Tag Archives: SJRWMD

WFNF on Jacksonville TV 2026-04-22

This is probably the first most people in the Jacksonville area have heard of Water First North Florida (WFNF).

It’s great that the SRWMD and SJRWMD Executive Directors consider clean water a personal issue. They’re still pushing an overly complex, expensive, and risky 60+-mile pipeline for treated wastewater from Jacksonville into the Suwannee Basin.

There are less expensive, fast-to-build, less risky, and more scalable solutions.

https://wwals.net/?p=70046

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

https://wwals.net/issues/wfnf

[WFNF on Jacksonville TV, Andrea Snody, News4JAX 2026-04-22, Suwannee Riverkeeper John S. Quarterman, Hugh Thomas, SRWMD, Mike Register, SJRWMD]
WFNF on Jacksonville TV, Andrea Snody, News4JAX 2026-04-22, Suwannee Riverkeeper John S. Quarterman, Hugh Thomas, SRWMD, Mike Register, SJRWMD

Andrea Snody, News4JAX, April 22, 2026, Jacksonville wastewater plan could reshape North Florida water supply, Continue reading →

NCFRPC asks Gilchrist County to pass a resolution against WFNF 2026-04-20

This Monday the Gilchrist County BOCC will consider a resolution against Water First North Florida (WFNF), the plan to pipe treated Jacksonville wastewater into the Suwannee Basin, by JEA, SJRWMD, and SRWMD.

That’s 3:01 PM, Monday, April 20, 2026, Board of County Commissioners Meeting Facility, 210 South Main Street, Trenton, FL 32693.

There is Public Comment towards the beginning and the end of the meeting.

NCFRPC, after passing a resolution against WFNF back in March, is now asking counties to do the same.

[NCFRPC asks Gilchrist County to pass a resolution against WFNF, 3:01 PM, April 20, 2026, 210 S Main Street, Trenton, FL 32693]
NCFRPC asks Gilchrist County to pass a resolution against WFNF, 3:01 PM, April 20, 2026, 210 S Main Street, Trenton, FL 32693

On the Gilchrist agenda for Monday:

Attorney Report

  1. Miscellaneous
    1. Email and Resolution from North Central Florida Regional Planning Council
      Attachments:
      • NCFRPC Email in Opposition to the Water First North Florida Aquifer Project (NCFRPC_Email_in_Opposition_to_the_Water_First_North_Florida_Aquifer_Project.pdf)
      • NCFRPC Resolution in Opposition to the Water First North Florida Aquifer Project (NCFRPC_Resolution_in_Opposition_to_the_Water_First_North_Florida_Aquifer_Project.pdf)

For all the other local and regional letters and resolutions against WFNF, as well as who you can contact and a petition, see:

https://wwals.net/issues/wfnf

Here’s what NCFRPC is asking: Continue reading →

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

Wastewater professional Joe Squitieri pointed out that 2032 may not be the real deadline for wastewater outflows to stop going into rivers according to FL SB 64.

Extensions could be granted until 2039, or maybe even 2044. So JEA could keep outflowing into the St. Johns River after 2032.

[FL statutes give JEA until 2032 or 2039 or later to divert its wastewater --Joe Squitieri @ SCRP 2026-04-02]
FL statutes give JEA until 2032 or 2039 or later to divert its wastewater –Joe Squitieri @ SCRP 2026-04-02

Here’s the video:

https://www.facebook.com/reel/1329841519196016/

https://youtu.be/qsp91kAdL5E

He also reminded us that the JEA Buckman wastewater plant is under a Florida Consent Order for exceeding a range of contaminant limits.

Plus, even when that plant is in compliance, it produces quite a bit of nitrates and other contaminants. It failed a test that involves putting fish in the outflow: none of them survived, he said. Then there are PFAS forever chemicals and pharmaceuticals.

“They really don’t know what they’re doing,” he said.

He recommended if they can clean it up enough, they should turn their wastewater into potable reuse.

For much more about Water First North Florida (WFNF), including all the local and regional elected letters and resolutions against, who you can contact, and a petition, see:

https://wwals.net/issues/wfnf

For the other speakers at that meeting, see Continue reading →

The promoters bear the burden of proof about WFNF –WWALS to SRWMD 2026-04-13

This is the letter I sent SRWMD and gave them on paper this morning.

You can see it in SRWMD’s own video on YouTube. Public Comments start at 20:28.

https://www.youtube.com/live/OwKstHuSHNg?si=nF1yXXiXayn91J7p&t=1228

My bit starts at 38:20.

https://www.youtube.com/live/OwKstHuSHNg?si=yJ_hyAkBR3r_JPR6&t=2300

[The promoters bear the burden of proof about WFNF --WWALS to SRWMD 2026-04-13]
The promoters bear the burden of proof about WFNF –WWALS to SRWMD 2026-04-13

Three other people spoke against WFNF in Public Comments, and there was more comment by the board members at the end, as well as some allusions during the Public Hearing about the Modified Phase II Water Shortage Order. You can see and hear those for yourself in the SRWMD video. I may blog some more of that later.

For much more about WFNF, including the letters and resolutions against it by towns, counties, and regional entities, as well as who you can contact and a petition, see:

https://wwals.net/issues/wfnf

Below is the text of the WWALS letter to SRWMD for their 9 AM meeting this morning.

I also sent a similar letter to SJRWMD for their 10AM meeting this morning.

Images of both letters are below.

Maybe some day they will stagger their board meetings so it is possible to attend both, as Merrillee Malwitz-Jipson asked them 9 years ago. Continue reading →

Stagger SRWMD and SJRWMD Board meetings –Merrillee Malwitz-Jipson 2027-01-17

Update 2026-04-14: The promoters bear the burden of proof about WFNF –WWALS to SRWMD 2026-04-13.

Nine years after Merrillee Malwitz-Jipson asked them to stagger their meetings, SRWMD and SJRWMD are still meeting the same day, three hours drive apart.

So tomorrow if you want to talk about Water First North Florida (WFNF), you much choose: SRWMD in Live Oak or SJRWMD in Palatka.

[Stagger SRWMD and SJRWMD Board meetings, 2017-01-17 --Merrillee Malwitz-Jipson @ joint meeting about NFRWSP]
Stagger SRWMD and SJRWMD Board meetings, 2017-01-17 –Merrillee Malwitz-Jipson @ joint meeting about NFRWSP

For much more about WFNF, including who else to contact, some questions to ask, and a petition, see:

https://wwals.net/issues/wfnf

Here’s the WWALS video of Merrillee from January 17, 2017:

https://youtu.be/lCnR0Rw0BF8?si=V7Zpwc53S3__6CS6 Continue reading →

Packet: Governing Board –SJRWMD 2026-04-14

Update 2026-04-14: The promoters bear the burden of proof about WFNF –WWALS to SRWMD 2026-04-13.

Update 2026-04-13: Stagger SRWMD and SJRWMD Board meetings –Merrillee Malwitz-Jipson 2027-01-17.

You can talk about WFNF in Public Comment at the SJRWMD Board meeting tomorrow.

The agenda packet for Tuesday’s 10 AM SJRWMD Governing Board meeting is considerably lighter than the agenda the same day for SRWMD. There is nothing about Water First North Florida (WFNF) and no change to the previous Modified Phase II Water Shortage Order from the St. Johns River Water Management District (SJRWMD).

You can’t go to both, unless you have a time machine, because SRWMD meets at 9 AM and SJRWMD at 10 AM and it’s a three-hour drive from Live Oak to Palatka.

But maybe you have friends or family who can go to the SJRWMD meeting and ask questions.

For some such questions and much more about WFNF, including a petition, see:

https://wwals.net/issues/wfnf

[Packet: Governing Board --SJRWMD 2026-04-14, Palatka, FL, with Public Comment]
Packet: Governing Board –SJRWMD 2026-04-14, Palatka, FL, with Public Comment

Or you could write the the SJRWMD Board or Executive Director; see their web page. Continue reading →

What you can do about WFNF, slides –Suwannee Riverkeeper 2026-04-02

Here’s the WWALS video of me speaking and my slides. Basically, there are much better ways to rehydrate wetlands, springs, and rivers in the Suwannee Basin, such as Jacksonville can desalinate seawater. And there are other places JEA can send its treated wastewater in the St. Johns Basin.

[What you can do about WFNF --Suwannee Riverkeeper 2026-04-02, You can help with better solutions]
What you can do about WFNF –Suwannee Riverkeeper 2026-04-02, You can help with better solutions

To stop this project, we need a groundswell of public opposition such as stopped golf courses in state parks. You can help.

For who you can contect, and a petition you can sign, plus more information about WFNF, including all the city, county, and regional letters and resolutions against, see:

https://wwals.net/issues/wfnf

For the rest of the speakers, see Continue reading →

WFNF approved as part of NFRWSP –SRWMD 2025-11-12

Here is what the SRWMD Board approved on November 12, 2025, regarding Water First North Florida (WFNF).

Please note three things.

  1. Although I’ve heard some people say the SRWMD Board only approved studies of the feasibilty of the plan, not WFNF itself, nothing in the agenda or the memorandum says that. Nothing in the minutes, either.
  2. These SRWMD materials are similar to those for the SJRWMD Board meeting of the same day, but they do not include an Order approving any of this, they say nothing about hiring a consultant, and they do not include the related RFQ (Request for Qualifications) for the consultant.
  3. Neither WFNF nor its long name appears in the SRWMD agenda item nor the staff memorandum on what the board was to approve. In the agenda, this item is:
    “WR Page 1 26. 2025 Implementation Strategy for the Lower Santa Fe and Ichetucknee Rivers and Priority Springs”

    Water First North Florida first appears in the Table of Contents of the “2025 Implementation Strategy for the Lower Santa Fe and Ichetucknee Rivers and Priority Springs” for its page 12.

[WFNF approved as part of NFRWSP by SRWMD, November 12, 2025]
WFNF approved as part of NFRWSP by SRWMD, November 12, 2025

On page 69 of the SRWMD board packet for November 12, 2026:

SUWANNEE RIVER WATER MANAGEMENT DISTRICT
MEMORANDUM

TO: Governing Board

FROM: Amy Brown, Deputy Executive Director, Water Resources

THRU: Hugh Thomas, Executive Director

DATE: October 30, 2025

RE: 2025 Implementation Strategy for the Lower Santa Fe and Ichetucknee Rivers and Priority Springs

RECOMMENDATION
District staff recommend the following Lower Santa Fe and Ichetucknee Rivers related actions:

  1. Approve the 2025 Implementation Strategy for the Lower Santa Fe and Ichetucknee Rivers and Priority Springs (LSFIR) Minimum Flows and Levels (MFLs) (hereafter the 2025 Implementation Strategy); and
  2. Approve an Addendum to the 2014 Recovery Strategy for the Lower Santa Fe and Ichetucknee Rivers and Priority Springs Minimum Flows and Levels (hereafter the 2014 Recovery Strategy) to include the water supply development, water resource development, and water conservation projects identified in the 2025 Implementation Strategy; and
  3. Approve an Addendum to the 2023 North Florida Regional Water Supply Plan (hereafter the First Addendum to the 2023 NFRWSP), to include the water supply development, water resource development, and water conservation projects identified in the 2025 Implementation Strategy.

BACKGROUND Continue reading →

Replace WFNF with desalination and rehydration of SJRWMD wetlands –Ken Sulak 2026-04-02

Ken Sulak sent this food for thought about Water First North Florida (WFNF). I’ve added a few links.

Synopsis of JEA twofold water problem & potential rational solutions to be considered in lieu of WFNF:

Maintext:

  1. Provide sufficient freshwater to meet 120-160 MGPD demands of urban area of 1.6 million population,
  2. solve the need to treat and discharge 40-50 MGPD of sewage wastewater as per beneficial use requirements of 2021 Senate Bill 64.

Subtext:

  1. Do something wise and cost effective in the context of volume and flow restoration to offset the current JEA ~120 MGPD withdrawal of Floridian Aquifer groundwater from the Suwannee River basin. Note that 40 MGPD return does little to truly offset the ~120 MGPD current withdrawal rate. Also, after evaporative and transpiration losses in the created marshes, the real volume that would be returned to the subterranean aquifer would be more like 35 MGPD.
  2. Simultaneously do something equally wise and appropriate and compliant with SB 64 – using JEA Buckman plant treated effluent for created marsh depuration and discharge locally within the St. Johns WMD, which has its own longstanding serious aquatic recharge needs due to JEA withdrawals lowering the water table within district.

    [Replace WFNF with desalination and rehydration of SJRWMD wetlands --Ken Sulak 2026-04-02]
    Replace WFNF with desalination and rehydration of SJRWMD wetlands –Ken Sulak 2026-04-02

A logical cost-effective solution to 1A: construct a 150-200 MGPD desalination plant on the lower St. Johns River—at cost of comparative modern reverse osmosis plants elsewhere in the world ~$1.0-1.5 billion (close to the probably underestimated construction cost of the WFMF 90 mile pipeline). Pipeline operation and Continue reading →

NAQA’A Desalination Plant in Umm Al Quwain, U.A.E. 2019-07-09

Update 2026-03-26: Added more examples and a table.

WFNF is five times more expensive per million gallons per day than a modern Middle East seawater desalination plant. And twice as expensive as more expensive than an Australian one. Plus taking more than twice as long to build.

WFNF does nothing to reduce Jacksonville’s groundwater withdrawals. Seawater desalination could eliminate them.

And brine disposal is not just a problem: it’s an opportunity to extract minerals for profit.

For much more about WFNF, see:

https://wwals.net/issues/wfnf

Five years ago in Arab News, July 9, 2019, UAE to build $900m desalination plant with Saudi Arabia’s ACWA Power,

“Plant in Umm Al-Quwain will produce 150 million gallons of water per day”

[NAQA’A Desalination Plant, Umm Al Quwain, U.A.E., 150 mgd potable water, $0.82 billion U.S.D.]
NAQA’A Desalination Plant, Umm Al Quwain, U.A.E., 150 mgd potable water, $0.82 billion U.S.D.

Now, in 2026, It’s operational: NAQA’A Desalination Plant in Umm Al Quwain. Continue reading →