Leon County Commissioner Kristen Dozier tapped to tackle state water problems

James Call
Tallahassee Democrat

Leon County Commissioner Kristen Dozier is hoping to play a key role in resolving a statewide water crisis produced by the twin plagues of blue-green algae blooms and coastal red tide.

Dozier last month joined a Florida Association of Counties water committee just when Gov. Ron DeSantis issued an executive order on water policy. DeSantis directed the Department of Environmental Protection to create a five-year plan to reduce the level of nitrogen in runoff and wastewater that at times transforms springs and rivers into toxic streams of dayglow green.

“The timing is exceptional for us,” said Dozier about FAC and DeSantis seemingly moving in unison.

Three-term Leon County Commissioner Kristen Dozier is a member of the Florida Association of Counties Water Policy Committee.

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“I think we can compare with what we have seen with the algae blooms and the fish kills with some of the most notable environmental disasters of the past,” said Dozier.

When algae-infested freshwater flowed along the Caloosahatchee River and into the St. Lucie estuary at the same time that red tide plagued all three coasts during the summer of 2018, the combination produced an environmental crisis that some newspaper editorials compared to the legendary Cuyahoga River fire and the iconic Love Canal Superfund site.

Turning the Toxic Tide:

The stench drove tourists from the beach and health officials warned folks not to go near the water.

Much of the pollution can be attributed to aging sewage systems and septic tanks that contribute nearly half of the nutrients that feed the algae. The nitrogen works unseen. It seeps through the ground into the aquifer and emerges later in blooms of harmful algae – a blue-green film in a spring or lake.

It's a silent killer, sucking up all the oxygen and forcing other wildlife to leave.

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But in 2018 one couldn’t avoid seeing or smelling the consequences of fertilizers and septic tanks. Lake Okeechobee, in essence, serves as a giant holding pond for the state. The periodic release of its polluted water can foul both the St. Lucie and Caloosahatchee with a fluorescent-green toxic liquid.  

Last year when the release came while beach communities suffered through a red tide outbreak, the photos of the guacamole-colored water emptying into the Atlantic Ocean went viral in a way the missing loons and other wildlife at Wakulla Springs never could.

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“It helps to have a spotlight on a critical issue,” said Dozier.

In November, FASC agreed to form a committee to deal exclusively with water issues. DeSantis followed up in January with an executive order that directed the Department of Environmental Protection to develop a septic conversion and remediation grant program with local governments.

The Leon Commission has laid plans for such a partnership with the state. It has already committed $30 million over the next seven years to eliminate or upgrade 2,300 septic tanks in the Wakulla protection zone. The money has been earmarked with the hope of matching funds from the state.

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A second project would count on another $20 million in matching grants over the next five years for other wastewater projects.

“There’s a limited amount of dollars available, so I am thrilled that the governor wants to focus on this and hopefully put more money into grant programs,” said Dozier, in her third term on the commission.

She'll begin the quest to fund those initiatives in March. That's when the FAC Water Committee will hold its first meeting in Tallahassee, when the Florida Legislature is in session and writing next year's budget.

Writer James Call can be contacted at jcall@tallahassee.com. Follow on Twitter @CallTallahassee