What Marco City Council Didn’t Tell You in its Reuse Water Week Proclamation

Yes, reuse water is a “means for conserving and augmenting Florida’s precious water resources” and “safe, clean, and sustainable water resources are essential to Florida’s environment, economy, citizens and visitors.” But what they didn’t tell you is: 

1. The primary users and beneficiaries of the deeply discounted reuse water are the private Island Club golf course, gated Hideaway Bay golf course, the Marriott Hotel golf course, City land,and condominium buildings largelyalong Collier Blvd. 

2. The reuse water, 900,000,000 gallons of it, is discounted 60% or more from what single-family residential owners pay, $1.35 to $1.80 per 1,000 gallons vs.$4.49 per 1,000 gallons for single-family homes, or an annual savings to them of nearly $3,000,000. 

3. The 900,000,000 gallons of reuse is rich in nitrogen and phosphorus, so they are also getting free fertilizer. This is the equivalent of 32,300 bags of 20# bags of lawn fertilizer for nitrogen and 41,000 bags of phosphorus. Phosphorus is actually banned on Marco Island except for what’s in the reuse water because the City exempted itself from its own ordinance. 

4. According to the EPA, “Nutrient water pollution is one of the most widespread and challenging environmental problems faced by our nation. When too many nutrients, mainly nitrogen and phosphorus, enter our waterbodies they cause excessive algal growth. Excess algae can reduce or deplete dissolved oxygen available to aquatic life and, in many instances, produce toxins that can harm people, animals, and aquatic life.” 

Despite Councils edict that reuse water doesn’t affect the water quality in our canals, our canals are now nearly fully eutrophic and devoid of oxygen and sea life. 

Marco Island, by upgrading its wastewater treatment plant, could basically eliminate nitrogen and phosphorus in its reuse water. 

We should not delay efforts any longer.  As a unique tropical barrier island on the Gulf of Mexico, we should be at the forefront of efforts to protect our environment and the sea and wildlife surrounding us not only for ourselves but for future generations as well.