PHOTO BY MAX HARLYNKING VIA UNSPLASH.COM
The Central Florida Water Initiative (Website) plan drew formal approval from the St. Johns River Water Management District board earlier this month. The regional water-supply strategy, which covers Orange, Osceola, Seminole, Polk, and southern Lake counties, projects that by 2045 the area could face a groundwater shortfall of roughly 96 million gallons per day without major intervention – hence the plan to do something about it before that happens.
The plan outlines a suite of alternative-water-source projects, including surface-water withdrawals, reclaimed-water uses, and water‐conservation programs, that collectively could generate approximately 514 million gallons per day to offset the projected gap. The largest chunk, nearly 279 mgd, would come from surface water projects, or rather, a water-supply system that pulls water from above-ground sources like rivers, lakes, reservoirs, and streams, rather than pumping it from underground aquifers.
Meanwhile, as this water-supply master plan is moving forward, the region is facing mounting pressure from land-development activity, particularly east of the Econlockhatchee River in eastern Orange County, a zone where large-scale master-planned communities are actively moving forward before infrastructure and water impacts can fully be reviewed.
Brevard County currently has to pump water to homes on its side of the county line from Lake Washington, as there isn’t any in the area to support those residents. So, imagine what will happen once that area is opened to development, which is mostly the reason for the recent push to construct a road through the “protected lands” of Split Oak Reserve. Check out this great video from For Florida’s Sake (TikTok) for some context.
Environmental managers note that declining groundwater levels, spring flows, river flows, and lake levels are already being observed as a result of current groundwater use and development needs. Meanwhile, developers and local governments are racing to secure land east of the Econ before growth becomes even more constrained by regulation or cost.
For residents and policymakers alike, the fruits of the water plan approval will not be immediate, as it will likely take roughly two decades for anything to happen, in order to secure funding, permitting, and carry out construction. At the same time, the development momentum in eastern Orange County means the infrastructure (roads, water, sewer, stormwater) must keep up. If growth outpaces the planned water-supply strategies, the region may face harder trade-offs in the future.
