Manatee moves forward with $10 million deep injection well to handle Piney Point waste
As state officials continue to work on closing the hazardous Piney Point site, county officials approved another step to help get rid of its contaminated water.
The Board of County Commissioners previously committed to helping the state get rid of the process water left behind at the former phosphate processing plant. On Tuesday, the board voted to approve a construction agreement to build an underground injection control well.
Also known as a deep injection well, the county’s underground injection control well would send the contaminated water from Piney Point about 2,000 feet below ground. Because the county will own the well, the board will oversee the well and determine the water quality standard before the water enters the well.
The construction is expected to cost about $9.3 million, with another $800,000 tacked on to pay for the design engineering services. Commissioners have debated using a well to resolve the danger at Piney Point before, but the approval was still a tough pill to swallow for some of them.
“I’ve never been in favor of a deep water injection well. I’m still not, but I think it’s fair to say at this point that we don’t have a choice,” said Commissioner Vanessa Baugh. “We have to get Piney Point closed.”
Commissioner Misty Servia explained that she was also hesitant about the well idea, but her concerns were relieved in February when the board held a workshop to learn more about the option.
“I’m somebody who relies on science and facts,” Servia said. “When I understood the geology of Florida, especially in this area of Manatee County, and the history of deep wells and that the evidence shows that they are scientifically sound ways of disposing of this wastewater … that combined with the cleaning of the process water before it goes in the well – these are the things that gave me the confidence that this is the right decision.”
The board voted 6-1 to approve the construction agreement. Commissioner Reggie Bellamy cast the dissenting vote.
Piney Point quickly became a crisis in late March when site operators detected a leak in the largest pond on the site. That pond held about 480 million gallons of water at the time. In order to prevent the entire pond from collapsing and flooding the area, the Florida Department of Environmental Protection authorized an emergency order allowing site operators to begin draining that water into Tampa Bay.
In order to prevent a disaster of flood on land, Piney Point ultimately sent 215 million gallons of water into the harbor near Port Manatee.
As a former phosphate plant, the 676-acre Piney Point site is home to huge ponds of process water, which is used to help run the machinery required to extract phosphate from the rocks that are mined elsewhere.
Process water is high in nutrients — nitrogen, phosphorous and ammonia — that are harmful to the environment. Due to the impact it could have, process water is supposed to be treated and cleaned before it is released into local waterways.
Gypsum is a slightly radioactive byproduct of phosphate processing. Because it cannot be used for anything else, the gypsum forms giant hills. Piney Point’s process water ponds site on top of gypsum stacks that are 70 feet tall, forming the highest elevation point in Manatee County.
State leaders say they’re ready to put the issue to rest. Gov. Ron DeSantis ordered FDEP staff to put together a plan to close the gypsum stacks at Piney Point. A written plan is expected to be complete by the end of the year.
The full closure of the Piney Point site is expected to cost the state about $200 million. The Florida Legislature plans to set aside $100 million toward that cost this year. The second half of that funding is expected to be approved as part of next year’s state budget.
Earlier this month, county commissioners voted to direct a hydrogeological firm to begin designing the well. The construction agreement that the county approved on Tuesday allows the construction to begin only after receiving the required permit from FDEP.
According to the agreement, construction is expected to be completed about 11 months after that permit is approved. The well is set to be constructed on a 42-acre piece of county-owned land just south of the Piney Point site along Buckeye Road.
Other deep wells already exist in Manatee County. The city of Bradenton owns a well, Tropicana owns a well and the county operates three of its own wells.
This story was originally published April 20, 2021 at 1:17 PM with the headline "Manatee moves forward with $10 million deep injection well to handle Piney Point waste."
