Upgrade the Collier County Wastewater Treatment Plants

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Oxygen is an essential component of the aquatic environment. The most important measurement of water quality, oxygen indicates a waterbody’s state of health – that is, the ability to support aquatic life. Watersheds with oxygen concentrations of 5 milligrams per liter (mg/L) or higher can support well-balanced, healthy biological communities.

Oxygen in the 23 watersheds managed by Collier County has steadily dropped by 35% over the last 20 years to 3.5 mg/L, 30% lower than healthy levels. A “hypoxic dead zone” has formed in the center of Collier County, overlapping the Corkscrew Regional Ecosystem Watershed (CREW) and the Florida Panther National Wildlife Refuge. Oxygen levels are 0.9 mg/L in Immokalee and Ave Maria, 82% lower than healthy levels.

Excess nutrients (phosphorus and nitrogen) delivered to a waterbody can lead to both overgrowth of algae and eutrophication. As dead algae decompose, oxygen is consumed in the process, resulting in low levels of oxygen in the water. Because there are increasingly more people living in coastal areas, there are more nutrients entering Florida’s coastal waters from wastewater treatment facilities, runoff from land in urban areas during rains, and from farming.

The Collier County Pollution Control Department (PCD) recommendation 7.6 (FY22 Collier County Surface Water Report) states; “Reduction of nutrient pollution should remain a priority
County-wide. Reducing nutrients at the source is more cost effective and efficient than restoring ecosystems after they have been impacted by nutrients. Source reduction strategies should be considered and include the following: require low impact development for new and redevelopment; agricultural operations (including golf courses) should be following assigned best management practices (BMPs) for their operations and verified that the BMPs being implemented are effective; permitted discharges not meeting water quality standards should be remediated; and converting existing wastewater plants to advanced wastewater treatment (AWT) technologies.”

We encourage the Collier County Board of County Commissioners (BCC) to implement PCD recommendation 7.6 and mandate that all WWTP in Collier County be upgraded to AWT targeting the reduction of sewage reclaimed water nutrients to current (2023) Limits of Technology (LOT).

Eugene Wordehof

Collier Citizen’s Council

Best Use of Taxes – Fire District Service

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Marvin Easton

Private companies are in business to sell their products or services, for the benefit of their customers, and also for a profit, for the benefit for their company owners. They compete with each other to that end.

This differs from Taxpayer Funded Public Safety organizations, such as local Fire Agencies.

Why is it better for the residents and taxpayers of Collier County to have multiple public service Fire Agencies, (Greater Naples Fire, Immokalee Fire, North Collier Fire, Ochopee Fire operated by Greater Naples Fire, Big Corkscrew Fire operated by North Collier Fire, Marco Island City Fire, Naples City Fire)?

  • Each with its own paid Elected Governing Commissioners
  • Each with its own paid Command Staff Structures
  • Each with its own duplicated support Staff Functions
  • Each with its own responding trained Paramedics and Emergency Medical Service Technicians
  • Each with its own fleet of responding firefighting vehicles & supporting equipment
  • Each with its own backup fleet for their responding vehicles and equipment

Each with different annual property tax rates from 1.0 mills per year for North Collier, and 1.5 mills for Greater Naples and Isles of Capri Fire, all the way up to 3.75 mills for Immokalee Fire and Big Corkscrew Fire, and 4.0 mills for Ochopee Fire, all providing the same public-service functions for the residents and taxpayers in the county, where 1% of all calls are fire related, 84% are medical related, and the remaining 15% are rescue related and other responses?

Each Fire Agency responds to emergencies outside their taxing territories with North Collier and Greater Naples Fire being net assistance provider agencies, and Marco Island Fire, Immokalee Fire, and Naples Fire being net receivers of assistance.

Is our present structure, with multiple taxpayers funded Fire Agencies, the best organization now for Collier County?

Or as so many other Florida Counties have done, by consolidating their multiple Fire Agencies into fewer, or even into one for the entire county, they have reduced unneeded duplicated overhead, and other unneeded duplication in staffing, and unneeded duplication of backup equipment and used the savings of taxpayer funds to increase their services (such as adding more responding medical vehicles & responding staff, and reducing their response time by enlarging and increasing the number of their station locations.

Or in Collier County the potential to reduce the significant differences in tax rates paid to operate our current multiple Fire Agencies throughout the county for their services.

Is it time for Collier County to consolidate fire operations? You may want to let your elected officials (Fire Commissioners and County Commissioners) know your thoughts.

Respectfully submitted: Marvin Easton

Upstream vs. Downstream Water Quality Improvement Projects in Florida – What You Need to Know

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Eugene Wordehoff

“Downstream” water quality improvement projects attempt to mitigate the “impacts” of pollution. This is where most of Florida money is spent to “improve” water quality. Same for Marco Island. Marco water quality improvement projects attempt to treat the impact of pollution, and do not address the root cause.

As one example, $17,000,000 for the San Marco Road culverts will not reduce any sources of pollution. Downstream projects are easy – there are no special interests to oppose the projects. Just taxpayers who do not understand what is going on. Gives the appearance of doing something with “other peoples money.”

“Upstream” water quality improvement projects reduce or eliminate the actual sources of pollution. These projects reduce nutrient inputs to the ecosystems from the actual sources of pollution including agriculture and sewage treatment plants. Upgrading the Marco sewage treatment plant to reduce nutrient pollution is an example of an upstream project. These projects are a benefit to the environment. Upstream projects are hard – the special interests complain and make the politicians life difficult. Nothing is accomplished. This is the Florida Problem.

When the City of Marco Island is accused of doing “nothing” to improve water quality on the island, this refers to an absence of “upstream” pollution reductions. The city responds by saying
that they are implementing “many” projects to improve water quality. Of course, the city is referring to “downstream” projects, where there are no actual pollution reductions.

Reducing nutrients at the source is more cost effective and efficient than restoring ecosystems after they have been impacted by nutrients. Politicians feel the need to appear to be doing
“something” about water quality, even though they are actually doing nothing at all.

The public does not understand the difference.
Eugene Wordehoff
Collier Citizens Counci