Will Florida’s water quality get better or worse? Future could be in these 14 areas

As harmful algal blooms, seagrass die-offs and unhealthy water bodies sound alarm bells around Florida, several bills in the 2023 Florida legislative session are aimed at addressing the state’s water quality woes.

Meanwhile, other bills up for consideration have received criticism from environmental advocates, who argue that they could lead to less regulation and increased pollution.

Here’s a look at 14 pieces of legislation that could have a significant impact on Florida’s water quality.

With about a month to go until the end of session on May 5, all of these bills have been introduced and referred to committees for review in the House and/or Senate; they have yet to be passed or signed into law.

Seagrass Restoration

The Seagrass Restoration Technology Development Initiative would establish a program partnering Mote Marine Laboratory and the University of Florida to research methods for restoring Florida’s imperiled seagrass meadows.

The measure also requires the creation of a a 10-year Florida Seagrass Restoration Plan and an advisory council of marine science and other experts to help oversee the efforts.

Sponsors: Sen. Jim Boyd, R-Bradenton; Rep. William Robinson Jr., R-Bradenton

Land and Water Management

This bill would strip counties and cities of the power to adopt local rules regarding water quality or quantity, pollution control, pollutant discharge prevention or removal and wetlands; the ability to regulate pollution would be exclusively left to state agencies such as the Florida Department of Environmental Protection, which critics argue has a poor track record of protecting water quality. The bill has garnered significant opposition from environmental groups and local government advocates.

The bill also does not grandfather in local pollution laws that are already on the books, such as a rainy season fertilizer bans, which could be eliminated as a result.

Sponsors: Sen. Danny Burgess, R-Zephyrhills; Rep. Randy Maggard, R-Dade City

Pollutant Load Reduction / Environmental Protection

These similar bills in the House and Senate would implement a range of measures aimed at improving water quality, including:

▪ Basin Management Action Plans, used by governments as frameworks to improve poor water quality, would be required to include a prioritized list of projects with the best likelihood of reducing nutrient pollution;

▪ Local government comprehensive plans would have new requirements aimed at reducing pollutant loads;

▪ Simplifying the process for state acquisition of conservation lands under $5 million;

▪ Establishing the basis for Indian River Lagoon Protection Program to fund and oversee restoration efforts.

▪ Sponsors: Sen. Jason Brodeur, R-Lake Mary; Rep. Kevin Steele, R-Dade City and Rep. Toby Overdorf, R-Palm City

Safe Waterways Act

This bill would require the Florida Department of Health to improve its public notifications about waters that do not meet health standards for swimming due to contamination with fecal bacteria.

Signs would be required at “public bathing places,” such as beaches, where high bacteria levels are present, and water testing data would be made publicly available in a statewide database.

Sponsors: Sen. Lori Berman, D-Boynton Beach; Rep. Peggy Gossett-Seidman, R-Highland

Management and Storage of Surface Waters

This bill would make it easier to complete habitat creation, restoration and enhancement projects on government-owned and agricultural lands by exempting those projects from certain regulations. A project must result in an overall increase in wetland function to qualify for the exemption.

Sponsors: Sen. Colleen Burton, R-Lakeland; Rep. Sam Killebrew, R-Winter Haven

Implementation of the Recommendations of the Blue-Green Algae Task Force

Two similar bills proposed in the House and Senate would adopt select measures recommended by the state’s Blue-Green Algae Task Force. The task force was created at the direction of Gov. Ron DeSantis in 2019 to provide guidance on combating toxic algal blooms. It produced 32 recommendations, but very few of them have been implemented.

The original versions of the 2023 House and Senate bills included a provision for establishing a statewide inspection program for septic tanks. That measure was deleted from the Senate version of the bill in an amendment approved on April 4.

That leaves only one task force recommendation alive in the Senate version of the bill: an increase in pollution monitoring efforts for development projects with a cost exceeding $1 million.

Sponsors: Sen. Linda Stewart, D-Orlando; Rep. Lindsay Cross, D-St. Petersburg

Wastewater Grant Program

This bill would expand eligibility for Florida Department of Environmental Protection’s Wastewater Grant Program to include the more than 1,800 water bodies listed as impaired around the state.

Local governments are eligible to apply for the grants, which fund projects to reduce excess nutrient pollution.

Sponsors: Sen. Ana Maria Rodriguez, R-Doral; Rep. Fabian Basabe, R-Miami Beach

Apalachicola Bay Area of Critical State Concern

This measure would fund restoration efforts in northwest Florida’s Apalachicola Bay estuary. The bay, formerly the home of 90% of Florida’s oyster harvest, has been in decline for over a decade due to drought, water flow issues and pollution, and oyster harvest is closed through the end of 2025.

The bill would give the Florida Department of Environmental Protection power to grant up to $5 million annually over the next five years for restoration projects.

Sponsors: Sen. Corey Simon, R-Tallahassee; Jason Shoaf, R-Port St. Joe

Outstanding Florida Springs

This bill would grant Warm Mineral Springs in Sarasota County status as an “Outstanding Florida Spring,” granting it additional protections.

Sponsors: Sen. Joe Gruters, R-Sarasota; Rep. Michael Grant, R-Port Charlotte

Biosolids

This measure would allow the state’s Wastewater Grant Program to fund projects that convert sewage wastewater into biosolids. Also known as sewage sludge, the treated biosolids can be used as fertilizer and to improve soil conditions.

The bill would also limit the use of certain biosolids unless the applicant can prove the use will not add to nutrient pollution.

Sponsors: Sen. Jason Brodeur, R-Lake Mary; Rep. Kaylee Tuck, R-Lake Placid

Excise Tax on Water Extracted for Commercial or Industrial Use

This measure would create a tax on the commercial extraction of water from Florida’s water bodies and aquifer of $0.001 per gallon. Water extractors would also be required to keep records than can be inspected by the state.

The tax money would fun the state’s Water Protection and Sustainability Program Trust Fund.

Sponsor: Sen. Linda Stewart, D-Orlando

Sanitary Sewer Lateral Inspection Programs

This measure would give cities and counties the authority to access and repair problematic sanitary sewer connections that connect private property, such as homes, to the public sewer system.

Connections that are in disrepair can leak, allowing excess nutrients to escape the waste stream. Local governments would be required to notify the property owner before work begins and how long it will take.

Sponsors: Sen. Ana Maria Rodriguez, R-Doral; Keith Truenow, R-Tavares

Onsite Sewage Treatment and Disposal System Inspections

This measure would task the Florida Department of Environmental Protection with creating a septic tank inspection program, with inspections required every five years. Septic systems within Basin Management Action Plan areas would be prioritized.

Sponsors: Michael Caruso, R-Delray Beach

Flooding and Sea Level Rise Vulnerability Studies

This measure would require additional considerations of sea level rise for development in coastal areas, including assessments of potential environmental damage.

It also expands eligibility for state grants that fund sea level rise and flooding resiliency projects.

Sponsors: Sen. Alexis Calatayud, R-Miami; Rep. Christine Hunschofsky, D-Parkland