Volusia County issued the following announcement on March 1.
The Volusia County Council approved a grant agreement Tuesday with the Florida Department of Environmental (DEP) to conduct a wastewater treatment feasibility analysis and septic system remediation plan within the Blue Spring springshed.
Designated by the Florida Legislature as an Outstanding Florida Spring, Blue Spring requires additional protections to ensure its restoration for future generations. Previous state studies indicate the spring is nutrient impaired due to excessive levels of nitrates in the groundwater within the 108-square-mile springshed. Those same studies determined that septic systems and fertilizer were the leading causes.
As required by the Florida Springs and Aquifer Protection Act, the wastewater treatment feasibility analysis will include elements like conducting a septic system inventory, assessing existing wastewater capacity and infrastructure as well as infrastructure upgrades and evaluating cost-effective project solutions and financing options. Analysis of the data will be key to establishing strategies and action plans for reducing the nutrient impacts that septic systems have on the springs. The study’s price tag is expected to be up to $250,000, with DEP paying the entire cost.
“To accelerate development of the information essential to implementing an effective plan, the department (DEP) has made grant funding available to perform a wastewater treatment feasibility analysis and produce a report documenting the analysis,” states a memo accompanying Tuesday’s agenda item.
Volusia County has already invested more than $20 million in the past five years into upgrading its wastewater treatment infrastructure to advanced treatment. Expected to be completed by June 2024, the Blue Spring feasibility analysis will include collaboration and cooperation among the cities of DeLand, Deltona, Orange City and DeBary.
“Our goal is not to remediate every single septic tank in Volusia County, but rather find them in the most sensitive areas and to work collectively to do something about them,” Volusia County Utilities Director Mike Ulrich told the County Council last week during a water quality workshop. “We have to determine a strategy that makes sense.”
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