| 1 | Representative Mayfield offered the following: |
| 2 |
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| 3 | Amendment (with title amendment) |
| 4 | Remove everything after the enacting clause and insert: |
| 5 | Section 1. Section 373.0363, Florida Statutes, is created |
| 6 | to read: |
| 7 | 373.0363 West-Central Florida Water Restoration Action |
| 8 | Plan.-- |
| 9 | (1) As used in this section, the term: |
| 10 | (a) "Central Florida Coordination Area" means all of Polk, |
| 11 | Osceola, Orange, and Seminole Counties, and southern Lake |
| 12 | County, as designated by the Southwest Florida Water Management |
| 13 | District, the South Florida Water Management District, and the |
| 14 | St. Johns River Water Management District. |
| 15 | (b) "District" means the Southwest Florida Water |
| 16 | Management District. |
| 17 | (c) "Southern Water Use Caution Area" means an area that |
| 18 | the district designated, after extensive collection of data and |
| 19 | numerous studies, in order to comprehensively manage water |
| 20 | resources in the Southern West-Central Groundwater Basin, which |
| 21 | includes all of Desoto, Hardee, Manatee, and Sarasota Counties, |
| 22 | and parts of Charlotte, Highlands, Hillsborough, and Polk |
| 23 | Counties. |
| 24 | (d) "Southern Water Use Caution Area Recovery Strategy" |
| 25 | means the district's regulatory, planning, and financial |
| 26 | strategy for ensuring that adequate water supplies are available |
| 27 | to meet growing demands while protecting and restoring the water |
| 28 | and related natural resources of the area. |
| 29 | (e) "West-Central Florida Water Restoration Action Plan" |
| 30 | means the district's regional environmental restoration and |
| 31 | water resource sustainability program for the Southern Water Use |
| 32 | Caution Area. |
| 33 | (2) The Legislature finds that: |
| 34 | (a) In response to growing demands from public supply, |
| 35 | agriculture, mining, power generation, and recreational users, |
| 36 | groundwater withdrawals in the Southern Water Use Caution Area |
| 37 | have steadily increased for nearly a century before peaking in |
| 38 | the mid-1970s. These withdrawals resulted in declines in aquifer |
| 39 | levels throughout the groundwater basin, which in some areas |
| 40 | exceeded 50 feet. |
| 41 | (b) While groundwater withdrawals have since stabilized as |
| 42 | a result of the district's management efforts, depressed aquifer |
| 43 | levels continue to result in saltwater intrusion, reduced flows |
| 44 | in the Upper Peace River, lowered water levels, and adverse |
| 45 | water quality impacts for some lakes in the Lake Wales Ridge |
| 46 | areas of Polk and Highlands Counties. |
| 47 | (c) In response to these resource concerns, and as |
| 48 | directed by s. 373.036, the district determined that traditional |
| 49 | sources of water in the region are not adequate to supply water |
| 50 | for all existing and projected reasonable and beneficial uses |
| 51 | and to sustain the water resources and related natural systems. |
| 52 | (d) The expeditious implementation of the Southern Water |
| 53 | Use Caution Area Recovery Strategy is needed to meet the minimum |
| 54 | flow requirement for the Upper Peace River, slow saltwater |
| 55 | intrusion, provide for improved lake levels and water quality |
| 56 | along the Lake Wales Ridge, and ensure sufficient water supplies |
| 57 | for all existing and projected reasonable and beneficial uses. |
| 58 | (e) Sufficient research has been conducted and sufficient |
| 59 | plans developed to immediately expand and accelerate programs to |
| 60 | sustain the water resources and related natural systems in the |
| 61 | Southern Water Use Caution Area. |
| 62 | (f) Implementation of components of the Southern Water Use |
| 63 | Caution Area Recovery Strategy, which are contained in the West- |
| 64 | Central Florida Water Restoration Action Plan, is for the |
| 65 | benefit of the public health, safety, and welfare and is in the |
| 66 | public interest. |
| 67 | (g) Implementation of the West-Central Florida Water |
| 68 | Restoration Action Plan is necessary to meet the minimum flow |
| 69 | requirement for the Upper Peace River, slow saltwater intrusion, |
| 70 | provide for improved lake levels and water quality along the |
| 71 | Lake Wales Ridge, and ensure sufficient water supplies for all |
| 72 | existing and projected reasonable and beneficial uses. |
| 73 | (h) A continuing source of funding is needed to |
| 74 | effectively implement the West-Central Florida Water Restoration |
| 75 | Action Plan. |
| 76 | (3) The district shall implement the West-Central Florida |
| 77 | Water Restoration Action Plan in a manner that furthers |
| 78 | progressive strategies for the management of water resources, is |
| 79 | watershed-based, provides for consideration of water quality |
| 80 | issues, and includes monitoring, the development and |
| 81 | implementation of best-management practices, and structural and |
| 82 | nonstructural projects, including public works projects. The |
| 83 | district shall coordinate its implementation of the plan with |
| 84 | regional water supply authorities, public and private |
| 85 | partnerships, and local, state, and federal partners in order to |
| 86 | maximize opportunities for the most efficient and timely |
| 87 | expenditures of public funds. |
| 88 | (4) The West-Central Florida Water Restoration Action Plan |
| 89 | includes: |
| 90 | (a) The Central West Coast Surface Water Enhancement |
| 91 | Initiative. The purpose of this initiative is to make additional |
| 92 | surface waters available for public supply through restoration |
| 93 | of surface waters, natural water flows, and freshwater wetland |
| 94 | communities. This initiative is designed to allow limits on |
| 95 | groundwater withdrawals in order to slow the rate of saltwater |
| 96 | intrusion. The initiative shall be an ongoing program in |
| 97 | cooperation with the Peace River-Manasota Regional Water Supply |
| 98 | Authority created under s. 373.1962. The initiative shall |
| 99 | include the following components, if feasible: |
| 100 | 1. The Dona Bay-Cow Pen Slough Component. This component |
| 101 | is anticipated to increase the capacity to store excess |
| 102 | freshwater flows for the purposes of supplying potable water and |
| 103 | restoring wetland ecosystems, including the quality and clarity |
| 104 | of water in the system and the subsequent rejuvenation of the |
| 105 | system's mollusks, oyster beds, seagrasses, and salinity. |
| 106 | 2. The Shell Creek Watershed Component. This component is |
| 107 | anticipated to increase water storage capacity upstream, |
| 108 | redirect the stored water to its natural and historical flow |
| 109 | pattern resulting in a benefit to the downstream ecosystem, and |
| 110 | capture high flows for use as public supply during low-flow |
| 111 | periods. |
| 112 | 3. The Upper Myakka River-Flatford Swamp Component. This |
| 113 | component is anticipated to reduce the amount of water entering |
| 114 | the swamp so that normal hydroperiods are restored, to create a |
| 115 | historically more natural system, and to increase the |
| 116 | availability of water for public supply. |
| 117 | (b) The Facilitating Agricultural Resource Management |
| 118 | Systems Initiative. The purpose of this initiative is to |
| 119 | expedite the implementation of production-scale, best-management |
| 120 | practices in the agricultural sector, which will result in |
| 121 | reductions in groundwater withdrawals and improvements in water |
| 122 | quality, water resources, and ecology. The initiative is a cost- |
| 123 | share reimbursement program to provide funding incentives to |
| 124 | agricultural landowners for the implementation of best- |
| 125 | management practices. The initiative shall be implemented by the |
| 126 | district in cooperation with the Department of Agriculture and |
| 127 | Consumer Services. |
| 128 | (c) The Ridge Lakes Restoration Initiative. The purpose of |
| 129 | this initiative is to protect, restore, and enhance natural |
| 130 | systems and flood protection by improving and protecting the |
| 131 | water quality of approximately 130 lakes located along the Lake |
| 132 | Wales Ridge in Polk and Highlands Counties, which quality is |
| 133 | threatened by stormwater runoff, wastewater effluent, fertilizer |
| 134 | applications, groundwater pollution, degradation of shoreline |
| 135 | habitats, and hydrologic alterations. This initiative shall be |
| 136 | accomplished through the construction of systems designed to |
| 137 | treat the stormwater runoff that threatens the water quality of |
| 138 | such lakes. Such systems include swales, retention basins, and |
| 139 | long infiltration basins, if feasible. |
| 140 | (d) The Upper Peace River Watershed Restoration |
| 141 | Initiative. The purpose of this initiative is to improve the |
| 142 | quality of waters and ecosystems in the watershed of the Upper |
| 143 | Peace River by recharging aquifers, restoring the flow of |
| 144 | surface waters, and restoring the capacity of natural systems to |
| 145 | store surface waters. The Legislature finds that such |
| 146 | improvements are necessary because the quantity and quality of |
| 147 | the fresh water that flows to the basin of the Peace River and |
| 148 | Charlotte Harbor are adversely affected by the significant |
| 149 | alteration and degradation of the watershed of the Upper Peace |
| 150 | River, and because restoration of the watershed of the Upper |
| 151 | Peace River is a critical component of the Charlotte Harbor |
| 152 | National Estuary Program's Comprehensive Conservation and |
| 153 | Management Plan, the Southwest Florida Water Management |
| 154 | District's Surface Water Improvement and Management Plan, and |
| 155 | the Southern Water Use Caution Area Recovery Strategy. This |
| 156 | initiative shall include an Upper Peace River Component. In |
| 157 | addition to the initiative's other purposes, this component will |
| 158 | provide a critical link to a major greenway that extends from |
| 159 | the lower southwest coast of this state through the watershed of |
| 160 | the Peace River and the Green Swamp and further north to the |
| 161 | Ocala National Forest. Projects that are included in the Upper |
| 162 | Peace River Component include: |
| 163 | 1. The Lake Hancock Component. The purpose of this |
| 164 | component is to help meet the minimum-flow requirements in the |
| 165 | Upper Peace River and to improve water quality. The component |
| 166 | shall include modifications of a structure to control the |
| 167 | elevation of water levels in Lake Hancock and the treatment of |
| 168 | outfall from the lake. |
| 169 | 2. The Peace Creek Canal Restoration Project. The purpose |
| 170 | of this project is to enhance the recharge of aquifers, restore |
| 171 | the capacity of natural systems to store waters, and provide |
| 172 | flood protection. The project shall be implemented by |
| 173 | undertaking the actions needed to meet the minimum-flow |
| 174 | requirements under s. 373.042 and thereafter holding excess |
| 175 | surface water from the Peace Creek Canal in storage for public |
| 176 | supply or commercial or industrial water users. |
| 177 | (e) The Central Florida Water Resource Development |
| 178 | Initiative. The purpose of this initiative is to create and |
| 179 | implement a long-term plan that takes a comprehensive approach |
| 180 | to limit ground water withdrawals in the Southern Water Use |
| 181 | Caution Area and to identify and develop alternative water |
| 182 | supplies for Polk County. The project components developed |
| 183 | pursuant to this initiative are eligible for state and regional |
| 184 | funding under s. 373.196 as an alternative water supply, as |
| 185 | defined in s. 373.019, or as a supplemental water supply under |
| 186 | the rules of the Southwest Florida Water Management District or |
| 187 | the South Florida Water Management District. The initiative |
| 188 | shall be implemented by the district as an ongoing program in |
| 189 | cooperation with Polk County and the South Florida Water |
| 190 | Management District. The initiative shall include: |
| 191 | 1. The Kissimmee River Component. This component shall |
| 192 | include developing, if feasible, a public water supply from |
| 193 | surface waters in the Kissimmee Basin near Lake Kissimmee, |
| 194 | blending such supply with other potable water supplies, and |
| 195 | distributing such potable waters by connecting to the water- |
| 196 | distribution systems of municipal water utilities. This project |
| 197 | is intended to increase the amount of water available for |
| 198 | meeting public demand for water in the Central Florida |
| 199 | Coordination Area. |
| 200 | 2. The Upper Peace River Component. This component shall |
| 201 | be implemented by investigating the feasibility of using an off- |
| 202 | stream reservoir, which may include the storage of water on |
| 203 | private lands, to capture water from the Peace River during |
| 204 | high-flow periods for use as a public water supply. If it is |
| 205 | determined that the most feasible location of an off-stream |
| 206 | reservoir is outside Polk County, the district shall promote |
| 207 | Polk County's participation in the development and use of such |
| 208 | reservoir so long as such development and use satisfies all of |
| 209 | the requirements of this chapter and the rules of the district. |
| 210 | (5) By March 1 each year, the district shall report on the |
| 211 | implementation of this section as part of the consolidated |
| 212 | annual report required in s. 373.036(7). The district shall |
| 213 | annually submit a copy of the implementation report and |
| 214 | recommended legislative proposals to the Governor, the President |
| 215 | of the Senate, and the Speaker of the House of Representatives. |
| 216 | The district shall prepare the implementation report in |
| 217 | cooperation with the other coordinating agencies and affected |
| 218 | local governments. The implementation report shall include, at a |
| 219 | minimum: |
| 220 | (a) A summary of the conditions of the Southern Water Use |
| 221 | Caution Area, including the status of the components of the |
| 222 | West-Central Florida Water Restoration Action Plan. |
| 223 | (b) An annual accounting of the expenditure of funds. The |
| 224 | accounting must, at a minimum, provide details of expenditures |
| 225 | separately by plan component and any subparts of a plan |
| 226 | component, and include specific information about amount and use |
| 227 | of funds from federal, state, and local government sources. In |
| 228 | detailing the use of these funds, the district shall indicate |
| 229 | those funds that are designated to meet requirements for |
| 230 | matching funds. |
| 231 | Section 2. Subsection (3) of section 373.323, Florida |
| 232 | Statutes, is amended to read: |
| 233 | 373.323 Licensure of water well contractors; application, |
| 234 | qualifications, and examinations; equipment identification.-- |
| 235 | (3) An applicant who meets the following requirements |
| 236 | shall be entitled to take the water well contractor licensure |
| 237 | examination to practice water well contracting: |
| 238 | (a) Is at least 18 years of age. |
| 239 | (b) Has at least 2 years of experience in constructing, |
| 240 | repairing, or abandoning water wells. Satisfactory proof of such |
| 241 | experience shall be demonstrated by providing: |
| 242 | 1. Evidence of the length of time the applicant has been |
| 243 | engaged in the business of the construction, abandonment, and |
| 244 | repair of water wells as a major activity, as attested to by |
| 245 | three letters from any of the following persons: |
| 246 | a. Water well contractors. |
| 247 | b. Water well drillers. |
| 248 | c. Water well parts and equipment vendors. |
| 249 | d. Water well inspectors employed by a governmental |
| 250 | agency. |
| 251 | 2. A list of at least 10 water wells that the applicant |
| 252 | has constructed, repaired, or abandoned, which includes the |
| 253 | following information: |
| 254 | a. The name and address of the owner or owners of each |
| 255 | well. |
| 256 | b. The location, primary use, and approximate depth and |
| 257 | diameter of each well that the applicant has constructed, |
| 258 | repaired, or abandoned. |
| 259 | c. The approximate date the construction, repair, or |
| 260 | abandonment of each well was completed. |
| 261 | 3. All listed wells must have been constructed, repaired, |
| 262 | or abandoned within 5 years immediately preceding the filing of |
| 263 | the license application. At least 7 of the 10 water wells must |
| 264 | have been constructed by the applicant, as defined in s. |
| 265 | 373.303(2). |
| 266 | (c) Has completed the application form and remitted a |
| 267 | nonrefundable application fee. |
| 268 | Section 3. (1) LEGISLATIVE INTENT.--The Legislature finds |
| 269 | that desalination of seawater is a proven technology for |
| 270 | providing water supply solutions for countries around the world |
| 271 | and an increasingly cost-competitive alternative for coastal |
| 272 | cities within the United States. The potential success of |
| 273 | desalination projects would benefit the communities they |
| 274 | directly serve and the state as a whole by preserving existing |
| 275 | natural water resources and providing a practical means of |
| 276 | ensuring adequate supplies of water for future generations of |
| 277 | Floridians. Therefore, it is the intent of the Legislature to |
| 278 | aggressively pursue desalination technologies for use in the |
| 279 | state. |
| 280 | (2) DESALINATION TECHNOLOGY STUDY; REPORT.--The Secretary |
| 281 | of Environmental Protection is directed to coordinate with the |
| 282 | water management districts to conduct a study examining all |
| 283 | current and available desalination technologies. The study shall |
| 284 | include an analysis of the existing desalination projects in the |
| 285 | state and recommendations for a plan to effectively utilize and |
| 286 | implement desalination technologies that are environmentally and |
| 287 | fiscally sound and that will provide sustainability of the |
| 288 | current water supply demands of the state as well as long-term |
| 289 | potable water supply demands based on projected population |
| 290 | growth. The secretary shall submit a report of the findings of |
| 291 | the study and plan recommendations to the Governor, the |
| 292 | President of the Senate, and the Speaker of the House of |
| 293 | Representatives by June 30, 2009. |
| 294 | Section 4. This act shall take effect on July 1, 2008. |
| 295 |
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| 296 | ----------------------------------------------------- |
| 297 | T I T L E A M E N D M E N T |
| 298 | Remove the entire title and insert: |
| 299 | A bill to be entitled |
| 300 | An act relating to water management districts; creating s. |
| 301 | 373.0363, F.S.; providing definitions; providing |
| 302 | legislative findings and intent; requiring the Southwest |
| 303 | Florida Water Management District to implement the West- |
| 304 | Central Florida Water Restoration Action Plan; providing |
| 305 | criteria governing the implementation of the plan; |
| 306 | requiring that the district coordinate with regional water |
| 307 | supply authorities and governmental partners to maximize |
| 308 | opportunities concerning the efficient expenditure of |
| 309 | public funds; specifying the plan's purpose; specifying |
| 310 | the initiatives that are included in the plan; providing |
| 311 | criteria governing implementation of the Central West |
| 312 | Coast Surface Water Enhancement Initiative, the |
| 313 | Facilitating Agricultural Resource Management Systems |
| 314 | Initiative, the Ridge Lakes Restoration Initiative, the |
| 315 | Upper Peace River Watershed Restoration Initiative, and |
| 316 | the Central Florida Water Resource Development Initiative |
| 317 | and certain components or projects included in such |
| 318 | initiatives; providing for the district to implement |
| 319 | certain initiatives or parts thereof in cooperation with |
| 320 | the Peace River-Manasota Regional Water Supply Authority, |
| 321 | the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, or |
| 322 | Polk County; requiring an annual report that meets |
| 323 | specified criteria concerning implementation of the plan, |
| 324 | regional conditions, and the use of funds; requiring that |
| 325 | the Southwest Florida Water Management District prepare |
| 326 | the report in cooperation with coordinating agencies and |
| 327 | affected local governments and submit a report and |
| 328 | legislative proposals to the Governor and Legislature; |
| 329 | amending s. 373.323, F.S.; revising requirements for water |
| 330 | well contractor licensure examinations; requiring |
| 331 | applicants to provide specified documentation; providing |
| 332 | legislative intent; directing the Secretary of |
| 333 | Environmental Protection to coordinate with the water |
| 334 | management districts to conduct a study of certain |
| 335 | desalination technologies; providing study requirements; |
| 336 | requiring the secretary to report to the Governor and the |
| 337 | Legislature by a specified date; providing an effective |
| 338 | date. |