HomeMy WebLinkAbout15.a FYI Public Comments SJRWMD Governing Board Meeting 2026-08-12 `�P•� ca�Nr�
I CLAY COUNTY UTILITY AUTHORITY
MEMORANDUM
Iry u-oko*
TO: Board of Supervisors
0 ,,4111
FROM: Jeremy D. Johnston, MBA, PE, Executive Dire . •
DATE: August 12, 2026
RE: Public Comments at St. Johns River Water Management District (SJRWMD)
Governing Board Meeting
Yesterday, I attended the SJRWMD Governing Board meeting. During the meeting, I spoke in
support of the St. Johns County Utility Department's Consumptive Use Permit(CUP) applications
and the Water First North Florida effort. My public comments are provided below for the Board
of Supervisors awareness. I will gladly provide any information if you have any questions.
"Good morning, Chairman and Governing Board members. On behalf of CCUA's Board of
Supervisors and our entire team, thank you for the opportunity to speak with you today.
Jeremy Johnston, CCUA's Executive Director
I begin with gratitude for District staff. Mike and his team are great to work with and demonstrate
a great deal of leadership in developing a regional approach to address regional issues.Their efforts
are greatly appreciated and valued.
CCUA supports and will remain engaged with the District, JEA, St. Johns County, and GRU in
the Water First North Florida. We greatly appreciate the collaborative effort.
We have been working to develop alternative water supplies for a long time. CCUA began using
reclaimed water for beneficial irrigation in the 1990's. We constructed a pilot project with the
District to test a stormwater harvesting concept. We consider Project Quench a treatment process
success story in moving toward the use of potable reclaimed water. Real data and real analysis
from these efforts inform our integrated water resource planning. Our participation in the Water
First North Florida project, like the Black Creek project, is the next step in these efforts.
Several years ago, we completed an alternatives analysis looking at how we could address the
regulatory liabilities associated with MFLs in the Suwannee District. The only concept that
addressed the MFL liabilities and water supply needs for our current and future customers would
need to access water from the St. Johns River. The St. Johns River along much of Clay County is
brackish water. That concept was priced at over $1 Billion just for CCUA customers alone. That
type of project would more than double customers' bills. From our analyses, we see a regional
solution as the only feasible way to address these water resource challenges.
0.0 COUN�,y
CLAY COUNTY UTILITY AUTHORITY
c,0 MEMORANDUM
We along with our colleagues at JEA, GRU, and St. Johns County are subject matter experts when
it comes to water collection, transmission, treatment, and the return to the environment. We fully
understand the treatment systems we use and are always looking for better and more efficient
technology to implement over time. We have dedicated our careers to our core mission of public
health and safety. We share the common vision of a sustainable Florida including a Water First
project that embraces these missions.
If we are going to sustainably address north Florida's water resource challenges, we need to do it
together. We see Water First North Florida as doing just that.
For these reasons, I add CCUA's voice of support for St. Johns County's CUP applications. They
are an important partner in developing solutions to regional issues. Thank you."