Water district backs deep wells to battle algae

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. (CBS12) — A new approach to battling the algae crisis won unanimous backing on Thursday, from the board of the South Florida Water Management District.

The concept, dubbed Emergency Estuary Protection Wells, essentially allows water managers to send millions of gallons of excess storm water down into deep injection wells, instead of into our rivers.

All summer we’ve seen the images of potentially toxic blue-green algae clogging parts of the St. Lucie River in the Stuart area.

Water District board members and staff see the deep injection wells as just one solution to the algae crisis, but one that is more effective, and more quickly implemented than others.

But not everyone is on board. Environmentalists pointed out injecting treated wastewater thousands of feet underground has been linked to problems on ocean reefs years later.

“We’re looking at injecting storm water that would go to about 3,000 feet into the boulder zone,” explained Ansley Marr of the Water District. She said her agency budgeted $10 million this year for the first two deep wells near Lake Okeechobee.

Marr told her board between 30 and 60 deep wells would be ideal.

In fact, Marr presented a graphic showing 60 wells would have completely eliminated the need for every single day of this month’s pulse releases from Lake O to the St. Lucie River.

“This is an immediate response that we can provide to help in the interim, until we can get the Comprehensive Everglades Restoration Program built out,” said Marr.

“The Sierra Club feels that this is a waste of time and a waste of money,” said Drew Martin of the Sierra Club in Palm Beach, Martin and St. Lucie Counties. Martin was one of the environmentalists who raised concerns at Thursday’s Water District board meeting.

“These deep injection wells are putting a lot of very caustic materials under the ground, as well as moving water into the ground that could cause extreme problems for the oceans and the reefs,” said Martin.

Others said once the water is injected so deep, it’s no longer available should it be needed in times of drought.

Water District staffers hope to have contracts for construction of the first two deep injection wells by December. If they prove effective, Water District board members hope to build more.