(Brooksville, FL) In order to comply with state mandates, the Hernando County Utilities Department will be hosting a public input open house to provide information regarding Septic System Remediation Plans to help protect our springs on Tuesday, February 4, 2020 from 4 – 7 p.m. at the Sandhill Scout Reservation located at 11210 Cortez Boulevard in Brooksville. Residents are invited to attend, provide input and ask any questions they may have.
In July of 2016, the Governor signed into law the Florida Springs and Aquifer Protection Act to protect 33 Florida springs threatened by nitrate pollution. For the Weeki Wachee Springshed, septic systems represent 30 percent of the total nitrogen loading to groundwater. To comply with this legislation and protect our springs, Hernando County has begun exploring options to remediate the septic systems contributing to the Spring.
Hernando County performed a study in 2016 to determine which septic systems impact Weeki Wachee Springs. The study also prioritized the areas based on level of impact. The first focus area chosen was District A (see map). According to the study, this area is immediately adjacent and has the greatest impact to the springs.
In Sept. 2019, it was projected that the Septic to Sewer conversion for half of district A will cost 450 property owners within the project area $6000 each, or cumulatively $2.7 million on top of the county’s share and grant monies.
Contact the Hernando County Utilities Department at (352) 754-4769 or visit https://www.hernandocounty.us/Home/ShowDocument?id=5969 for more information on the public input open house.
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