FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:                             June 6, 2022

 

Contact: 

Kinsey Miller

Public Information Office

(850) 926-0919 Ext. 712

 

WAKULLA COUNTY, Fla – This morning, the Wakulla County Board of County Commissioners (BoCC) and Staff held a ceremony at the Otter Creek Water Reclamation Treatment Facility to officially begin sending aquifer recharge water from the Facility to the Wakulla County Golf Course.

 

Today’s ceremony marked the start of the most aggressive infrastructure investment program in the County’s history, which will include spending well over $100 million over the next five to seven years on wastewater infrastructure projects to safeguard our aquifer and springs. The Wastewater Infrastructure Investment Plan is important to protect our groundwater which affects our community’s health, tourism, economy, and most importantly the environment. As part of the Plan, the County is currently constructing a $7 million septic to sewer system in the Greiner’s Addition subdivision. A further $51 million in septic to sewer projects funded by the Florida Department of Environmental Protection (FDEP) and the Northwest Florida Water Management District will be constructed over the next five years in various areas of the County. In addition to these projects, others totaling around $33 million are anticipated to be funded by FDEP in upcoming years.

 

Last week, the County released Phase 1A and 1B of collection system upgrades for bid with a construction budget of $7.3 million and will release an additional $3.2 million in upgrades next month. Another project totaling around $8 million is scheduled to be released for bid this year to construct a third treatment facility allowing a further .600MGD (Million Gallons Per Day) for a total capacity of 1.8MGD, substantially expanding Advanced Wastewater Treatment (AWT) capabilities.

 

The Wakulla County Golf Course, previously irrigated using water from the aquifer, will now be used to safely recharge it as recently approved by FDEP. Renovations of the Golf Course, with engineering and design services likely to be awarded to an engineer at tonight’s BoCC meeting, will follow a $6.9 million construction budget. Roughly $4 million of which is dedicated to the construction of aquifer recharge infrastructure. The Golf Course is anticipated to reopen in the summer of 2023.

 

The Golf Course is in a Primary Focus Area (PFA) of the Wakulla Springs Basin Management Action Plan (BMAP). The BMAP was created with the goal of restoring the basin and is a priority of the County. Since its creation, the County has implemented multiple strategies necessary to achieve this goal. In 2012, the County began pursuing funding to expand wastewater treatment by .650MGD using AWT standards, the highest level of standard in Florida. After years of work to secure approval and grant funding, the Facility’s capacity has been increased to treat 1.2MGD. With a current average flow of .780MGD, .600MGD can now be sprayed on the Golf Course to safely recharge the aquifer. Upon completion of the Rapid Infiltration Basin System (RIBS), the County will have the capacity to spray 2.0MGD as available.

 

Wakulla County’s water reclamation operation is one of the most environmentally friendly in Florida and produces aquifer recharge that exceeds required standards. Funding for the Wastewater Infrastructure Investment Plan is being sourced almost entirely from grants available to the County. For additional questions relating to this story, please contact County Administrator David Edwards at dedwards@mywakulla.com.