STATE OF FLORIDA

DIVISION OF ADMINISTRATIVE HEARINGS

DUNES GOLF AND COUNTRY CLUB, )

)

Petitioner, )

)

vs. ) CASE NO. 78-756

)

SOUTHWEST FLORIDA WATER )

MANAGEMENT DISTRICT, )

)

Respondent. )

)

RECOMMENDED ORDER

A hearing was held in the above-captioned matter, after due notice, at Sanibel, Florida, on July 26, 1978, before the undersigned Hearing Officer.

APPEARANCES

For Petitioner: James D. Decker, Esquire

Post Office Box 280

Ft. Myers, Florida 33902

For Respondent: John H. Wheeler

Post Office Box V

West Palm Beach, Florida 35402 ISSUE

Whether the application of the Dunes Golf and Country Club for a water use permit at Sanibel, Florida, should granted pursuant to Chapter 373, Florida Statutes.

FINDINGS OF FACT

1. The Dunes Golf and Country Club, Sanibel, is a partnership owned by John K. Kontinos and William R. Frizzell. They operate a nine hole golf course consisting of 65 acres of the eastern portion of Sanibel Island. The golf course is open to the public and, during the winter season, some 150 to 175 persons utilize the facility daily, but in the period May--November, it is utilized by only about 15 or 20 persons per day. The golf course is presently irrigated by water obtained from the lower Hawthorn and Suwannee aquifers through a well that is approximately 737 feet deep. On the days that water is pumped from the well, the pumping duration is from 8 to 12 hours per day, but the monthly hours during which pumping occurs averages approximately 155 hours per month. There is another existing well in another portion of the applicant's property which extends 896 feet into the Suwannee aquifer. The well presently in use (well number 1) has 546 feet of casing and the well that is not in use (well number 2) has 700 feet of casing. (Testimony of Kontinos, Exhibits 2, 4)

2. On December 15, 1977, the Dunes Golf and Country Club submitted an application to the South Florida Water Management District for a consumptive use permit to withdraw 320 acre feet of groundwater per year to irrigate an area of approximately 109 acres. The intent of the application was to obtain a sufficient quantity of water to irrigate the golf course which the applicant intends to enlarge to consist of 18 holes. The additional 9 holes would cover some 44 acres and well number 2 is intended to be activated to provide additional water for this purpose. (Testimony of Kontinos, Keiling, Exhibits 1- 2)

   
   

3. The South Florida Water Management District issued the required public notice of the application on March 30, 1978, and objections to the application were received by that agency from the City Council of Sanibel, the Island Water Association, Inc., and George R. Campbell. Public notice of hearing on the application was duly published on March 30, 1978. (Exhibits 5-7)

   
   

4. The staff of the South Florida Water Management District reviewed the application and recommended continuation of the applicant's existing use from the lower Hawthorn Formation and use of additional irrigation water from the Suwannee aquifer in the total amount of 320 acre feet annually. It also recommended that the issuance of a permit should be conditioned in various respects to include semiannual submission of water quality data and pumpage records for each well, installation and maintenance of well controls, and repair or replacement of well casings, valves or controls that leak or become inoperative. The staff further recommended that maximum monthly withdrawals from the lower Hawthorn Formation be limited to 7.5 million gallons and 7.6 million gallons from the Suwannee Formation. At the hearing however, the South Florida Water Management District representative changed these recommendations to 8.9 MO and 6.1 MG respectively. Additionally, the initial recommendation of

   320 acre feet annual withdrawal was reduced to 200 acre feet. This amount is considerably less that the average of 600 acre feet used on other comparably sized golf courses. Further the staff representative recommended at the hearing that a further condition be attached to the issuance of the permit; i.e., Condition 15, which requires the permittee to submit analyses of total dissolved concentrations in water samples from each well within 30 days of permit issuance and, if such concentration exceeds 4,000 MG/L, logging procedures as to the affected well will be required with necessary safeguards to be employed to eliminate any interaquifer leakage. (Testimony of Gleason, Exhibit 4)

   
   

5. The objections of the City of Sanibel and the Island Water Association, Inc. involved concerns that further withdrawals from the lower Hawthorn aquifer will affect the availability of water which is treated by the water association for general island use. In addition, there is concern about possible contamination of the lower Hawthorn aquifer from interaquifer leakage. The Water Association is a member-owned cooperative that is not under the jurisdiction of the municipality. It is concerned about the draw down in the water table which will be occasioned by additional withdrawals by the applicant. It therefore believes that pumping tests should be conducted prior to the issuance of a permit to provide information concerning the capacity and safe yield of the wells. Although an Association expert testified that the proposed Dunes' withdrawal would create a cone of depression that would extend into and influence the existing Water Association wells, the evidence shows such influence to be minimal due to the fact that the Dunes wells are almost three miles away from the nearest Association well. Further, due to the limited time that the Dunes wells are pumped each day, the aquifer recovers to a certain extent during other hours. Although concerns are felt by the Water Association that water quality will be affected because of leakage from the Suwannee aquifer

   to the lower Hawthorn aquifer due to possible corrosion of steel casings in the Dunes wells, no evidence was presented that such casings are in fact defective and will contribute to degradation of water quality because of additional withdrawals. The additional special condition placed upon the issuance of a permit by the South Florida Water Management District will require correction of any such leakage that is discovered in the future. Previous studies show that the lower Hawthorn aquifer is separated from the Suwannee aquifer by the Tampa Limestone Formation which would slow down any entry of poorer quality water into the Hawthorn aquifer. It is found that the lesser amounts of water recommended by the South Florida Water Management District at the hearing will further reduce the likelihood of water quality degradation or draw down in other Island wells. (Testimony of Butler, Holland, Nuzman, Gleason, Exhibits 6, 8-13)

   
   

6. Ecological concerns were expressed at the hearing by a public witness as to the wastefulness of irrigating golf coup Yes and the requirement for fertilizer in sandy soil which causes leaching of nutrients after heavy water use. (Testimony of Webb)

   
   

   CONCLUSIONS OF LAW

   
   

7. The applicant seeks a permit for the consumptive use of water pursuant to Section 373.223, Florida Statutes, which provides pertinently as follows:

   
   

   373.223 Conditions for a permit.-

   To obtain a permit pursuant to the provisions of this chapter, the applicant must establish that the proposed use of water:

   1. Is a reasonable beneficial use as defined in s 373.019(5); and

   2. Will not interfere with any presently existing legal use of water, and

   3. Is consistent with the public interest.

   
   

8. Section 373.019(5) defines "reasonable-beneficial use" as the "use of water in such quantity as is necessary for economic and efficient utilization for a purpose and in a manner that is both reasonable and consistent with the public interest." It is considered that the scaled-down recommendations of the South Florida Water Management District, together with the conditions recommended for attachment to the issuance of a permit, will represent "a reasonable beneficial use" in the manner required by statute and will be consistent with the public interest. The conditions attached to the permit will ensure that the water use is in accord with the overall objectives of Chapter

373 and will not be harmful to the water resources of the area. Further, it has been established by the evidence that the proposed use as recommended by the Water Management District will not interfere with any presently existing legal use of water to any significant degree.

RECOMMENDATION

That a permit be issued to the applicant authorizing the consumptive use of the quantity of water recommended by the South Florida Water Management District staff, subject to the recommended conditions thereto.

THOMAS C. OLDHAM

Division of Administrative Hearings Room 530, Carlton Building Tallahassee, Florida 32304

(904) 488-9675

COPIES FURNISHED:

John H. Wheeler Post Office Box V

West Palm Beach, Florida 33402

James D. Decker, Esquire Post Office Box 200

Ft. Myers, Florida 33902

Docket for Case No: 78-000756

Orders for Case No: 78-000756