EPA to set water pollutant standards for Florida

Orlando Business Journal Anjali Fluker November 27-December 3, 2009 Settlement with environmental groups irk local developers, DEP . . . the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is proposing new stormwater runoff rules that could make doing business more expensive for Florida land developers . . . At issue: Stormwater runoff — when excess water from rain or irrigation flows from land into ponds, lakes, rivers, streams and coastal waters — generally contains pollutants such as nitrogen and phosphorus from pesticides, herbicides, fertilizer and animal manure. These nutrients can render water unfit for drinking, as well as kill wildlife and cause toxic algae blooms. So Oakland, Calif.-based law firm Earthjustice, which represented the Florida Wildlife Federation, Conservancy of Southwest Florida, Sierra Club, St. Johns Riverkeeper and Ecoswift, sued the EPA in mid-2008. The suit alleged the EPA wasn’t enforcing the federal Clean Water Act strongly enough in Florida, which resulted in some of the poorest water quality in the nation. http://orlando.bizjournals.com/orlando/stories/2009/11/30/story7.html?b=1259557200^2501981