Scott vetoes bill encouraging dumping of treated sewage into aquifer

Gov. Rick Scott vetoed a bill Friday that would have encouraged Florida utilities to dump treated sewage into the state's aquifer, saying it wasn't "worth risking Floridians' confidence in our existing water quality regulatory system."

HB 1149, which Clean Water Network of Florida director Linda Young had dubbed "the Dirty Water Bill of 2018," said that by injecting the effluent, the state could continue approving new water-use permits for developers as new residents continue flooding into the state.

Young said she was "pleasantly surprised" that Scott had vetoed the measure, which passed both the House and Senate by overwhelming margins.

"Miracles do happen in election years," she said.

The effluent, often referred to as "reclaimed water," is frequently used to water lawns instead of wasting valuable drinking water on grass.

To inject it into the aquifer would require cleaning the effluent to the point that it would meet federal drinking water standards. However, those standards don't require screening out antidepressants, antibiotics and other drugs commonly found in the sewer system because they're carried in human waste.

The federal standards also don't require screening out enough nitrate pollution also found in sewage, according to springs advocates. Nitrate pollution has fouled many of the state's springs, leading to toxic algae blooms.

The bill's House sponsor, state Rep. Bobby Payne, R-Palatka, had dismissed environmentalists' concerns about the quality of the water that would be injected into the aquifer. While the bill was under consideration, Payne, a utility company executive, had said he would have no concerns about drinking the water.

He contended the bill was necessary because "we must assure that we continue to have adequate potable drinking water using our best available technology."

Payne did not immediately respond to a call requesting comment on the veto.

During a legislative hearing on the bill, David Childs, a lobbyist for the state's sewage treatment utilities, said the whole point is to augment the aquifer as it's being drained. Childs told the committee the bills would encourage using the effluent "for the benefit of the public" because it will guarantee new residents moving to Florida will continue getting water.

But Scott, in his veto message, said he was concerned the bill "could create confusion" about the state's water quality and might "muddle Florida's protection of our aquifers."

Young predicted that the backers of the bill will try again next year. She said she hoped there would be a chance for more public discussion next time and that, unlike this year, "it doesn't just get slipped into a bill nobody knew about."

Contact Craig Pittman at craig@tampabay.com. Follow @craigtimes.