Deep well injection a solution to Lake O crisis

DianaUmpierre’s recent column on deep injectionwells being costly and awaste ofwater gets the facts wrong about an extremely effective tool in managing excesswater that is commonly used in nearly every corner of the state. Deep injectionwells provide an alternative method for storingwater during high-water periods and can also alleviate the increased stormwater runoff during the rainy season. The state andwater management districts have been considering the process for many years as a means for controlling the levels of LakeOkeechobee during the rainy months, and if in place, could have helped avoid what contributed to the 2016 algae crisis.

InUmpierre’s column, she fails to recognize the scientific evidence that deepwell injectionworks, and is outlined in theUniversity of Florida’swater study on solutions to reduce discharges to our coastal estuaries.

In the 2015 UFwater study, university researchers analyzed the possibleways to help alleviate discharges to the Caloosahatchee and St. Lucie estuaries. The study called for implementing a suite of solutions to redirect and treat excesswater in LakeOkeechobee. Among the solutions to be consideredwere deepwell injection sites, which according to the study, “could operate in conjunction with other storage elements to help reduce estuarine discharges.” The study concluded that aswe await the completion of other critical storage projects, “the option of constructing a system of large deep disposalwells to permanently dispose of excess flows from Lake Okeechobee should be explored.”

Umpierre claims that “this dumping-water solution will create new regional problems.” This is simply not true. The central idea behind exploring additional aquifer storage techniques is to help alleviate the damaging discharges to our coastal estuaries. The use of deep injectionwells can provide an interim solution for aquifer storage working in tandem with other water storage methods already in place. Simply put, the success of completing deepwell injection sites should not and will not occur at the expense of the other planned and designed projects around Lake Okeechobee.

The truth is that communities are already benefiting fromdeep well injection. Today, there are more than 240wells that are operational in Florida which have been used for over three decades. These include sites in South Florida, near whereUmpierre lives.

Many local utility companies in Florida are using deep injection wells to store excesswaste water. In the case of the sites proposed by the South Florida Water Management District, the water discharged through deep well injection will be much cleaner and at more than 3,500 feet belowthe surface, does not pose a threat to the state’s drinkingwater supply.

In 2007, the SF W MD conducted a study into deep injectionwells and the resultswere promising. In the modeling conducted by the district’s environmental consultants, it found that constructing 20 deep injection wells would reduce the volume of excesswater in typical discharge events by 27 percent. If 60wellswere constructed, theywould reduce the volume of excesswater discharged to the coastal estuaries during typical discharge events by an astonishing 80 percent.

Looking back on last year’s algae crisis in South Florida, deep injection wells would have significantly reduced the severity of the damaging discharges, which resulted in the governor declaring a state of emergency because of the conditions in our coastal estuaries.

The goal of Everglades restoration and addressing the lack of options to store excesswater in Lake Okeechobee has always been to develop many solutions. Deep well injection is one of the many solutions needed to ensure Florida is prepared forwet seasons and the impact on our treasured estuaries is minimal.

I applaud the leadership of the SFWMDin pursuing a plan to implement a strategy that saves money, reduces excesswater, and has the best interest of all South Floridians in mind.

Kevin Powers previously served as vice-chair of the South Florida WaterManagement District Governing Board.