10-2182 Opposing Proposal by US Enviornmental Protection Agency to Enact New Numeric Nutrient Criteria for Water Quality Standards

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RESOLUTION 10-2182 "A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COMMISSION OF THE CITY OF CASSELBERRY, FLORIDA, OPPOSING THE PROPOSAL BY THE UNITED STATES ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY TO ENACT NEW NUMERIC NUTRIENT CRITERIA FOR WATER QUALITY STANDARDS TO BE APPLICABLE FOR ALL LAKES, STREAMS, AND OTHER FLOWING CLASS III WATERS IN THE STATE OF FLORIDA; PROVIDING FOR CONFLICTS, SEVERABILITY, AND EFFECTIVE DATE." WHEREAS, the City of Casselberry recognizes the importance of clean water to public health, aquatic life, and long term recreational use; and WHEREAS, the City acknowledges the need for rules and regulations to protect the quality of waters throughout the State of Florida; and WHEREAS, the City has adopted a Stormwater, Lakes Management, and Water Quality Master Plan and an associated Stormwater Utility Fee, committing well over $1 million on an annual basis to protect its waters and ensure the viability of its stormwater management system; and WHEREAS, the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has proposed highly restrictive and broad-based Numeric Nutrient Criteria (NNC), for which the scientific basis is highly questionable, and as a result of which even many healthy, natural systems in the State of Florida would be found out of compliance; and WHEREAS, as a result of such restrictive standards, the City will be faced with the prospect of mounting costs for its wastewater and stormwater facilities and programs, the result of which will be exorbitant additional cost to the City's residents and utility customers, with no guarantee that required results will be attainable or even necessary for the benefit of the City's natural systems; and WHEREAS, such new, highly restrictive criteria must be reasonable, attainable, and scientifically sound for the City to be able to support them, and EPA has not demonstrated with any level of certainty that NNC meets any of these three requirements. NOW THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE CITY COMMISSION OF THE CITY OF CASSELBERRY, FLORIDA, AS FOLLOWS: SECTION I. The City Commission of the City of Casselberry hereby declares its opposition to the proposal by the United States Environmental Protection Agency subjecting the State of Florida to federal Numeric Nutrient Criteria and requests our legislators in Washington, DC, Tallahassee, and at local levels to intervene and demand that statewide numeric nutrient criteria be established through a sound science -driven process that affords protection to the environment with adequate time to address concerns of regulated communities, and with appropriate, realistic time -frames for achieving compliance.