What does the Bradenton environmental emergency mean to you?
A breach at a Manatee County wastewater retention pond north of Bradenton has raised serious concerns, forcing evacuations around Tampa Bay and a declaration from Gov. Ron DeSantis of a state of emergency.
It’s also raised major questions throughout the entire state of Florida.
What exactly happened and why is there so much concern?
State emergency and environmental officials detected a major leak Friday at the Piney Point reservoir, the site of a former phosphate-mining plant used by a fertilizer company. The 77-acre pond holds millions of gallons of polluted water. Evacuations were ordered Saturday of the surrounding area.
A Manatee County administrator said there’s a potential for 600 million gallons to be released immediately after a breach.
Were there prior warnings of a breach, and have there been prior problems at this site?
“There have been numerous,
well-documented failures — which continue today — of the property’s reservoir liner, including leaks, poor welds, holes, cracks, and weaknesses,” Nikki
Fried, the state’s agricultural commissioner, wrote in a letter to DeSantis.
In September, Manatee County Commissioners were warned that the plant was nearing capacity, and an environmental crisis was looming.
Is South Florida vulnerable to a similar disaster?
South Florida is not home to any current or former phosphate mining plants. There are about 25 in the state, but most are concentrated in central and west Florida.
What impact will this have outside of Tampa Bay?
The economic impact could be huge, costing the state tens of millions of dollars, environmental groups say.
“The funds that are going to have to go to cleaning this up, they’re going to come from the state and the feds. They could be spent on other things,” said Jaclyn Lopez, Florida director for the Center for Biological Diversity, an environmental group.
Has phosphate mining created environmental concerns elsewhere?
Yes, environmental groups have raised major alarms about the waste derived from phosphate processing. Phosphorus is an essential component of fertilizer. In 2013, about 90 percent of phosphate rock was used in fertilizer manufacture.
The environmental groups say stacks of this waste are perched atop Florida aquifers, which supply drinking water to 10 million people in the state.
In 2016 a giant sinkhole opened below a another phosphate mine, 30 miles east of Tampa. A breach after a 2004 hurricane led to millions of gallons of polluted water being spilled into Tampa Bay.
In October 2020, the federal Environmental Protection Agency approved the use of phosphate waste in the building of roads, prompting lawsuits from environmental groups.