Peace River Basin Board Notebook
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Peace River Basin Board Information and Budget Notebook Friday, April 4, 2008 9:30 a.m. Paynes Creek Bartow Service Office 170 Century Boulevard Bartow, Florida (863) 534-1448 PEACE RIVER BASIN BOARD C. A. "Neil" Combee, Jr., Co-Chair Ex Officio Patsy C. Symons, Co-Chair Ex Officio H. Paul Senft, Jr., Co-Chair Ex Officio J. Kenneth Harrison, Vice Chair Rufus C. Lazzell, Secretary James L. Hageman, Member Paul G. Samuels, Member Fred W. Trippensee, III, Member Patricia Crisman, Member Committee Members: Basin Board Land Resources Committee: Ken Harrison - primary Fred Trippensee - alternate Basin Board Education Committee: Paul Samuels- primary Fred Trippensee - alternate Charlotte Harbor National Estuary Program Policy Committee: Rufus Lazzell Agenda PEACE RIVER BASIN BOARD MEETING Bartow, Florida April 4, 2008 9:30 a.m. Item Presenter 1. Call to Order and Roll Call Neil Combee/Phyllis Young 2. Pledge of Allegiance to the American Flag and a Moment of Silence Neil Combee 3. Additions/Deletions to the Agenda Lou Kavouras 4. Oath of Office for Newly Appointed/Re-Appointed Board Members Phyllis Young 5. Consent Items: a. Minutes of the December 14, 2007, Meeting [Exhibit 1] Lou Kavouras b. Facilitating Agricultural Resource Management Systems Eric DeHaven i. The Groves of Peace River, Inc. (H552) – Hardee County [Exhibit 2] ii. Las Lomas Holdings, Inc. (H553) – Hardee County [Exhibit 3] iii. I.M.G. Enterprises, Inc. (H551) – Polk County [Exhibit 4] iv. Running W Citrus, Limited Partnership (H554) – Highlands County [Exhibit 5] 6. Discussion Items: a. Election of Officers and Committee Representatives Neil Combee b. Consumer Fertilizer Task Force Report [Exhibit 6] Veronica Craw c. Fiscal Year 2009 Budget Preparation [See Budget Tab] Bruce Wirth 7. Reports: a. Basin Board Education Committee [Exhibit 7] Fred Trippensee b. Charlotte Harbor National Estuary Program Policy Committee Rufus Lazzell c. Governing Board Activities Neil Combee/Pat Symons 8. Announcements: Lou Kavouras a. Volunteer Appreciation Day: Saturday, April 26, 2008, 11:00 a.m., Nature's Classroom, Thonotosassa b. All Day Field Trip Upriver: Wednesday, April 16, 2008; 7:30 a.m., Punta Gorda c. Next Basin Board Meeting: Friday, June 6, 2008, 9:30 a.m., Bartow Service Office d. Tentative Basin Board meeting: Friday, July 18, 2008, 9:30 a.m., Bartow Service Office e. Other 9. Adjournment Neil Combee ***Information Items are located at the end of the Summary Agenda*** Summary Agenda PEACE RIVER BASIN BOARD MEETING Bartow, Florida April 4, 2008 1. Call to Order and Roll Call Presenters: Neil Combee, Co-Chair Ex Officio Peace River Basin Board Phyllis Young, Senior Administrative Assistant Boards and Executive Services 2. Pledge of Allegiance to the American Flag and a Moment of Silence Presenter: Neil Combee 3. Additions and Deletions to the Agenda Presenter: Lou Kavouras, Deputy Executive Director Outreach, Planning and Board Services 4. Oath of Office for Newly Appointed/Re-Appointed Board Members Presenter: Phyllis Young 5. Consent Items: a. Minutes of the February 6, 2008, Meeting Basin Board members were provided minutes of the February 8 meeting for review. Staff Recommendation: See Exhibit 1 Approve the February minutes, as presented. Presenter: Lou Kavouras b. Facilitating Agricultural Resource Management Systems i. The Groves of Peace River, Inc. (H552) – Hardee County Purpose To request approval for a Facilitating Agricultural Resource Management Systems (FARMS) project with The Groves of Peace River, Inc., and approval to reimburse FARMS eligible costs up to a not-to-exceed limit of $12,500. Of this amount, the 2008 State Appropriations will be used for $6,250 of the reimbursement, the Governing Board is requested to fund $3,125, and the Peace River Basin Board is requested to fund $3,125. Total project costs are estimated at $25,000. Background/History The District's FARMS Program, developed by the District and Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, is a public/private agricultural Best Management Practices (BMP) cost-share reimbursement program. FARMS is intended to expedite the implementation of production-scale agricultural BMPs that provide water resource benefits. Resource benefits of the FARMS Program include reduced Floridan aquifer withdrawals, water quality improvements (both from ground water and surface water sources) and/or conservation, and restoration and augmentation of the area's water resources and ecology. The District's emphasis through the Summary Agenda April 4, 2008 Peace River Basin Board Page 2 of 13 FARMS program is on reductions in Upper Floridan aquifer withdrawals that will improve ground water conditions as documented in the Southern Water Use Caution Area (SWUCA) recovery strategy. In addition, the District also provides funding for projects that improve water quality affected by the use of mineralized ground water as documented in the Shell and Prairie Creek Watershed Management Plan – Reasonable Assurance Documentation. Reimbursement cost-share rates are capped at 50 percent for water quantity withdrawal reductions from the Upper Floridan aquifer or water quality improvements realized from decreasing the use of mineralized ground water, and at 75 percent for both water quantity and water quality improvements. FARMS program staff received a project proposal from The Groves of Peace River, Inc. for their 444-acre citrus grove, located approximately 7 miles southeast of Zolfo Springs, in Hardee County. The annual average groundwater withdrawal authorized by the Water Use Permit is 589,700 gpd to irrigate the grove by using low volume under tree spray. Since January 2003, an average of 80 percent of the total permitted quantities was used to irrigate the grove. The primary goal of the project is to reduce Upper Floridan aquifer withdrawals by monitoring two soil moisture probes and a weather station that will be installed within the grove to reduce frequency and duration of irrigation events. The proposed project is expected to offset a minimum of 5 percent of the permitted quantities of the grove, which is equivalent to about 29,500 gpd. Benefits/Costs The proposed project involves water quantity BMPs which qualifies for a 50 percent cost-share reimbursement rate under the FARMS Program. Using an estimated 5 percent savings of permitted quantities yields a daily cost of $0.53 per thousand gallons of groundwater reduced over the proposed five-year contract term, and $0.16 per thousand gallons of groundwater reduced over a thirty-year term. Both values are within the guidelines for the generally accepted average cost savings per thousand gallons for the implementation of alternative supplies and improved irrigation techniques for flatwood citrus operations. The fiscal year 2008 State Appropriations to the Governing Board will be used for one-half of the reimbursement, with the remainder divided evenly between the District Governing Board and the Peace River Basin Board. Upon approval, the Governing Board and Peace River Basin Board will have $1,486,672 and $261,845 respectively, remaining in their FARMS Program budgets. Staff Recommendation: See Exhibit 2 1) Approve The Groves of Peace River, Inc., FARMS project for a not-to-exceed project reimbursement of $12,500 with $3,125 provided by the Peace River Basin Board, $3,125 provided by the Governing Board, and $6,250 provided from 2008 State Appropriations; 2) Authorize the transfer of $3,125 from Fund 020 H017 Peace River Basin Board FARMS funds; $3,125 from Fund 010 H017 Governing Board FARMS funds; and $6,250 from the 2008 State Appropriations allocated to Fund 010 H017 FARMS funds to H552, The Groves of Peace River, Inc., FARMS project fund; 3) Authorize the Executive Director to sign the agreement. Presenter: Eric C. DeHaven, P.G., Director Resource Data and Restoration Department Summary Agenda April 4, 2008 Peace River Basin Board Page 3 of 13 ii. Las Lomas Holdings, Inc. (H553) – Hardee County Purpose To request approval for a Facilitating Agricultural Resource Management Systems (FARMS) project with Las Lomas Holdings, Inc., and approval to reimburse FARMS eligible costs up to a not-to-exceed limit of $20,000. Of this amount, the 2008 State Appropriations will be used for $10,000 of the reimbursement, the Governing Board is requested to fund $5,000, and the Peace River Basin Board is requested to fund $5,000. Total project costs are estimated at $40,000. Background/History The District's FARMS Program, developed by the District and Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, is a public/private agricultural Best Management Practices (BMP) cost-share reimbursement program. FARMS is intended to expedite the implementation of production-scale agricultural BMPs that provide water resource benefits. Resource benefits of the FARMS Program include reduced Floridan aquifer withdrawals, water quality improvements (both from ground water and surface water sources) and/or conservation, and restoration and augmentation of the area's water resources and ecology. The District's emphasis through the FARMS Program is on reductions in Upper Floridan aquifer withdrawals that will improve ground water conditions as documented in the Southern Water Use Caution Area (SWUCA) recovery strategy. In addition, the District also provides funding for projects that improve water quality affected by the use of mineralized ground water as documented in the Shell and Prairie Creek Watershed Management Plan – Reasonable Assurance Documentation. Reimbursement cost-share rates are capped at 50 percent for water quantity withdrawal reductions from the Upper Floridan aquifer or water quality improvements realized from decreasing the use of mineralized ground water, and at 75 percent for both water quantity and water quality improvements. FARMS Program staff received a project proposal from Las Lomas Holdings, Inc. for a project in their citrus grove located approximately ten miles southeast of Zolfo Springs, in Hardee County. The annual average groundwater withdrawal authorized by the Water Use Permit is 910,300 gpd to irrigate 1,170 acres of citrus using low volume undertree spray.