Well conversion project will benefit north Florida’s water resources

PALATKA, Fla., Feb. 9, 2016 — The St. Johns River Water Management District Governing Board today approved moving forward with a public-private partnership project in Putnam County that will help meet future water demands and offset impacts from domestic self-supply wells in north Florida. The project calls for moving the Grandin Sand Plant’s groundwater withdrawals from the Upper Floridan aquifer to the Lower Floridan aquifer.

“This project is a cost-effective opportunity to protect MFL water bodies,” said District Executive Director Ann Shortelle. “What’s more, the district will benefit from the data that will be collected from a new monitoring well -the first Lower Floridan aquifer monitoring well in Putnam County.”

The district will partner with Vulcan Materials Co. at its 1,131-acre Grandin sand mining facility in Putnam County. The mine has held a consumptive use permit for more than 30 years and currently uses water from the Upper Floridan aquifer to process sand and maintain water levels in its dredge lake, as well as for typical domestic water use for employees and minor landscape irrigation.

The $760,000 project includes construction of a Lower Floridan aquifer production well, construction of a Lower Floridan aquifer monitoring well and conversion of the Grandin Sand Plant to use the Lower Floridan as its water source. The district will fund up to $425,000 of the project to cover impacts from self-supply wells.