House Bill hb1815

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    Florida House of Representatives - 2002                HB 1815

        By Representatives Joyner and Lerner






  1                      A bill to be entitled

  2         An act relating to drinking water protection

  3         and contamination prevention; creating s.

  4         403.065, F.S.; providing legislative findings;

  5         providing definitions; providing for a

  6         moratorium on permitting of aquifer storage and

  7         recovery wells that do not meet specified

  8         criteria; requiring the Florida Geological

  9         Survey to establish a statewide drinking water

10         reconnaissance; requiring the Department of

11         Health and local health officials to provide

12         for a coordinated response to health threats

13         that may be linked to drinking water

14         contaminants; providing for a waterborne

15         disease tracking network; providing for

16         collection, analysis, and reporting of data;

17         providing appropriations; providing an

18         effective date.

19

20  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:

21

22         Section 1.  Section 403.065, Florida Statutes, is

23  created to read:

24         403.065  Drinking water protection and contamination

25  prevention.--

26         (1)  LEGISLATIVE FINDINGS.--

27         (a)  The Legislature finds and declares that it is in

28  the public interest to prevent contamination of drinking water

29  and provide adequate drinking water supplies, to protect the

30  public health from waterborne diseases, to provide support for

31  natural systems, to conserve water resources, and to use

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    Florida House of Representatives - 2002                HB 1815

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  1  caution when operating in a sphere of scientific uncertainty.

  2  The Legislature further finds that groundwater supplies more

  3  than 90 percent of the state's residents with drinking water,

  4  due in part to the contamination of surface waters. The

  5  Legislature further finds that it is necessary to prevent

  6  contamination of water from biological and chemical waste in

  7  order to reduce the incidence of waterborne diseases and

  8  protect vulnerable marine and freshwater ecosystems. The

  9  Legislature further finds that Florida's water supply is

10  threatened by the over-allocation of water for industrial,

11  agricultural, and domestic purposes, which has contributed to

12  the creation of a water crisis in the state.

13         (b)  The Legislature recognizes the inadequacy of

14  existing data and information on the extent of contamination

15  of the state's surface and ground water and the impact of

16  aquifer storage and recovery on these water resources. Issues

17  of concern for which adequate data and information do not

18  exist include:

19         1.  The chemical and biological effects of mixing

20  surface, ground, or reclaimed water with native groundwater.

21         2.  The fate of biological contaminants, including

22  viruses, protozoa, and bacteria, contained in water that may

23  be injected into, above, or below underground sources of

24  drinking water, as defined by 42 U.S.C. s. 300h, et. seq. and

25  40 C.F.R. 144.3 (2000), through aquifer storage and recovery

26  wells.

27         3.  The aggregate hydraulic and geologic impacts of

28  injecting billions of gallons of ground and surface water per

29  day into, above, or below underground sources of drinking

30  water.

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    Florida House of Representatives - 2002                HB 1815

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  1         4.  Possible fracturing of overlying geologic

  2  formations that may be caused by injection pressure or

  3  pressure buildup within an injection zone, and the subsequent

  4  endangerment of underground sources of drinking water.

  5         5.  The impact of aquifer storage and recovery wells on

  6  current and future public water supply systems.

  7         6.  The impact of aquifer storage and recovery wells on

  8  private wells used for domestic purposes.

  9         7.  The reliability of institutional controls to

10  prevent exposure to humans of groundwater contaminated by

11  surface, ground, or reclaimed water stored through the use of

12  aquifer storage and recovery wells.

13         8.  The extent and impact of aquifer transformation

14  products created as the result of the aquifer storage and

15  recovery wells.

16         9.  The extent and impact of toxins created by harmful

17  algal blooms.

18         10.  The direct, indirect, and societal costs

19  associated with drinking water contamination, including, but

20  not limited to, treatment costs borne by public water supply

21  systems and owners of private wells.

22         11.  The impact of the disposal of municipal effluent

23  into the regional aquifer systems which receive surface and

24  ground water from aquifer storage and recovery wells.

25         12.  The impact of land use activities on the

26  availability of fresh water for domestic, industrial, and

27  agricultural purposes.

28         (2)  DEFINITIONS.--As used in this section:

29         (a)  "Recovered water" means water that is injected

30  through aquifer storage and recovery wells and later withdrawn

31  for domestic, industrial, agricultural, or environmental use

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    Florida House of Representatives - 2002                HB 1815

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  1  by the operator of aquifer storage and recovery wells or any

  2  other person.

  3         (b)  "Source water" means ground and surface water that

  4  is injected through aquifer storage and recovery wells.

  5         (3)  MORATORIUM; PERMIT CRITERIA FOR AQUIFER STORAGE

  6  AND RECOVERY WELLS.--A moratorium is imposed on the issuance

  7  of permits by the Department of Environmental Protection for

  8  aquifer storage and recovery wells that do not meet the

  9  following criteria:

10         (a)  Compliance with all primary and secondary drinking

11  water standards.

12         (b)  Determination of no adverse effect to human or

13  ecological health from contaminants in the source water, with

14  such contaminants evaluated through the following measures:

15         1.  Priority pollutant scan.

16         2.  Comparison of contaminants in the source water to

17  those listed on the United States Environmental Protection

18  Agency's "Chemical Hazard Data Availability Study."

19         3.  Assessment of the source water to determine the

20  levels of human and veterinary pharmaceutical agents.

21         4.  Assessment of the source water to determine the

22  levels of toxins produced by harmful algal blooms.

23         5.  Assessment of the source water to determine the

24  levels of reproductive and steroidal hormones and endocrine

25  disrupters.

26         6.  Assessment of the source water to determine the

27  levels of industrial and household wastewater products, such

28  as flame retardants and personal care products.

29         7.  Analysis of the surface water planned for injection

30  pursuant to the total maximum daily load program.

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  1         (c)  Determination that the operator of the aquifer

  2  storage and recovery wells and all public water supply systems

  3  that may withdraw water impacted by the aquifer storage and

  4  recovery wells own and operate a monitoring system that can

  5  detect the presence of any biological or chemical contaminant

  6  with a 99.9999-percent degree of accuracy in the source water,

  7  injected water, and recovered water. This system must possess

  8  the capability to perform analytical methods that are

  9  proficient in detecting contaminants at environmentally

10  relevant concentrations, including measurements of emerging

11  contaminants at trace levels of 1 part per billion.

12         (d)  Determination that the receiving waters of the

13  aquifer storage and recovery well have a total dissolved

14  solids concentration of 3,000 milligrams per liter or greater,

15  and there is no possibility of upward seepage of the source

16  water into aquifers with a total dissolved solids

17  concentration of less than 3,000 milligrams per liter.

18         (e)  Determination prior to injection of zero tolerance

19  for all microorganisms, including bacteria, viruses, and

20  protozoa, in the recovered water.

21         (f)  Determination that the uptake and re-release of

22  microbial contaminants in the subsurface will achieve zero

23  tolerance for all microorganisms, including bacteria, viruses,

24  and protozoa, in the recovered water.

25         (g)  Determination prior to injection that recovery of

26  source water injected through aquifer storage and recovery

27  wells will achieve 95 percent of the total volume injected.

28         (4)  STATEWIDE DRINKING WATER RECONNAISSANCE.--In order

29  to ensure a system of accountability for prevention of

30  contamination of the state's drinking water, the Florida

31  Geological Survey shall establish a statewide drinking water

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  1  reconnaissance which shall provide baseline information on the

  2  environmental occurrence of biological and chemical

  3  contaminants in water resources. This reconnaissance shall

  4  have a special focus on emerging contaminants from animal or

  5  human wastewater and shall provide:

  6         (a)  The first statewide assessment of the occurrence

  7  of contaminants in surface water and groundwater.

  8         (b)  A focal point for the development and testing of

  9  new laboratory analytical methods for measuring compounds in

10  environmental samples.

11         (c)  A basis for the designing research investigations

12  that focus on root causes of water contamination and

13  depletion.

14         (5)  COORDINATED RESPONSE TO HEALTH THREATS; WATERBORNE

15  DISEASE TRACKING NETWORK.--In order to ensure a rapid and

16  coordinated response to detect and respond effectively to

17  waterborne disease clusters, emerging threats, emergencies,

18  and environmental outbreaks, the Department of Health, in

19  collaboration with local health officials, shall establish

20  capacities to ensure a coordinated response to health threats

21  potentially linked to contaminants in drinking water. This

22  capacity shall include the following:

23         (a)  Creation and operation of a waterborne disease

24  tracking network that will:

25         1.  Collect data by county concerning the prevalence

26  and incidence of waterborne diseases.

27         2.  Collect data through biomonitoring and other

28  methods concerning the existence of relevant environmental

29  factors and exposures.

30         3.  Analyze data collected under subparagraphs 1. and

31  2. to identify populations at high risk, examine health

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  1  concerns, recognize related environmental factors, assess the

  2  efficacy of medical and intervention efforts, and establish

  3  prevention strategies.

  4         (b)  Annually reporting such data and analysis in a

  5  manner that makes this information widely available in a

  6  timely fashion and in an easily accessible form, to allow

  7  public health officials and members of the public to respond

  8  with appropriate public health activities, while at the same

  9  time protecting individual privacy.

10         (c)  Such other activities as the Secretary of Health

11  may prescribe.

12         Section 2.  (1)  There is hereby appropriated from the

13  _______________ Trust Fund to the Florida Geological Survey

14  for fiscal year 2002-2003 the sum of $0.75 million to fund the

15  statewide drinking water reconnaissance and related activities

16  as necessary to carry out the provisions of s. 403.065,

17  Florida Statutes.

18         (2)  There is hereby appropriated from the

19  _______________ Trust Fund to the Department of Health for

20  fiscal year 2002-2003 the sum of $0.75 million to fund the

21  waterborne disease tracking network and related activities as

22  necessary to carry out the provisions of s. 403.065, Florida

23  Statutes.

24         Section 3.  This act shall take effect July 1, 2002.

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    Florida House of Representatives - 2002                HB 1815

    772-112-02






  1            *****************************************

  2                          HOUSE SUMMARY

  3         Provides legislative findings regarding the
      protection of the state's drinking water sources from
  4    contamination and the provision of drinking water
      supplies through aquifer storage and recovery wells.
  5    Provides definitions. Provides for a moratorium on
      permitting of aquifer storage and recovery wells that do
  6    not meet specified criteria for permitting. Requires the
      Florida Geological Survey to establish a statewide
  7    drinking water reconnaissance to provide information on
      water resource contamination. Requires the Department of
  8    Health and local health officials to provide for a
      coordinated response to health threats that may be linked
  9    to drinking water contaminants. Provides for creation and
      operation of a waterborne disease tracking network and
10    provides for collection, analysis, and reporting of data.
      Provides appropriations.
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