South Florida flood-control costs rising amid budget cuts South Florida taxpayers face mounting maintenance costs for both flood control structures and Everglades restoration projects. (South Florida Sun Sentinel) By Andy Reid t▼ Upkeep on canals, pumps and levees that protect South Florida from flooding is getting more costly. t▼ Everglades restoration projects are adding to South Florida taxpayers flood control maintenance costs. January 2, 2015, 11:10 AM Theres a growing tab for living in what used to be the Everglades, and that increased flood-control bill could soon come due for South Florida taxpayers.. The 60-year-old system of canals, pumps and levees that guards against flooding in swampy South Florida needs more upkeep and repair to continue to protect homes and businesses. In addition, ongoing work to fix the environmental consequences of draining the Everglades to make way for development and farming has a multibillion-dollar price tag of its own that is adding to the public costs. The South Florida Water Management District now spends about $50 million a year fixing flood-control facilities, and in the coming months district officials are expected to consider ways to prioritize and pay for more upkeep and upgrades. The water management district already struggles with meeting maintenance needs and now has to account for adding a host of new pumps, water treatment areas and other Everglades restoration-related structures to take care of, district Board Member James Moran said. We cant get behind the curve any more, Moran said. This district was established to do flood control. … The longer we kick that can down the road, the further behind we get. Decades of draining to make way for development and farming shrunk the Everglades to about half its size. Now 2,000 miles of levees and canals and 71 water pumping stations are among the far-flung, flood-control structures relied on to keep flooding rains from swamping South Florida. Water management district officials estimate it would cost about $4 billion to $5 billion to completely replace South Floridas vast flood-control system. We couldnt live in South Florida if this system didnt perform as it should, district Executive Director Blake Guillory said. While the South Florida flood-control system is good at draining rain water out to sea, it also wastes water needed to replenish the Everglades as well as South Florida community drinking-water supplies. lRelated County questions flood maps that could trigger flood insurance spike County questions flood maps that could trigger flood insurance spike To try to reverse some of those harmful flood-control consequences, the state and federal government in 2000 agreed to an Everglades restoration plan that calls for redirecting more water to the Everglades. That involves building more places to store the water that rains down during storms as well as treatment areas to clean up the pollutants that wash in off of farmland, lawns and roads. Federal and state Everglades restoration efforts have already cost taxpayers about $3.1 billion, with most of that money — $2.4 billion — coming just from Florida taxpayers. There are now nearly three times as many water pumping stations spread throughout the South Florida Water Management District system as there were in 1999. There has also been a 20 percent increase in the miles of canals and levees. At least 19 more water pumping stations and another 116 miles of canals are planned, according to the district. Construction costs for new facilities come from future operations and maintenance expenses, much of which will be added to the South Florida Water Management Districts responsibilities. We are going to need a hell of a lot more money to keep this show on the road, Moran said. The South Florida Water Management District has a $700 million annual budget and about 1,500 employees. The agency oversees flood control and guards water supplies in a 16-county region reaching from Orlando to Key West. Gov. Rick Scott made cutting the water management districts budget a priority during his first term in office. In 2011, Scott and the state Legislature slashed the districts budget by 30 percent, which triggered layoffs and put some district construction plans on hold. Since then, the districts nine-member, governor-appointed board has reduced the property tax rate for four years in a row, including a 7 percent cut for 2015. The $50 million a year the district now spends on construction to fix flood control facilities is about $10 million less a year than prior to the budget cuts that started in 2011. Environmental groups in recent years have raised concerns that state-imposed water district budget cuts and continued trims to the district property tax rate have gone too far to keep up with restoration needs. We need money and that is not going to go away, said Drew Martin, of the Sierra Club. District and state officials counter that budget cuts were needed to reduce expenses outside of the districts core mission and havent hampered restoration or maintenance needs. District officials say they are working on ways to better project the life span of flood-control facilities. Also, the district in 2015 plans to spend about $2 million to start preparing engineering designs for future upgrades and rehab work so they can be ready to get to work when more construction money is available. The water management district needs to make sure its making the right maintenance investments while focusing on ways to be more efficient, more cost effective, district Board Member Mitch Hutchcraft said. Rethink how we do this, Hutchcraft said. All things are on the table. abreid@sunsentinel, 561-228-5504 or Twitter@abreidnews sun-sentinel/local/palm-beach/fl-flood-control-fixes-20150101-story.html
Posted on: Sat, 03 Jan 2015 05:15:21 +0000
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