The Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on General Government got an update Wednesday on the health, or lack thereof, of Florida’s iconic springs. Lawmakers want to know the problems as they overhaul state regulations.
Florida has more than 1,000 named springs and not all of them are doing well.
Some 400 are listed as impaired, says Florida Department of Environmental Protection division chief Tom Frick.
In most cases, that means they exceed the .035 milliliters per liter threshold for nitrogen, a chief pollution culprit.
“If you look at our chart, you’ll notice that Silver Springs is about four times that level and Blue Springs, which is over in Jackson County, is 10 times that level.”
Another critical measure for the health of springs is flow level. That problem falls in the lap of the state’s water management districts. The job could get easier as lawmakers decide how to spend $750 million in Amendment 1 money.
