Conservancy of Southwest Florida applauds the Collier County Board of Commissioners for taking action to protect our water

Guest Commentary

by Robert Moher

Conservancy of Southwest Florida

President and CEO

Naples, June 12, 2014 -- On behalf of the Conservancy of Southwest Florida and our 6,500 supporting families we applaud the Commission for listening to the concerns of citizens, demanding transparency and adequate regulatory enforcement from the Florida Department of Environmental Protection (DEP)

On Tuesday, June 10, Commissioners approved moving forward to legally challenge the inadequate enforcement by the DEP against the Dan A. Hughes Company, who undertook illegal, fracking-like activities at their Hogan Island well that put Collier’s drinking water at risk.

Why the Commission’s intervention is necessary

DEP did not reveal the illegal activity to Collier County until months after the violation occurred, allowing time for potential pollution to disperse – making it more difficult to detect and address.

Most alarming is now six months have passed since the illegal drilling occurred and the source of Collier County’s drinking water has not yet been tested for contamination.

DEP did not involve the County in determining the appropriate enforcement terms prior to finalizing a legally binding settlement (the consent order) with Hughes. The DEP’s consent order only requires Hughes to pay a paltry $25,000 fine and hire a consultant to test for potential groundwater contamination. Allowing the company cited for unauthorized activity to perform the investigation is an inherent conflict of interest. The County is taking this legal action to challenge DEP’s deficient enforcement in order to get the additional testing, remediation and financial commitments necessary to protect Collier’s public drinking water supply.

Conservancy of Southwest Florida’s position

DEP has pointed out that Hughes use of this extreme extraction technique is the first time it has been used in the state in Florida.  Therefore, the Conservancy of Southwest Florida believes it is important to set the bar high to ensure this violation is handled thoroughly and appropriately. DEP continues to shroud this violation in secrecy, preventing the public from information critical to protecting our drinking water supply – including what chemicals were used and where the wastewater was disposed.

Commissioners rightfully expressed frustration about their efforts to reach out to DEP receiving no response other than offers to speak in private.  Refusing to meet publicly with our Commissioners is further evidence of the DEP’s continued lack of transparency and accountability. Now DEP is redirecting the blame back to the Commissioners by suggesting in a press release the Commission is thwarting enforcement, when in fact their action is actually necessary to bring about meaningful enforcement. The Commissioners are engaging in the process on our behalf because DEP has not properly enforced this violation in a manner that protects Collier’s water supply.

Our citizens, visitors and family deserve a thorough and credible investigation of potential groundwater contamination and meaningful enforcement that demands accountability from Dan A. Hughes for the violation.

We cannot accept economic activities in our community which place our water resources, public health, and safety at an unacceptably high risk.  While acknowledging the rights of private property owners, we must also stand firm for the rights of the public citizens in our community.  We will continue to monitor and stand firm against irresponsible drilling with inappropriate methods or in inappropriate locations.

Thank you Collier County Commissioners for standing up for what is right.  Now we hope our DEP will follow suit to better protect our water supply which is the lifeblood of our economy, quality of life, and health.

Take action

For more information about the Conservancy of Southwest Florida how to support our mission, visit https://www.conservancy.org/action.