To Our Fellow Cape Hazers:
As you will recall, in October of 2020 a company, Environmental Utilities (EU), filed a petition with the state Public Service Commission (FPSC) to replace septic systems with sewers in Cape Haze and the barrier islands. At the time your CHPOA board, responding to your many concerns, filed notice of our opposition to this program with the FPSC. We also hired legal counsel to assist us in this fight. Last year, in response to our requests, EU removed Cape Haze from the targetted service area. However, their plans still called for an 8 inch pipe to be placed under the intracoastal waterway carrying all the effluent from Palm Island, Don Pedro and Little Gasparilla running up Cape Haze Drive to the county sewage plant in Rotonda. They would also have a pumping station built along Cape Haze Drive in the middle of our community. There is a lot of risk in the construction and operation of such a pumping station especially breaks and seasonal overcapacity which could lead to leaks,spills and smells – bad ones.
Yesterday the staff of the FPSC issued a recommendation summarized below:
1. Is there a need?: NO
2. Is EU’s plan consistent with the county sewer master plan?: NO
3. Will EU result in competition with another utility?: YES
4. Is it in the public interest for EU to be granted this permit?: NO
5. Should this docket be closed?: YES
While this is a cause for optimism, it is still subject to the formal approval of the five commissioners of the FPSC and they could override the recommendations of the staff. A final decision is due in June. We should add that the position of the board of CHPOA is that we want to do the right thing for the community, the environment and the ecology. It was our considered opinion that the overall EU proposal was not right for any of the above.
The county is going to draw up a new Sewer Master Plan and we hope that we will be heard in such endeavor. Cape Haze is unique in that we have low density, a highly seasonal population and no evidence that our septic systems pollute. Further, seven of the county’s nine sewage treatment systems are not “Advanced Water Treatment (AWT)” qualified and thus they do not fully treat for nitrogen and phosphorus. Thus their partially treated effluent is pumped back into homes and golf clubs and then find their way into streams and bays and ultimately contribute to such negative events as red tide etc.
So before we have to take out our septic systems we want to be sure that the net result is positive and not just an expensive experiment is replacing something that works with something that sound good but is ineffective.
As always, thanks for your continued support.
On behalf of the board of CHPOA, I am
Sincerely
Bill Dahms