CLAY COUNTY, Fla. – A potential fight over water is brewing in Clay County.
A plan is underway to pipe water from the often-flooded Black Creek primarily to the Floridan Aquifer in Northeast Florida, and some water to the lakes that are drying up around Keystone Heights.
A meeting held Monday on the issue was heavily attended.
Project managers told News4Jax that only a little will be pumped from Black Creek South Fork when the water level is high. But when Black Creek floods severely, they could pump as much as 10 million gallons of water a day.
The idea seems simple -- when Black Creek gets high or floods, simply pump water from it down south, including to lakes in Keystone Heights, which are starving for water.
"This is the best thing that's happened since peanut butter," said Vivian Katz, with the Save Our Lakes group. "It's an extremely good project."
The Save Our Lakes group showed up in force at Monday's public hearing in Keystone Heights to fight for the project.
Katz said she's seen the lakes get worse over the years.
"Definitely. (It) probably started in the mid-70s, and it's gone up and down. But the trend has continued to go down," Katz said.
But Black Creeks residents, including Terri Sullenger, aren't so sure about the project. Sullenger said she just found out the other day that the project was already in works, and she's not sure it's a good idea.
"I'm worried," Sullenger said. "I've lived off the creek for 25 years, off of 209, where the new bridge is, and it worries me. We don't hear about these things until they're already in the works and we don't know the effects on the river's health."
Despite those concerns, Karl Hankin, with the St. Johns River Water Management District, said the planning and funding for the project is already underway. He told News4Jax that their studies show it will not hurt Black Creek.
"A lot of people will benefit from water going into the ground there. Those lakes help recharge the aquifer when it rains," Hankin said. "Users as far away as Palatka, St. Johns County, Clay County, Duval County should receive some benefit.
The work on the project is expected to take about four years. If everything's on track, it should be complete around 2022 or 2023.
