After
months of negotiations, Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate
Majority Leader Harry Reid this week agreed to bring a
strong energy package to the floor of each house.
Unfortunately, while the bill 
On
Wednesday, the Lieberman-Warner global warming bill advanced
out of the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee and
will likely head to the Senate floor in the new year.
Beginning in 2012, this bill would set a cap on the amount
of global warming pollution that companies could emit each
year, concluding in a 70 percent reduction in greenhouse gas
emissions in the year 2050 -- significantly less that the
reduction that scientists say is needed. 
Friends of the Earth joined with green groups Earthjustice,
Oceana, and the Center for Biological Diversity this week to
petition the Environmental Protection Agency to begin
regulating greenhouse gas emissions from aircraft.
Airplanes currently emit about three percent of
"Genetically
modified crops have been hailed as a way to make
agricultural products safer and more affordable, but they
have accomplished neither of these goals," write Madill and
Illuminato. "One persistent danger lies in the prospect of
crops unapproved for human consumption becoming mixed with
the food supply. In 2000, Friends of the Earth and other
groups discovered an unapproved strain of genetically
modified corn on grocery store shelves. StarLink corn, which
had been deemed safe only for animal consumption because of
human allergen concerns, was showing up in Kraft taco
shells. The discovery led to recalls, mill closures, halts
in exports, and buybacks of contaminated corn."
Over
the summer, Florida Governor Crist signed an Executive
Order (EO127) calling for increased investment in
renewable energy in the state.
Treated sewer water could be in South Florida taps someday
Plantation and Sunrise are two of the cities conducting pilot studies on ways to use treated wastewater to boost drinking water supplies Obstacles include nitrates, phosphorous and an 'ick' factor
Sunrise and Plantation need more water. And
rather than pray for rain, they see redemption in plants that
shoot out millions of gallons of treated wastewater daily.
Most treated wastewater now goes to irrigation, so-called
"reclaimed water," but millions of gallons in South Florida are
dumped into the ocean or injected deep into the ground daily. So
water managers in Sunrise and Plantation and elsewhere wonder:
Why not turn that into an alternative drinking water source?
But it comes with an "ick" factor: The thought of drinking
recycled sewage water.
In Plantation and Sunrise, they're
conducting pilot studies on just that. West Palm Beach mixed its
reclaimed water with drinking water in an emergency at the
height of dry season. Around the same time, Boca Raton wanted to
pump reclaimed water into canals to protect its wells from salt
water.
Those efforts provide a glimpse of the region's drinking water
future. The record-breaking dry spell and projected population
growth have propelled reclaimed water to the forefront as an
alternative source.
Water managers don't talk about recycled sewer water, knowing
that they need to gain public support for reclaimed water to
start flowing from taps. It's one of several costly water
options.
Reclaimed water is highly disinfected before it's sent to
thirsty lawns or into marshes. But in just a few years, it could
be either injected just below the surface or into canals. It
would then be further filtered naturally in the ground before
entering the Biscayne aquifer. And it would be treated again as
raw water before reaching the tap.
Water managers' biggest obstacle remains the price of removing
nutrients that damage the environment from recycled water.
"We're not running out of water," said Hank Breitenkam,
Plantation's utilities director, who's leading a pilot project
on recharging canals with reclaimed water. "We're running out of
cheap water."
Drought conditions, which are expected to continue, have pushed
utilities to consider reclaimed water.
This spring, West Palm Beach's main reservoir, Clear Lake, was
weeks away from falling so low that its pumps would fail. The
city got state approval to use its new wastewater treatment
plant to avert a water crisis for its 150,000 customers. Instead
of pumping the treated wastewater into a marsh, West Palm Beach
mixed it with other water in a rock pit and refilled Clear Lake
— a move criticized by some.
"Psychologically, not having water is far worse," said West Palm
Beach Mayor Lois Frankel. "And the fact of the matter is all
water doesn't start off pure." Boca Raton asked the state
Department of Environmental Protection for permission to
recharge its canals with reclaimed water. The city produces 15
million gallons a day but has enough pipes to push out only 8
million for irrigation. The state said no.
Water regulators worry that nitrates and phosphorus in the
recycled water could promote algae blooms and unfettered flora
and fauna growth in canals. But Boca Raton argues the short-term
benefit of protecting its wells from intruding saltwater
outweighs the long-term environmental concerns. Besides, the
ocean outfalls already are suspected of harming the environment
by damaging coastal reefs, city officials said.
"As much as you can hydrologically load up the Biscayne aquifer,
you're going to protect the well fields," said Chris Helfrich,
Boca Raton's utility services director.
Beyond emergency uses, the South Florida Water Management
District has pinned future development to finding alternative
water sources.
Every day, South Florida utilities produce about 500 million
gallons of reclaimed water, said Mark Elsner, director of the
district's water supply implementation division. He called it a
"tremendous opportunity."
"Today, it doesn't make sense to use water once and dispose of
it," Elsner said.
But use of reclaimed water must meet appropriate regulations, he
said.
A Department of Environmental Protection study released in
February found that filling canals with reclaimed water has the
potential to reduce South Florida's dependency on the
Everglades, which feeds the aquifer, by 27 percent. But models
show the canals may not be able to handle all the reclaimed
water before sending it out to sea. Even so, the study concluded
it's up to each utility to decide whether it can use reclaimed
water for drinking water. In Sunrise, a six-month pilot project
is studying discharging treated wastewater 15 to 20 feet below
the surface. The water would percolate through the ground to the
aquifer that's about 70 to 100 feet below the surface, said
Hector Castro, Sunrise's utilities director.
So far the study, which began in April and has been extended one
month, has been "very successful," he said. The city's managers
are evaluating whether to build a full-scale reuse plant.
Preliminary estimates put the price at $14 million to $140
million for a plant with the capacity to treat 2 million to 20
million gallons per day, he said.
Breitenkam said Plantation, which started its study in
September, needs to find 3 million to 4 million gallons per day
from alternative water sources for the city's future growth.
Part of the study will examine the "whole psychological
perspective" so the city can gain the public's support for
recycled water.
Over the next 10 years, Breitenkam said, utility bills may
double to pay for alternative water sources and updating of
aging infrastructure.
State Rep. Richard Machek, D-Boca Raton, pushed for the
Department of Environmental Protection study. He said utility
customers should expect to pay an extra $5 to $10 a month in as
soon as five years to treat reclaimed water to higher levels
that remove damaging nutrients.
"We're going to be forced into this just because of the demand
for aquifer water," he said.
Until then, he said, environmental concerns make it unlikely
Boca Raton or any other city would get permission to use its
reclaimed water even in a drought emergency.
"If we tip the scales the wrong way there's no return," Machek
said. "This is an area that's uncharted."
Luis F. Perez can be reached at
lfperez@sun-sentinel.com or 561-243-6641.
Copyright © 2007, South Florida Sun-Sentinel
