Spoonbill Marsh – which has been cited for infractions by the Florida Department of Environmental Protection in the past – has again become the target of a torrent of stinging accusations, including suggestions that the county is not reporting truthfully to the FDEP.
Since 2010, the $4 million Spoonbill Marsh project has operated as the disposal site for brine left over after drinking water is purified at the county’s reverse osmosis treatment plant. The high-salt concentrate is mixed with lagoon water and filtered through the manmade marsh to purify it. County reports to the FDEP show that pollutant levels are consistently lower in the water flowing from Spoonbill into the lagoon than in the water flowing into the system from the lagoon.
But a group of mostly nameless opponents of the project are not buying it. An email, written and widely distributed by local resident Barry Shapiro, contains charges that Spoonbill is, basically, “a liquid toxic waste dump,” not built according to its approved design and operating beyond the restrictions of its FDEP permit.
Shapiro claims that marsh water is overflowing onto environmentally sensitive land to the north owned by Indian River Land Trust; that outflow into the lagoon is not being monitored with a proper meter; that the operation is not well maintained; and that it is detrimental to fish and wildlife.
Utilities Department Director Vincent Burke said that, as a result of Shapiro’s email blast, a Florida Department of Environmental Protection representative visited the county to take a look at Spoonbill. So far, that visit has not resulted in any sanctions from the state.
Dr. Richard Baker, a longtime local environmentalist, president of Pelican Island Audubon Society and a longtime opponent of the Spoonbill project, echoed Shapiro’s concern. “Indian River County was dumping this pollution directly into the lagoon and was told to stop. Now they are still polluting. When will we learn that dilution is not the solution to pollution?”
A recent visit to Spoonbill provided a first-hand look at the marsh operation. On the day Vero Beach 32963 visited the site, water was flowing over the north boundary and onto Land Trust property, and the walkway was submerged.
This is, unquestionably, a malfunction, and according to an expert who wishes to remain anonymous, the overflow has been occurring for “years” and is harming the Land Trust property.
The north boundary of Spoonbill Marsh is Florida Department of Transportation Ditch 3, which runs under U.S. 1 between 63rd and 57th streets and empties into the lagoon. Although Spoonbill’s water level, like the lagoon’s, is influenced by the tide – when lagoon water is high, the water in Spoonbill is high – the DOT ditch is supposed to keep marsh water on county property.
County utility staff member Art Pfeffer, who oversees daily operation of the marsh and conducts FDEP-required tests, blames DOT for the malfunction. He says the Florida Department of Transportation “hasn’t maintained the ditch in years.”
Which raises the question – what has the county done about that?
Utilities Director Burke, who wasn’t with the county at the beginning of the Spoonbill project, says both the Department of Environmental Protection and the Department of Transportation have been notified about the problem several times.
“The DOT came out in February. They’re aware of the issues that exist,” Burke says.
Because the DOT has jurisdictional control, the county isn’t willing to take action on its own. “We’re waiting to hear from the DOT as far as the next steps. We’ll probably ask public works to help keep the conversation going,” since the overflow is, in part, a stormwater issue.
Another major concern among those who view the marsh as an environmental menace is what happens to millions of gallons of effluent they say flows into the marsh daily but doesn’t flow out again.
Burke counters that “effluent” typically refers to domestic wastewater discharged from a sewage plant and “would be incorrect to use here.” He says 4 percent to 20 percent daily variance between water brought in and the water that is metered leaving the site is attributed by county consultants “to seepage and evapotranspiration losses.”
The critics are skeptical of this, doubting that evaporation and seepage can account for what they say is as much as 2.5 million gallons of missing water per day.
Another allegation is that the two outflows or breeches, through which mixed water flows back to the lagoon, are not being monitored properly, and that one is virtually inoperable.
Pfeffer admits the north breech is not functioning, and the south breech is handling virtually all the outflow – which seems like it might contribute to the marsh overflow problem. Pfeffer says the DEP is aware of the blockage and it is reflected in the daily reports.
He also acknowledges there is no permanent meter installed to measure water flow, but says that he measures water velocity and volume daily, during the week, using an FDEP-approved hand-held electronic flow probe. He says he transfers his daily on-site notes to detailed FDEP log sheets and his desk is piled with stacks of notes and daily reports forms that he is required to keep.
Burke adds, “As with all our operating permits, the data is collected in accordance with the permit requirements and submitted to the FDEP.”
Responding to questions about Spoonbill’s maintenance, Burke says, “We will continue to maintain that site properly, including but not limited to normal routine, access roads, mowing, and maintaining the boardwalk.”
And what of the Land Trust property?
Land Trust Executive Director Ken Grudens says the trust’s 50 acres north of Spoonbill is “hydrologically complicated,” with many factors to consider. He said a site study is underway, funded by a grant from U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and conducted by Knight McGuire & Associates. “We’ll have a better sense [of how much Spoonbill Marsh overflow is affecting the property] this fall. We like to work with partners, and we will work with the county to improve our habitat.”
The current round of criticism is not the first time the county has faced problems at Spoonbill Marsh.
Shortly after it was constructed, FDEP cited the county for permit infractions, charging that “failure to construct the disposal system at the Spoonbill Marsh site in accordance with the approved design and DEP issued permits had altered the basis for issuance of the permit, resulting in a need to provide a new basis for reasonable assurance of compliance.”
In response, the county suggested, and the state approved, four major additions: a debris screen at the intake point; floating plant mats; oyster seed structures; and sea grass zones in the ponds. All four were accomplished. The oysters, Pfeffer notes, are thriving to the point that the county may consider harvesting them.
The Department of Environmental Protection, in response to a list of questions from Vero Beach 32963 has responded via email and telephone that answers are being prepared, but they had not been received by press time.
