FGUA in Lehigh Acres and the system
The Utility System service area is located entirely within the bounds of Lee County, and is situated 12 miles east of Fort Myers near 1-75 and Southwest Florida International Airport. The Utility System was developed to serve the Lehigh Acres community. A location map of the Utility System is included below. The Utility System covers approximately 60,000 acres of residential and light commercial property in Lee County. The majority of the developed property is single-family residential homes, condominiums, apartments, patio homes, golf course villas, and estates with the commercial development primarily for support of the surrounding residents. The Utility System includes a water treatment plant and a wastewater treatment plant and currently serves approximately 9.3 percent of the area authorized to be served by the Utility System.
Water System
General
The water facilities of the Utility System include one lime softening treatment plant consisting of water supply wells with associated lime softening, disinfection and chemical addition facilities, water storage tanks, and approximately 165 miles of water transmission and distribution lines ranging in size from 2 to 16 inches in diameter.
Water Supply
The Utility System has twelve raw water supply wells providing 2,200 gpm of raw water from the sandstone aquifer. The Utility System was permitted for twenty wells in 1996 and ten wells were constructed. Two wells were permitted in February 2000 and recently constructed. The Utility System operates under the South Florida Water Management District (SFWMD) Water Use Permit (WUP) No. 36-00166W. The permit expires on November 14, 2006: The WUP allows an average daily withdrawal of 2.39 million gallons per day (MGD) and a maximum daily withdrawal of 3.11 MGD.
Water Treatment and Storage
The Utility System is served by one water treatment plant. The treatment train includes aeration, lime softening, pH adjustment, ammoniation, filtration, disinfection, storage and high service pumping. The Lehigh Acres Water System as of May 31, 2005 serves 12,224 connections. (Build out estimated at 153,800 ERCs).
Wastewater System
General
The wastewater facilities of the Utility System include a wastewater treatment plant (WWTP), approximately 85 miles of gravity sewer lines, 52 lift stations, 35 miles of force main and 7.9 miles of reuse or effluent force mains.
Wastewater Treatment; Effluent Disposal; Wastewater and Transmission Facilities
The Wastewater Treatment. Plant operates under Florida Department of Environmental Protection (FDEP) operating permit number FLA014565. The permitted capacity on an annual average daily flow (AADF) basis is 2.1 MGD. The annual average daily flow to the facility, as of September 30, 2004, was 2.198 MGD AADF. Treated effluent from the facility is permitted to discharge to a 1.020 mgd AADF slow-rate public access reclaimed water irrigation system consisting of three golf courses and a 1 480 mgd on site evaporation/percolation pond. The Lehigh Acres Wastewater Treatment Plant served 9,883 connections as of May 31, 2005 (Build out estimated at 128,000 lots).
Wastewater System Regulatory Compliance
FDEP has recently considered issuing a draft consent order based upon effluent disposal concerns originally initiated with the previous owner of the facility, Florida Water Services. A consent order originally proposed to FWS required repairs and corrective actions to the percolation/evaporation ponds and full compliance with FDEP regulations by May 1, 2003. The repairs were completed and compliance with the scheduled date was achieved The consent order was closed on March 31, 2003, however, the consent order contained the following additional requirement concerning the ponds: “In the event that any discharge occurs from the percolation/evaporation ponds after May 1, 2003 the respondent shall within thirty (30): days submit an application to the Department for a Class I injection well shall be prepared and sealed by a professional engineer registered in the State of Florida. In the event the application is incomplete, within thirty (30) days of receipt of a request for additional information to complete the application, Respondent shall ensure that the information is submitted. Within three hundred sixty (360) days from issuance of the permit for the Class I injection well, Respondent shall complete the construction of the Class l injection well as authorized by the permit. Within thirty (30) days of completion of the Class 1 injection well as authorized by the construction permit, Respondent shall submit the appropriate Certification of Completion of Construction signed and sealed by the project engineer. If the Respondent is unable or unwilling to construct a Class I injection well as provided in this paragraph, the Department reserves the right to seek other relief to require the Respondent to comply with its rules and permits.”
By a letter dated March 31, 2003 FDEP notified Florida Water Services, Inc. that all of the conditions of the consent order were satisfactorily completed and that the case would be closed and put in the inactive file. Closing the case eliminated the condition cited above.
However, the ponds overflowed again, discharging treated wastewater effluent to adjacent canal from the site’s percolation ponds on September 6, 13 and 17, 2003. The un-permitted discharge from the percolation ponds was after significant abnormal rainfall during August and September 2003 (including two tropical storms). On November 17, 2003, the FDEP issued a draft consent order to Florida Water Services, Inc. The draft consent order would require Florida Water Services (and the FGUA upon acquisition of the Utility System) to modify the plant’s disposal system in such a way as to eliminate the discharge from the percolation/evaporation pond and develop a plan to reduce inflow and infiltration into the plant within one year by 50 percent. While it is expected that the consent order negotiations may extend for several months, the FGUA has already addressed both items. Additionally, the FGUA can apply for a limited wet weather discharge, to address abnormal rainfall events such as occurred in August and September 2003 and again in August of 2004. The impact of this permitting solution alternative may result in a reduction in capital improvement funding than currently budgeted.
The FDEP wastewater-operating permit expired on December 17, 2003 and was renewed. The permit contained several key dates requiring certain actions of the Authority to address the Department’s concerns. FDEP did not reintroduce the condition described in the 2002 consent order for a deep well during the permit renewal process, although it could reintroduced as part of the proposed draft consent order.
Water System
General
The water facilities of the Utility System include one lime softening treatment plant consisting of water supply wells with associated lime softening, disinfection and chemical addition facilities, water storage tanks, and approximately 165 miles of water transmission and distribution lines ranging in size from 2 to 16 inches in diameter.
Water Supply
The Utility System has twelve raw water supply wells providing 2,200 gpm of raw water from the sandstone aquifer. The Utility System was permitted for twenty wells in 1996 and ten wells were constructed. Two wells were permitted in February 2000 and recently constructed. The Utility System operates under the South Florida Water Management District (SFWMD) Water Use Permit (WUP) No. 36-00166W. The permit expires on November 14, 2006: The WUP allows an average daily withdrawal of 2.39 million gallons per day (MGD) and a maximum daily withdrawal of 3.11 MGD.
Water Treatment and Storage
The Utility System is served by one water treatment plant. The treatment train includes aeration, lime softening, pH adjustment, ammoniation, filtration, disinfection, storage and high service pumping. The Lehigh Acres Water System as of May 31, 2005 serves 12,224 connections. (Build out estimated at 153,800 ERCs).
Wastewater System
General
The wastewater facilities of the Utility System include a wastewater treatment plant (WWTP), approximately 85 miles of gravity sewer lines, 52 lift stations, 35 miles of force main and 7.9 miles of reuse or effluent force mains.
Wastewater Treatment; Effluent Disposal; Wastewater and Transmission Facilities
The Wastewater Treatment. Plant operates under Florida Department of Environmental Protection (FDEP) operating permit number FLA014565. The permitted capacity on an annual average daily flow (AADF) basis is 2.1 MGD. The annual average daily flow to the facility, as of September 30, 2004, was 2.198 MGD AADF. Treated effluent from the facility is permitted to discharge to a 1.020 mgd AADF slow-rate public access reclaimed water irrigation system consisting of three golf courses and a 1 480 mgd on site evaporation/percolation pond. The Lehigh Acres Wastewater Treatment Plant served 9,883 connections as of May 31, 2005 (Build out estimated at 128,000 lots).
Wastewater System Regulatory Compliance
FDEP has recently considered issuing a draft consent order based upon effluent disposal concerns originally initiated with the previous owner of the facility, Florida Water Services. A consent order originally proposed to FWS required repairs and corrective actions to the percolation/evaporation ponds and full compliance with FDEP regulations by May 1, 2003. The repairs were completed and compliance with the scheduled date was achieved The consent order was closed on March 31, 2003, however, the consent order contained the following additional requirement concerning the ponds: “In the event that any discharge occurs from the percolation/evaporation ponds after May 1, 2003 the respondent shall within thirty (30): days submit an application to the Department for a Class I injection well shall be prepared and sealed by a professional engineer registered in the State of Florida. In the event the application is incomplete, within thirty (30) days of receipt of a request for additional information to complete the application, Respondent shall ensure that the information is submitted. Within three hundred sixty (360) days from issuance of the permit for the Class I injection well, Respondent shall complete the construction of the Class l injection well as authorized by the permit. Within thirty (30) days of completion of the Class 1 injection well as authorized by the construction permit, Respondent shall submit the appropriate Certification of Completion of Construction signed and sealed by the project engineer. If the Respondent is unable or unwilling to construct a Class I injection well as provided in this paragraph, the Department reserves the right to seek other relief to require the Respondent to comply with its rules and permits.”
By a letter dated March 31, 2003 FDEP notified Florida Water Services, Inc. that all of the conditions of the consent order were satisfactorily completed and that the case would be closed and put in the inactive file. Closing the case eliminated the condition cited above.
However, the ponds overflowed again, discharging treated wastewater effluent to adjacent canal from the site’s percolation ponds on September 6, 13 and 17, 2003. The un-permitted discharge from the percolation ponds was after significant abnormal rainfall during August and September 2003 (including two tropical storms). On November 17, 2003, the FDEP issued a draft consent order to Florida Water Services, Inc. The draft consent order would require Florida Water Services (and the FGUA upon acquisition of the Utility System) to modify the plant’s disposal system in such a way as to eliminate the discharge from the percolation/evaporation pond and develop a plan to reduce inflow and infiltration into the plant within one year by 50 percent. While it is expected that the consent order negotiations may extend for several months, the FGUA has already addressed both items. Additionally, the FGUA can apply for a limited wet weather discharge, to address abnormal rainfall events such as occurred in August and September 2003 and again in August of 2004. The impact of this permitting solution alternative may result in a reduction in capital improvement funding than currently budgeted.
The FDEP wastewater-operating permit expired on December 17, 2003 and was renewed. The permit contained several key dates requiring certain actions of the Authority to address the Department’s concerns. FDEP did not reintroduce the condition described in the 2002 consent order for a deep well during the permit renewal process, although it could reintroduced as part of the proposed draft consent order.
posted by Editor Facts & Myths @ 6:47 PM
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