuck Brannan that: Continue reading →

WFNF Canceled? 2026-05-12

Update 2026-05-13: More about WFNF funding in how it got ratified by sleight of bill 2026-02-25.

Florida State Senator Corey Simon posted this letter on his facebook page about 1 PM today, Tuesday, May 12, 2026. The Madison County Florida Board of County Commissioners also posted it.

[WFNF is being canceled 2026-05-12, FL State Senator Corey Simon; What does this mean: in its current form?]
WFNF is being canceled 2026-05-12, FL State Senator Corey Simon; What does this mean: in its current form?

Well, I hope that formerly “done deal” is undone.

A catch: a single state Senator does not have the power to undo it.

Another catch: nothing was said about this at the SRWMD Governing Board meeting this morning.

And a third: “the Water First North Florida project is being canceled in its current form.”

Does that mean some parts of it are canceled? Which parts? For example, is SJRWMD cancelling its three-year consultant contract involving wetland siting and pipeline routing?

So, cautious optimism.

And many thanks to Senator Corey Simon, who has long made it clear he opposes WFNF, for example at the SRWMD and SJRWMD dog and pony show at UF IFAS on March 19.

But I will be making some inquiries with SRWMD, SJRWMD, JEA, and Sen. Simon’s offfice.

SENATOR COREY SIMON
3rd District

May 12, 2026

Subject: Update on the Water First North Florida Project

Dear Neighbor,

I want to provide you with an important update regarding the Water First North Florida Project.

After careful review and continued conversations with local leaders, water experts, property owners, and concerned citizens across North Florida, the Water First North Florida project is being canceled in its current form. While the need to address low water levels in our aquifer remains very real, it has become clear that this proposal is not the right path forward for our communities at this time.

Protecting North Florida’s water supply is one of the most important Continue reading →

WWALS River Revue with Suwannee Riverkeeper Songwriting Contest 2026-09-12

Join us at the 4-H Club in Lake Park, Georgia, for the WWALS River Revue sit-down dinner with speakers from Georgia and Florida, music from Finalists in the Suwannee Riverkeeper Songwriting Contest, and Headliner Joe First, last year’s winner. Plus a silent auction, online and in person.

If you like what we’re doing, with water quality testing and water trails and river and lake outings and hikes and cleanups and chainsaw cleanups, come on down and support WWALS and have some fun! We support rights to clean water and solar power in appropriate places, and we oppose unnecessary mines and datacenters, detention centers, and Jacksonville treated wastewater into the Suwannee Basin (Water First North Florida or WFNF).

[WWALS River Revue, Suwannee Riverkeeper Songwriting Contest, 4-H Club, Lake Park, GA, 5-9 PM, Saturday, September 12, 2026]
WWALS River Revue, Suwannee Riverkeeper Songwriting Contest, 4-H Club, Lake Park, GA, 5-9 PM, Saturday, September 12, 2026

Tickets: $65 each:

https://app.betterunite.com/wwals-wwalsriverrevue2026

MC Tim Carroll, a former trumpet player and Valdosta City Council District 5, will introduce the speakers, the Headliner, and the Judges, Anna Stange (Madison, FL), Tony Buzzella (Lake City, FL), and Norm McDonald (Live Oak, FL).

Songwriters, don’t wait until August 12 to send in your song! It can be about any river, creek, spring, sink, swamp, or pond in the 10,000-square-mile Suwannee River Basin or Estuary, or underground water such as the Floridan Aquifer. Continue reading →

Two moratoriums: detention centers and WFNF –Hailey Hall to Alachua BOCC 2026-05-05

The Alachua County BOCC meets this morning, May 5, 2026, at 10 AM, County Administration Building – Grace Knight Conference Room 12 SE 1 Street, 2nd Floor, Gainesville, FL 32601.

There is nothing on their agenda about either of the moratoria that Hailey Hall requested on April 28, 2026, after their last meeting:

[Two moratoriums: detention centers and WFNF --Hailey Hall to Alachua BOCC, 2026-04-28]
Two moratoriums: detention centers and WFNF –Hailey Hall to Alachua BOCC, 2026-04-28

Hello Commissioners,

Thank you for your efforts and for allowing everyone to speak today at the meeting.

I am requesting that you enact two separate moratoriums.

  1. A moratorium prohibiting construction of new, non-municipal detention centers as Kansas City has done.
  2. A moratorium against further development and construction of the Water First North Florida pipeline project.

Please see the attached ordinance from Kansas City and resolution from Town of Branford.

Thank you and take care,

Hailey Hall

You’ve already seen the Branford resolution.

https://wwals.net/?p=69710

Here is the Kansas City ordinance: Continue reading →

The promoters bear the burden of proof –WWALS to Alachua BOCC 2026-04-20

There is nothing about Water First North Florida (WFNF) on the Alachua County BOCC agenda for this morning, May 5, 2026, at 10 AM, County Administration Building – Grace Knight Conference Room 12 SE 1 Street, 2nd Floor, Gainesville, FL 32601.

But there is Public Comment near the end. And you can watch on facebook, YouTube, or Alachua County’s Video on Demand.

For much more about WFNF, see:

https://wwals.net/issues/wfnf

Here is what I sent the Alachua BOCC on April 20, 2026. Continue reading →

Agenda: No WFNF but watch Outreach and Water Resources @ SRWMD 2026-05-12

There’s nothing about Water First North Florida (WFNF), the plan to pipe treated wastewater from Jacksonville into the Suwannee River Basin, on the agenda for the Suwannee River Water Management District (SRWMD) Governing Board next week.

But watch “28. Water Resources Division Updates”; that’s where I first heard about WFNF back in July 2025.

And maybe we’ll hear how poorly their attempts to sell WFNF are going in “20. Outreach and Communications Activity Summary”.

Also, “7. A. Hydrologic Conditions Report” is always interesting. That one will appear on the SRWMD website later.

[Agenda: No WFNF, but watch Outreach and Water Resources, Plus Hydrologic Conditions @ SRWMD 2026-05-12]
Agenda: No WFNF, but watch Outreach and Water Resources, Plus Hydrologic Conditions @ SRWMD 2026-05-12

Get there on time at 9 AM, Tuesday, May 12, 2026, for “4. Public Comment”. That’s at SRWMD HQ, 9225 CR 49, Live Oak, FL 32060.

Livestreamed on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@SRWMD

For more about WFNF, including other upcoming meetings, who you can contact, and a petition, see:

https://wwals.net/issues/wfnf Continue reading →

WFNF resolution on the agenda, Lafayette County, FL, BOCC 2026-04-28

Water First North Florida (WFNF) is on the agenda for Lafayette County, Florida, BOCC:

  1. Consider adopting Resolution No. 2026-04-06, concerning the Water First North Florida Aquifer Recharge Project.

That’s at 5:30 PM, Tuesday, April 28, 2026, in the County Commissioners Meeting Room, second floor, Lafayette County Courthouse, 120 West Main Street, Room #206, Mayo, Florida.

[WFNF resolution on the agenda, Lafayette County BOCC, 5:30 PM, Tuesday, April 28, 2026]
WFNF resolution on the agenda, Lafayette County BOCC, 5:30 PM, Tuesday, April 28, 2026

We don’t know what the resolution says, since, as near as I can tell, Lafayette County BOCC only posts its agendas, not its board packets.

For what other elected bodies have passed, as well as who you can contact, and a petition, see:

https://wwals.net/issues/wfnf Continue reading →

Refilling the aquifer with wastewater is a problem –Tana Silva 2026-04-19

Like Tana Silva, you can write a letter to the editor of your local, state, or national newspaper, or ask your local radio or TV station to interview you, or post on social media.

Better yet, call or write your elected and appointed officials, and sign the petition:

https://wwals.net/issues/wfnf

Tana Silva, Alachua Chronicle, April 19, 2026, Letter: Refilling the aquifer with wastewater is a problem, not a solution
https://alachuachronicle.com/letter-refilling-the-aquifer-with-wastewater-is-a-problem-not-a-solution/

April 19, 2026

Letter to the editor

[Refilling the aquifer with wastewater is a problem (WFNF) --Tana Silva 2026-04-19]
Refilling the aquifer with wastewater is a problem (WFNF) –Tana Silva 2026-04-19

Until the 1970s, Jacksonville pumped sewage straight into the St. Johns River and allowed dumping industrial waste there as well. The mayor elected in 1967, local advocates, and the Clean Water Act of 1972 helped to at least send wastewater to treatment plants before releasing it to the river. That practice, too, is restricted by state law now, but raising springwater levels through recharging projects is another goal in state law that opens a path to reusing wastewater, a risky and irreversible choice.

Jacksonville, the largest city, water consumer, and wastewater producer in northern Florida, is again looking to offload its wastewater, this time far to the west, in rural springs country.

Local residents and governments and the 12-county regional planning council that includes Alachua County say no: Continue reading →