How much does it cost to restore
an ecosystem that’s been damaged by bad decisions? What is the economic impact
of Florida’s springs on their surrounding communities? Do natural systems have
a value that cannot be measured in dollars and cents?
As we face a future of declining
flows and increasing pollution in Florida’s world-class freshwater springs,
these are important questions that we should be asking our elected officials,
our water managers and ourselves.
History tells us that it’s more
expensive to fix a damaged ecosystem than it is to preserve it. Do a Google
search for “costs of Everglades restoration” and look at the numbers that come
up: $8.2 billion, $10.5 billion,
$16.4 billion. Yes, billions of dollars to be spent over decades—the results of
bad decisions made years ago when we lacked a complete understanding of
Florida’s complicated hydrology.
Fortunately, scientists have
learned a lot in the intervening years. We now know what is causing the major
problems that plague our springs. Long-term trends prove that we’re pumping too
much water out of the aquifer that feeds those springs and we’re allowing too
much pollution to enter our surface water and groundwater. Because of the
porous, Swiss-cheese-like limestone that forms the aquifer, anything that
enters surface water can also enter groundwater, the source of our drinking
water.
Now that we know what’s causing
the problems, we can begin to solve them, right? Not so fast. Slowing or
stopping aquifer overpumping would require our water management districts to
ratchet back on water use by denying or revoking water use permits, something
they are loathe to do because of political pressure and the threat of lawsuits.
Slowing or stopping pollution would require hard choices by state agencies and
legislators about agricultural and urban fertilizers, wastewater treatment, and
septic tanks—choices not likely to be made by people who want votes and hefty corporate
donations for their re-election campaigns.
Could today’s bad decisions lead
to a future in which it’s deemed “too expensive” to restore our springs to
health? Might our springs be allowed to die, to devolve into dry sinkholes
where once clean, abundant water flowed? Sadly, that’s already happened in some
places.
The flip side of the cost of
bad decisions is represented by the economic benefits that our springs
generate. A recent study by Tatiana Borisova and others at the University of
Florida found that the estimated annual economic contributions of
springs-related recreational spending in North Central Florida for fiscal year
2012-2013 were: $84.2 million in total visitor spending for
springs recreation; $45.3 million in spending by non-local visitors; 1,160
full-time and part-time jobs generated; $30.42 million in labor income; $94.00
million in industry output (gross sales revenues); $52.58 million in value
added, equivalent to Gross Domestic Product (GDP); $6.56 million in local and state
government tax revenues, including property taxes of $4.13 million and sales
taxes of $1.58 million; and $6.57 million in federal government tax revenues.
To use just one example, the researchers found that visitors to the
Ichetucknee spent over $13 million annually and were responsible for the
creation of 169 jobs, yielding a total annual economic value of over $16
million.
The researchers also pointed out that our springs have a value that
extends beyond dollars and cents. Examples of such “ecosystem services” include
providing food and fresh water, regulating floods and climate, supporting soil
formation and nutrient cycling, and cultural services.
It’s this last item—cultural services—that’s most interesting to me
because it demonstrates how not everything provided by our springs can be valued
in money. What is the value of a spring’s beauty that inspires artists,
photographers, musicians, and writers? What is the value of a spring to the
non-human creatures—fish, mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians and
insects—whose lives that spring supports? What is the value of a cold swim on a
hot day? What is the value of a kayak paddle through a richly wooded landscape
at dawn or under the full moon? What is the value of a baptism in pure, clear
water or a group celebration at a place that a family has held dear for
generations? What is the true value of unique, world-class ecosystems that have
existed for thousands of years?
And who are we, who—in our carelessness and in our greed—are permitting those
ecosystems to be destroyed?
The cost of bad decisions must be measured in more than money; it must
be measured, finally, in our love for the natural world—a world that sustains not
only our bodies but also our hearts and our souls.
Sidebar
To learn
more about…
…UF’s
economic impact study of North Florida’s springs:
…the creativity our springs have inspired:
This article originally appeared in the November 2016 issue of "The Observer," a free monthly tabloid (circulation 5000 copies) distributed in the High Springs/Alachua/Newberry/Jonesville/Fort White areas of North Florida. Many thanks to publisher Barbara Llewellyn for her kind permission to post it here.
