To: Mary Paulic, Shane Williams, and Herschel Vineyard, Secretary of the Department of Environmental Protection
Silver Springs Basin Management Plan (BMAP)
Florida DEP stated nitrates need to be lowered by 79%. Do what you acknowledge the vast majority of the "public" asked you to do at the 3/14/13 Silver Springs BMAP meeting. Use the larger 2004 US Geological Survey study for the spring shed boundary--NOT the new boundary, which excludes the Adena Springs Ranch slaughterhouse, you decided to use at the 4/14/13 meeting as requested by an Adena Springs Ranch staff member. Keep the Adena Springs Ranch slaughterhouse IN the Silver Springs springshed. Allowing private industry to dictate to DEP and put Silver Springs and our groundwater at risk of further contamination is not acceptable.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=im8u3KdqL_c&feature=youtu.be
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=im8u3KdqL_c&feature=youtu.be
Why is this important?
The DEP has designated Silver Springs as impaired, with a nitrate level that is triple the maximum pollution threshold set by the agency.
The Silver Springs Basin Management Plan (BMAP) will be the vehicle through which Marion County, joined by the Florida Department of Environmental Protection, will try to curtail the flushing of nitrates into the springs.
While eventually the plan will seek to identify and neutralize the pollutants at their source, the critical first step is defining the boundary of the springshed that feeds Silver Springs. Doing so will concentrate the anti-pollution efforts to come, said Mary Paulic, a DEP environmental consultant. A recent suggestion was made at a public meeting to exclude the Adena Springs Ranch slaughterhouse and surrounding areas from being included in this plan. This suggestion was made by an employee of Adena Springs Ranch and runs contrary to the discussion at the 3/14/13 meeting where Shane Williams stated the general feeling was the larger version of the springshed, should be used as the basis for this plan.
The Silver Springs Basin Management Plan (BMAP) will be the vehicle through which Marion County, joined by the Florida Department of Environmental Protection, will try to curtail the flushing of nitrates into the springs.
While eventually the plan will seek to identify and neutralize the pollutants at their source, the critical first step is defining the boundary of the springshed that feeds Silver Springs. Doing so will concentrate the anti-pollution efforts to come, said Mary Paulic, a DEP environmental consultant. A recent suggestion was made at a public meeting to exclude the Adena Springs Ranch slaughterhouse and surrounding areas from being included in this plan. This suggestion was made by an employee of Adena Springs Ranch and runs contrary to the discussion at the 3/14/13 meeting where Shane Williams stated the general feeling was the larger version of the springshed, should be used as the basis for this plan.