Hard-hit farmers given a reprieve

The complaints started soon after the freeze began: Strawberry growers were pumping too much groundwater too fast. The water was protecting crops from the cold, but wells were going dry and sinkholes were popping up throughout eastern Hillsborough County as the aquifer level plunged.

On Tuesday, water managers took action, but residents hoping for immediate pumping restrictions on farmers are likely to be disappointed.

Instead, the Southwest Florida Water Management District agreed to set aside $250,000 of taxpayer money to help residents fix 60 wells. That's even though farmers' water permits specifically require that farmers pay the cost of wells that go dry because of agricultural pumping.

The action is necessary, the Southwest Florida Water Management District said, because farmers took such a financial hit they might not be able to pay.

The decision allows the water management district to step in to make repairs and then try to recover the money from the farmer responsible. The board gave its executive director authority to declare an emergency to free the money.

Board member Hugh Gramling said 13 berry farmers are responsible for the majority of well complaints and cautioned that the expense of fixing those wells could drive some out of business.

Bill Hunter, who has been without water from his Plant City well for two weeks, said his pump burned out when the water level dropped. Although his well is being repaired by Astin Farms, Hunter was disturbed by the news that water managers will pitch in public money to help bail the farmers out, even though the farmers ultimately may have to reimburse the district.

"The farmers are the ones making the money," Hunter said.

Having the agency pitch in to help the growers out is "not penalizing the farmers at all for doing what they did," he said.

Farmers are obligated under their pumping permits to get water to residents with dry wells and to fix any wells damaged when water levels drop. The water management district issues pumping permits for strawberry farmers.

The money adds to the growing tax toll from the long string of freezing nights.

The falling groundwater - 60 feet in some places - is suspected of triggering scores of sinkholes and depressions, including one that shut down three of four lanes of eastbound Interstate 4 for four days. The district received reports of 85 sinkholes, mainly south of I-4. Two dozen of the sinkholes involved roads.

The bill for repairing the depression on I-4 was $300,000.

Hillsborough County added $2 million to its contract for an engineering firm to investigate and repair sinkholes on county rights of way.

State Rep. Richard Glorioso told the board Plant City faces a $2 million tab to fix damaged roads and the city's water tower that had to be drained because a sinkhole threatens it. That is nearly a quarter of the $8 million the city expects to raise through taxes this year, the Plant City Republican told the governing board.

The district might not need the entire $250,000. Some of the non-working wells may require only minor repairs, said district Executive Director Dave Moore.

The district's decision came after a report to the governing board about the impact from relentless pumping as freezing temperatures threatened to destroy strawberry crops.

The agency set the first of at least three public meetings to determine whether there is any way to prevent a repeat of this month's dry wells and rash of sinkholes for Feb. 15 from 6-9 p.m. in Plant City.

The district's goal is to have any revisions in place before next winter.

Changes could include cutting the amount of water farmers are allowed to pump for freeze protection, Moore said. The district's permits allow strawberry farmers to pump nearly 1 billion gallons every 24 hours to protect against a freeze.

Those amounts could change once the district finishes the hearings.

"We will look at how much water is allocated and evaluate where those limits should be," Moore said.

Ted Campbell, executive director for the Florida Strawberry Growers Association, said the water management district's move to make the money available for people with dry or non-working wells is prudent.

He said the money will help residents get their wells repaired quicker, although the number of wells that went dry specifically because of growers' pumping remains unclear. He also said most of the well problems have been addressed by growers, or are in the process of being taken care of.

The district will also turn to researchers at the Institute of Food and Agricultural Science at the University of Florida for other options that could include crop covers or using covers on a portion of the field and water on the rest to cut the pumping, Moore said.

Researchers are also looking at an experimental type of foam that could coat the plants. Another reduction could come from farmers capturing water that drains from the fields and reusing it.

The district has the authority to change farmers' permits. The process is lengthy, though, involving public hearings and reviews by the governing board.