Lake Worth, September 4 -
Palm Beach Chapter activists and partnering organization Reef Rescue convinced the City commissioners of Lake Worth Florida to unanimously deny a request to hire a lobbyist to negotiate with a state environmental agency (DEP) for a permit that would allow the city to dump 4 million gallons of reverse osmosis concentrate near a pristine and endangered coral reef.

Although the DEP has not yet publicly announced its decision on the final permit, Utility Director Samy Faried told commissioners that the permit to use an old 92-foot deep sewage outfall pipe has been denied, which was the reason for the lobby.

This past June, the DEP issued a draft permit that, if approved, would have allowed the city to use the sewage outfall pipe that extends about a mile off Lake Worth Beach. But surfers, divers, fisherman, scientists and environmentalists flooded the DEP with objections. The Lake Worth mayor credits these efforts with saving the Horseshoe Reef.

To the many hundreds of you who sent in permit objection emails; pat yourselves on the back for a job well done. Thank you to Dr. Mike Risk and Dr. Tom Goreau who flew to Florida and volunteered their time providing expert testimony before the DEP and Dr. LaPointe and Barrile for their documentation.

Surfrider will continue to work with the City to help find alternatives for the concentrate as well as assist state legislators with a Florida Outfall Closure Bill this upcoming session.

Hopefully this is the last we will hear about ocean dumping in Lake Worth.

See NBC TV News: Reef off Lake Worth May Be Saved http://www.wptv.com/news/local/story.aspx?content_id=20fbdc69-1f6c-4e10-862b-2ae3ce78f636

See Palm Beach Post: Lobbyists nixed in Lake Worth
http://www.palmbeachpost.com/localnews/content/local_news/epaper/2007/09/05/c1b_LWOUTFALL_0905.html