Florida Springs

• Wild things: 10 amazing places to show kids exotic animals

  Posted 10/25/09 - Miami Herald Manatees. You don't have to leave Florida to see exotic animals -- and they're not all in theme parks. About 500 of the state's 3,900 manatee population live at Crystal River National Marine Wildlife Refuge, 60 miles north of Tampa, where kids of all ages [...]
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  Posted: October 25, 2009, 4:48pm EDT
  

• Marion roadways recognized as National Scenic Byways

  Published October 19, 2009 - Ocala.comMembers of the Corridor Management Entity already have plans in place for a wide array of regional improvements and are only waiting for funds to become available.The projects include designing a trailhead near Juniper Springs, expanding the Ocklawaha Visitors Center on CR 315, creating a [...]
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  Posted: October 19, 2009, 9:48pm EDT
  

• Federal Water Rules Could Hurt Fla.

  Published October 16, 2009 - TheLedger.com This crisis stems from a lawsuit filed by the group EarthJustice, which is demanding stringent new one-size-fits-all standards governing the level of nutrients such as nitrogen and phosphate in all Florida waterways. Driven by litigation rather than sound science, these regulations could be imposed [...]
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  Posted: October 17, 2009, 10:25pm EDT
  

• Should Groveland, Lake Co. Pay Niagara’s Legal Fees?

  Published October 16, 2009 Taxpayers in the city and Lake County could be forced to shell out even more money in the fight with a water bottling company.Niagara Bottling said their legal fees and costs are between $2 million and $4 million, and the company said Groveland and Lake County [...]
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  Posted: October 17, 2009, 10:23pm EDT
  

• Manatee refuge puts river flow project on hold

  Published October 16, 2009 - Tampa Bay OnlineOne of the spots where manatees are known to congregate is Sulphur Springs Park, where temperate water from an underground artesian spring flows into the river.Tampa also relies on the spring, but for a different reason. The city has, for decades, pumped water [...]
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  Posted: October 17, 2009, 10:14pm EDT
  

• Experts address future of water supply

  Published October 16, 2009 Part of seeing that no harm comes to water resources in determining minimum flows and levels for rivers and lakes. Still said a 2007 study looking at minimum flows and levels found there was not enough water in the Suwannee River Basin to accommodate future demands.The [...]
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  Posted: October 17, 2009, 10:08pm EDT
  

• Fewer Injuries from Jumping Fish

  Published Oct 16, 2009 - WctvThe potentially dangerous sturgeon fish are migrating out of the area, and Florida Fish and Wildlife officials say this has been an unusually quiet season.Officials say that's a big difference from 2006 and 2007 when several injuries were reported from the jumping fish along the [...]
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  Posted: October 17, 2009, 10:06pm EDT
  

• Paddling the Suwannee River

  Published Oct 16, 2009 - WctvPaddle Florida is taking its Fall Suwannee River Excursion.Over the next week, 55 people will canoe, kayak and boat their way down 123 miles of the Suwannee River.Source [...]
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  Posted: October 17, 2009, 10:03pm EDT
  

• Manatees head home to Florida

  Published October 15, 2009 -An aerial survey of Florida manatees earlier this year counted 3,800 animals, the highest number since 1991. But manatee deaths - often caused by collisions with boats - also are rising.In Florida, the manatees will spend at least several months at Tampa's Lowry Park Zoo learning [...]
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  Posted: October 16, 2009, 10:30pm EDT
  

• Local photographer to present images of Ichetucknee Springs from his new book

  Published 10/15/2009 - High Springs HeraldLocal photographer and artist Steven Earl will be presenting images of and reflections on the Ichetucknee Springs and river he has recently compiled into a book titled "Ichetucknee: Sacred Waters."The event will be held on Thursday, Oct. 22, from 7 p.m. to 8 p.m., at [...]
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  Posted: October 16, 2009, 10:21pm EDT
  

• ‘The Ichetucknee is my muse’

  Published October 13, 2009 - Gainesville SunSteve Earl has spent 12 years there, raising a family, meditating on the springs, painting them, photographing them and writing about them. Now his musings — embodied in poetry, prose, photography and watercolor landscapes — have culminated in a coffee table book, “Ichetucknee: Sacred [...]
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  Posted: October 13, 2009, 9:04pm EDT
  

• State Senator Fights To Keep Manatees At Park

  Published October 12, 2009 Florida state Sen. Mike Fasano is doing everything he can to keep five manatees at the Homosassa Springs Wildlife State Park.U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service officials say the manatees must be set free -- they can't be kept in captivity just to be looked at.Source' [...]
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  Posted: October 13, 2009, 8:31pm EDT
  

• Water: West Volusia gets time to make a plan

  Published Oct 9, 2009 - The West Volusia Beacon Florida’s water districts announced a few years ago that they would not issue any more groundwater-withdrawal permits after 2013; that local suppliers would have to get any additional water from other sources, including surface water. Source [...]
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  Posted: October 09, 2009, 9:44pm EDT
  

• DEP's Florida Geological Survey to Receive $275,000 in Grant Funds to Continue Study of FL Waters

  Published 10-08-2009 - Wakulla.com The Florida Department of Environmental Protection’s (DEP) Florida Geological Survey (FGS) was recently awarded more than $275,000 in grant funding for three studies to further its research and improve the state’s understanding of the unique relationship between karst formations and Florida’s groundwater resources and aquifer systems.$107,826 [...]
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  Posted: October 09, 2009, 8:16am EDT
  

• Proposal would restrict watering

  Published October 8, 2009 - The Gainesville SunAlachua County may restrict the days and hours of lawn watering and landscape irrigation - a move that the St. Johns River Water Management District has requested of all local governments within its jurisdiction to promote water conservation.The proposed irrigation ordinance, scheduled for [...]
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  Posted: October 09, 2009, 8:04am EDT
  

• New water supply plans discussed

  Published October 9, 2009 - Lake City ReporterDeclining water levels in the Upper Santa Fe River Basin and the local efforts to establish water plans for the future were discussed as a part of a two-hour informational meeting Wednesday....the audience viewed and discussed historic flow data about the river as [...]
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  Posted: October 09, 2009, 7:46am EDT
  

• Martinez pushes Florida Forever funding

  Published October 8th, 2009 Martinez and environmental leaders are scheduled to hold the press conference on Wednesday at the Cypress Point Park in Tampa.Source [...]
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  Posted: October 09, 2009, 7:41am EDT
  

• Ichetucknee Springs' Holy water: Dozens gather for group baptism

  Published 10/8/09 - High Springs HeraldRandolph was one of many people to get baptized Sunday, Oct. 4, at Ichetucknee Springs, where members of seven local churches gathered for the fourth straight year.Source [...]
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  Posted: October 09, 2009, 7:22am EDT
  

• The day the earth opened: Giant sinkholes appear in High Springs

  Published 10/8/09 - High Springs HeraldLess than 10 feet in width but more 50 feet deep, the sinkhole was the first of many discovered in High Spring after a Thursday, Sept. 15, torrential downpour. That downpour brought 5.4 inches to the area in 8 hours, according to Megan Wetherington with [...]
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  Posted: October 09, 2009, 7:15am EDT
  

• Volusia County may buy Deltona tract for future water needs.

  Published Oct 7, 2009 - The West Volusia BeaconFacing a possible cut in its license to pump groundwater from the Blue Spring Basin, Volusia County may try to buy a large undeveloped tract adjacent to Deltona to satisfy future water needs.The County Council Oct. 1 authorized the county staff to [...]
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  Posted: October 08, 2009, 8:22am EDT
  

• How safe is the Suwannee? Study shows mercury to be a persistent - and unpredictable - problem in local river system

  Published October 07, 2009 - Suwannee DemocratRecent findings by the U.S. Geological Survey raise concerns about mercury contamination in fish caught from the Suwannee and other area rivers. Currently, there are eight kinds of fish that carry mercury advisories from the Florida Department of Health in the Suwannee River system, [...]
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  Posted: October 08, 2009, 8:18am EDT
  

• Jacksonville area could pull hard on inland aquifer, forecast says

  Published Oct. 7, 2009 - The Florida Times-UnionThe forecasts show water use in Northeast Florida lowering those levels in inland areas significantly more than the use by people who actually live in inland communities in Bradford, Union, Alachua and Columbia counties.Those forecasts suggest that part of the Santa Fe River, [...]
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  Posted: October 08, 2009, 8:09am EDT
  

• Nature Coast Fine Art & True Craft Show set for this weekend

  Published 10/07/2009 - Citrus DailyThe Nature Coast Fine Art & True Craft Show will be held this weekend, Oct. 11 and 12, on the green adjacent to the Visitor Center at Ellie Schiller Homosassa Springs Wildlife State Park.The show will run from 9 a.m. until 4 p.m. each day, and [...]
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  Posted: October 08, 2009, 8:04am EDT
  

• Three men survive scary moments on St. Johns

  Published October 6, 2009 - Clay TodayThree Clay County men survived some scary moments on the St. Johns River when their small john boat capsized early Saturday, Oct. 3.“They are all extremely lucky to be alive,” Castelli said. “They were out into the channel, which is a lot further from [...]
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  Posted: October 07, 2009, 8:12am EDT
  

• Protect water supplies now, before there's a major crisis

  Published Oct. 6, 2009 - The Florida Times-Union (Opinion)People ought to understand that the mere fact that more than 262 million gallons of water a day could be taken from the St. Johns River to boost the state's water supply means that the groundwater is running low. That alone says [...]
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  Posted: October 07, 2009, 8:06am EDT
  

• Niagara Bottling wins permit in bottled-water battle

  Published September 26, 2009 - Orange SentinelNiagara Bottling won a two-year war for water Friday when a water-agency official discounted objections by Lake County and Groveland and granted the California-based bottler permission to pump nearly 500,000 gallons daily from the Floridan Aquifer.For two years, critics have argued that giving Niagara [...]
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  Posted: September 27, 2009, 11:17am EDT
  

• Will Jacksonville's water woes spread across North Florida?

  Published Sep. 26, 2009 - The Florida Times-UnionGenerations of tourists in North Florida visited White Springs and the "spring house" where clear sulfur water bubbled from the ground.That ended decades ago. Wells drilled around the speck of a town on the Suwannee River pumped so much ground water that the [...]
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  Posted: September 27, 2009, 11:01am EDT
  

• Wekiva septic tank fight may scuttle roadway plans

  Published Sep 25, 2009 - Orange SentinelThe fight is about how best to stop pollution from seeping out of household septic tanks into the river.About 60 top environmental regulators, water managers, real-estate experts and homeowners met for several hours to resolve an impasse over proposed new requirements on household septic [...]
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  Posted: September 26, 2009, 11:29am EDT
  

• Water district official says Florida rivers likely to be tapped in future

  Published September 25, 2009 - The Gainesville SunFlorida water agency scientists on Wednesday continued to hash out how to decide whether to siphon water out of the St. Johns and Ocklawaha rivers.Florida's water districts have warned that by 2013 they will stop issuing any more permits for groundwater withdrawal. They [...]
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  Posted: September 26, 2009, 11:10am EDT
  

• Manatee mural to lure tourists

  Published September 25, 2009 - Orlando SentinelCity officials in Orange City unveiled a mural honoring manatees on Tuesday at 11 a.m. behind the Embarq building at 219 N. Volusia Ave. Source [...]
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  Posted: September 26, 2009, 11:06am EDT
  

• Artists answer St. Johns River call

  Published September 22, 2009 - West Volusia NewsA wild, mystical beauty touches artists and authors who visit the St. Johns River, inspiring countless paintings, stories and even song.Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings and John Bartram wrote of the tea-colored river that meanders nearly 310 miles from a remote lake in South Florida [...]
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  Posted: September 22, 2009, 9:45pm EDT
  

• 10 Top Spots to Snorkel - Crystal River, Florida

  Published Coastal LivingThe best place in the country to experience the gentle West Indian manatee is in the springs and protected estuary of this coastal hamlet. Guides will gladly help you with manatee etiquette; for instance, gentle contact is allowed, but only if initiated by the manatee.Source [...]
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  Posted: September 22, 2009, 9:31pm EDT
  

• USGS details Florida stream gauge history

  Published Sept. 22, 2009 - UPIThe U.S. Geological Survey has issued a report detailing the 100-year history of Florida's first stream gauge, located on the Suwannee River at White Springs.Report (PDF)Source [...]
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  Posted: September 22, 2009, 9:23pm EDT
  

• Panel discussion on the St. Johns River set for Tuesday

  Published September 21, 2009 - Orlando SentinelA panel discussion about the St. Johns River is set for 7 to 9 p.m. Tuesday at the Museum of Florida Art, 600 N. Woodland Blvd., DeLand.The panel, titled "St. Johns River: Yours, Mine and Ours," will include Neil Armingeon of the Riverkeeper organization, [...]
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  Posted: September 21, 2009, 9:24pm EDT
  

• Will Jax guzzle our water?

  Published September 21, 2009 - The Gainesville Sun...a color-coded map of groundwater levels by the year 2030, it indicates that growth in the Jacksonville area will cause a drop in parts of Alachua, Bradford, Putnam and other counties.The Suwannee River and St. Johns River water management districts are doing a [...]
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  Posted: September 21, 2009, 9:19pm EDT
  

• Radio Interview - Owner of Santa Fe Springs

  Radio Interview with Mr. Cheeseman, owner of Santa Fe Springs, LLC, on Tuesday, Sept. 22 at 8 am - 9 am.Source: Email [...]
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  Posted: September 21, 2009, 9:14pm EDT
  

• David McLain : Consensus is needed on tri-state river basin

  Published Sept 20, 2009 - Tallahassee Democrat (Opinion)After more than 18 years of litigation, mediation and negotiation without achieving an equitable, sustainable allocation of the interstate waters of the Apalachicola-Chattahoochee-Flint river basin, it's time for an approach that actively involves the people of the basin whose interests and livelihoods depend [...]
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  Posted: September 20, 2009, 6:33pm EDT
  

• Commission rejects proposal for pipeline

  Published September 18, 2009 - Lake City ReporterColumbia County officials will not allow a pipeline on its property which takes water from the Santa Fe River to a proposed water bottling plant in Fort White.In fact, the commission has decided to write another letter to state level officials reaffirming the [...]
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  Posted: September 19, 2009, 7:07pm EDT
  

• Florida manatee deaths up this year; St. Marks River manatee latest local death

  Published Sept 18, 2009 - Tallahassee DemocratThe St. Marks River manatee was the first confirmed death in Wakulla County since April 2005 and is the first one of the year for the coastal counties of Wakulla, Franklin, Gulf, Taylor and Jefferson. In December 2008, a Franklin County manatee died of [...]
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  Posted: September 19, 2009, 6:52pm EDT
  

• Saving a river starts with you – and, yes, them, too

  Published 9/17/09 - High Springs HeraldMore than 75 people gathered to hear updates on how a variety of people were working toward the same goal – to keep the Ichetucknee watershed healthy.Every river has a watershed that must be protected in order for a river to be healthy. A watershed [...]
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  Posted: September 18, 2009, 8:53pm EDT
  

• Georgia refusing to "accept reality" in water wars ruling, Alabama governor's office says

  Published September 17, 2009 "We cannot understand why Georgia thinks this appellate court will view the matter any differently than all the other courts that have considered it," according to the statement released by Governor Riley's Press Secretary Todd Stacy.Source [...]
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  Posted: September 18, 2009, 6:48pm EDT
  

• Bottling plant may open in Fort White

  Published September 17, 2009 - Lake City ReporterA request to place infrastructure on county property by a Columbia County property owner attempting to establish a future bottled water plant in Fort White could have a bearing on the Santa Fe River’s health.The permit, which expires April 10, 2020, gives the [...]
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  Posted: September 17, 2009, 9:09pm EDT
  

• Wekiwa Springs: Orlando’s Secret State Park

  Published September 16th, 2009Canoeing is the biggest draw at Wekiwa Springs State Park. There are miles of river to paddle or to simply float down. The water is clear, the trees make a cool canopy and the sky is blue. You can start at the head of the springs, paddle [...]
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  Posted: September 17, 2009, 9:07pm EDT
  

• Teen dies while trying to swim across Suwannee River

  Published September 16, 2009 - The Gainesville SunAccording to the Suwannee County Sheriff's Office, Oshae Butler, 16, of Lake City, drowned Saturday while attempting to swim across the river with two friends. Butler was reported missing shortly after noon and was last seen about 200 yards up from Little River [...]
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  Posted: September 17, 2009, 9:06pm EDT
  

• Your guide to the St. Johns River

  Published 09/16/2009 - The Daily RecordThe “Get Your Feet Wet” guide to the St. Johns River was officially released to the public by the St. Johns Riverkeeper and Mayor John Peyton during a ceremony Tuesday at Memorial Park in Riverside, which officials said provide a needed and informational spotlight on [...]
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  Posted: September 17, 2009, 9:01pm EDT
  

• Georgia to appeal water wars ruling

  Published September 16, 2009 - The Atlanta Journal-ConstitutionIn court filings this week, the Georgia parties said they will ask the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Atlanta to overturn Senior U.S. District Judge Paul Magnuson’s July 17 order.Since the ruling, Perdue set out a multi-pronged strategy. In addition to [...]
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  Posted: September 17, 2009, 8:58pm EDT
  

• Volusia offers to drop water lawsuit

  Published Sep 15, 2009 - The Beacon OnlineAt a recent meeting, County Council members expressed consternation over a letter sent by the Legal Department to the St. Johns River Water Management District. The letter was mailed Aug. 27 with the support of the county administration, before the County Council had [...]
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  Posted: September 16, 2009, 9:37pm EDT
  

• Central Florida Getaways of the Day

  Rock Springs Run is an 8.5 mile stretch of gently flowing, clear spring water through an unspoiled Florida forest -- and it's 30 minutes out of downtown Orlando.The spring-fed stream can be canoed or kayaked in about four hours. The current is strong enough that much of that time, however, [...]
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  Posted: September 14, 2009, 9:27pm EDT
  

• Local students color in history

  Published September 12, 2009 - Lake City ReporterWho would have thought a coloring book could teach kindergarten students so much about the area in which they live.The “Learning About Our Springs and Farms” activity book is a joint partnership between the Santa Fe Soil and Water Conservation District, the Ichetucknee [...]
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  Posted: September 14, 2009, 9:25pm EDT
  

• Guide helps us appreciate, understand St. Johns River

  Published Sep. 11, 2009 - The Florida Times-UnionThe book, Get Your Feet Wet, is chock-full of information about the river, including its history - Saber-toothed cats, mastodons and giant sloths once roamed the St. Johns region - and river facts such as the 310-mile long river is the home to [...]
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  Posted: September 12, 2009, 9:35pm EDT