Save Silver Springs!

[riverkeepered]

Unfortunately, many of Florida's springs are in serious decline.  Our springs have been significantly impacted by encroaching development, pollution, and excessive groundwater withdrawals.   

One of our most iconic springs, Silver Springs, has experienced dramatic decreases in flow (over 50% in the last 50 years) and increases in nitrate levels in recent years (176% increase). 

The health of Silver Springs could be further degraded by a proposed cattle operation that would be located within its springshed.  The Adena Springs Ranch wants a permit to withdraw over 13 million gallons of water a day (MGD) from the aquifer to irrigate pasture lands for 30,000 head of cattle and a slaughterhouse.

This is more water than the entire city of Ocala uses on a daily basis! 

We are already withdrawing water from the aquifer at a rate that is unsustainable.   JEA and all of us in Northeast Florida are contributing to this problem.   The health of Silver Springs is already in serious decline.  Silver Springs is an important source of clean, fresh water for the St. Johns River system.  It feeds the Silver River that flows into the Ocklawaha which is the largest tributary of the St. Johns River.

So, a new website (www.iLoveSprings.org) and facebook page (www.facebook.com/ilovesprings) have been created to raise awareness about this issue and the plight of our springs and groundwater resources. 

Help save Silver Springs!   

[dougskiles]

Thanks for posting about this.  I went to the links to post a comment on the SJRWMD website, which basically is that the applicant should be limited to the number of the cattle that the land can naturally support (with rainfall to keep the grass growing).  We can't keep giving away our natural resources like this and expect them to last much longer.

[WmNussbaum]

Quit building golf courses! Reduce the amount of water they are allowed to use. Close a few.

Nope, as a matter of fact I don't play. But I can't imagine anything - farming excepted - that uses more acquirer water than all those courses in Florida - the golfing capital of the world according to the license plates.

[Know Growth]

It is about time we focus on the the St.Johns headwater systems.

For the longest time,there  has existed general public awareness that the Everglades "System" is composed of elements extending North to Orlando; the Kissimmee River,along with general reference and awareness that the St Johns River is composed of elements extending South to Orlando.

There has been less awareness that the largest tributary system of the St Johns extends far south and to the West of Orlando.

In fact,during the earliest days of the Jacksonville Riverkeeper organization,in a spirit of consensus and outreach,there was agreement to not disagree over the Ocklawaha Rodman Reservoir,a vestige of the Cross Florida Barge Canal.
(Gainesville based Florida Defenders of the Environment formed in response to the Barge Canal proposal and desires to preserve the Ocklawaha River.FDE's own David White traveled to Jacksonville to spearhead the creation of the Jacksonville Riverkeper organization.the Rodman impasse was chalked up to "Jacksonville".)

Green Giants are breaking free of bindings.

Thank you too "Robin " Lewis of Salt Springs..........your 'come to Jesus' meetings with organizations and on the ground knowledge,coupled with comfort with ' bullets whizzing through the air ' is empowering.

[Gators312]

http://www.ocala.com/article/20110806/ARTICLES/110809747/1402/NEWS?p=1&tc=pg

According to Roberts, Stronach’s vision is to raise, harvest and sell all-natural, hormone-free, grass-fed beef cattle to supply to his “built-in customer base” in his other operations throughout the country, as well as to restaurants.


http://www.ocala.com/article/20120404/articles/120409888

"This is not a done deal," Neil Chonin, attorney with Southern Legal Counsel, told the 200 people at the meeting. "The (water district's) governing board is not the final word."

[Ocklawaha]

Ocklawaha which is the largest

BOY THEY GOT THAT PART RIGHT!

OCK... LOL

[duvaldude08]

Ocklawaha which is the largest

BOY THEY GOT THAT PART RIGHT!

OCK... LOL

LOL

[I-10east]

GLASS BOTTOM BOAT! (not urbandictionary style) LOL

[mtraininjax]

Scare the heck out of the representatives, take them to the mud bogs in Keystone Heights, which used to be large lakes.

[riverkeepered]

Here are some scary and sad stats for you about Silver Springs.  The reduced flow and pollution problems are unfortunately similar for many of our springs.

According to Dr. Bob Knight, Director of the Florida Springs Institute, and the Silver Springs 50-year Retrospective Study:
•   Flows have declined by 32% during the past decade and 50% since 1965
•   NO3-N has increased by 176% (2,600% over the entire period of record of more than 100 years)
•   Water clarity has decreased
•   Nighttime dissolved oxygen has declined by about 19%
•   Submerged aquatic plant biomass has declined by 21%
•   Total algal biomass has increased by 371%
•   Ecosystem productivity has declined by 27%
•   Insect productivity has declined by 72%
•   Fish biomass has declined by 92%

[Know Growth]

Scare the heck out of the representatives, take them to the mud bogs in Keystone Heights, which used to be large lakes.

The Reps have already responded. Answer is to pump water up,to the lakes.Not making this up. See Evergladeshub.

[acme54321]

•   Fish biomass has declined by 92%

I wonder how much the removal of the Rodman Dam would improve this statistic?

If you haven't read the book Ditch of Dreams it's a pretty good story about the history of the barge canal and the struggle to remove the last two major pieces of it left on the Ocklawaha (Eureka Dam and the Rodman Resivoir/Dam)

[Debbie Thompson]

And every time they try to remove the dam, fishermen raise bloody heck, and everyone backs down.

[wsansewjs]

And every time they try to remove the dam, fishermen raise bloody heck, and everyone backs down.

Damn the Dam!

-Josh

[riverkeepered]

Feds to take renewed look at Rodman dam
http://www.news4jax.com/news/Feds-to-take-renewed-look-at-Rodman-dam/-/475880/10955640/-/xi53q3/-/index.html

It is critical that we protect the aquifer and Silver Springs AND restore the flow of the Ocklawaha.  The health of the St. Johns River depends upon it. 

The aquifer is the source of Silver Springs which flows into the Silver River, an Outstanding Florida Water, and then into the Ocklawaha, a designated Aquatic Preserve and the largest tributary of the St. Johns River.