Consumptive Use of Water in Florida, 2001 Environmental Conference Proceedings

Myra Carpenter--The state of Florida regulates the consumption of water through various water management districts located throughout the state. These districts have statutory authority for planning and water resource development and assist as needed with water supply development. The intent is to provide assurance for a dependable, sustainable supply of water for existing and future reasonable-beneficial uses and natural systems. Growth in the region, coupled with drought conditions in recent years, have stressed the Floridian aquifer and resulted in interest in aggressive ground water conservation. Since 1997, Georgia-Pacific’s Palatka Florida pulp and paper mill has been involved in renewing its consumptive use permit which allocates the use of both surface and ground water. During this process the mill has faced increasing regulatory pressure to minimize, and eliminate if possible, its use of ground water. To address this issue, the mill has pursued several avenues; substitution of ground water with surface water where possible, control technology to optimize withdrawal of ground water, and ultimately a reduction in overall water consumption. As a result of these initiatives, water consumption has decreased from 23,500 gal per ton of finished product to 19,600 gal per ton. Other planned initiatives will reduce total consumption down to 16,700 gal per ton. The efforts of the last several years are expected to demonstrate the mill’s desire to effectively manage and conserve the state’s water resources.