Judge dismisses Seminole County's request for fees from St. Johns Riverkeeper, City of Jacksonville

IMAGE COURTESY SEMINOLE COUNTY
Aerial view — Seminole County has plans for its Yankee Lake facility, just off the St. Johns River, to be the site of a water treatment plant. Legal challenges are one of the problems the county faces in trying to construct the plant.

By Pat Hatfield
BEACON STAFF WRITER

posted Dec 22, 2009 - 6:21:55pm

St. Johns Riverkeeper Neil Armingeon said it was like getting a Christmas present a little early, on Dec. 21.

He just had the news — State Administrative Law Judge J. Lawrence Johnson denied Seminole County's attempt to collect legal fees and costs from the Riverkeeper and the City of Jacksonville in the legal dispute over Seminole County's plan to build a water-withdrawal plant at its Yankee Lake facility.

Both the Riverkeeper organization and the City of Jacksonville filed objections with the St. Johns River Water Management District, then with Administrative Law Judge Johnson, to halt Seminole County's plans to withdraw 5.5 million gallons a day of water from the Yankee Lake plant on the St. Johns River.

The judge ruled in Seminole County's favor, then, on April 13, the Water Management District OK'd the Yankee Lake plan.

Seminole County asked the judge to compel the Riverkeeper and Jacksonville to pay its legal and engineering fees and other expenses related to the administrative hearing. The total could have exceeded $1 million.

In an order dated Dec. 18, Judge Johnson dismissed the motion, stating there was no evidence that the Riverkeeper's or the City of Jacksonville's objections were frivolous or designed for an improper purpose, such as harassment or causing unnecessary delays.

"When you're allowed to exercise your constitutional rights, it's a good thing," Armingeon said, in response to the ruling.

City of Jacksonville Attorney Jason Teal said the ruling was, of course, good from a financial standpoint, "but also from a public-participation standpoint."

He said if Seminole County's suit for fees had been granted, "It would have a chilling effect on local governments being able to participate in things like this."

All jurisdictions along the river have a stake in and interest in what's happening along the river, Teal said.

The message in the motion was, be careful about challenging us in the future, he said. While the suit was legally permissible, Teal sees it as an attempt to dissuade local governments from future participation in challenges.

Attorney for Seminole County Edward de la Parte Jr. said he was reviewing the judge's decision, and will advise county officials the first of the year if they should request an appeal. The county has 30 days to make that determination.

The next legal decision on the agenda will be the 5th District Court of Appeal's ruling on the Riverkeeper's appeal of the Water Management District's OK of the Yankee Lake project.

The City of Jacksonville had also been a party to that suit. However, an issue of standing forced the city out of the process, Jacksonville Attorney Teal said.

While state statute allowed the city to have standing in the administrative-law hearing, the appeals court has a higher bar for participation, he explained. Harm to the river would have been too far upstream for the city to demonstrate it would be affected by the plant.

Though Seminole County applied to the Water Management District for an initial permit to pull up to 5.5 million gallons of water a day (mgd) from the river, long-range plans call for 70 or 80 mgd to come out of the St. Johns at Yankee Lake, to be processed for use by residents and businesses.

The City of Jacksonville is concerned about the effects of lowering water levels in the northward-flowing river, the results of which would become apparent by the time the river reaches Jacksonville.

The St. Johns Riverkeeper, whose mission is to protect the river, is also worried about the effects of the plant on aquatic life in the river, especially since the Yankee Lake plant is expected to discharge concentrated salt and waste back into the river after filtering it from the water.

Seminole County's position has been that the plant will fulfill a need, and is within the scope of alternative water supply sources outlined by the Water Management District.

Attorney de la Parte said he expects oral arguments to be scheduled for February or March in the 5th District Court of Appeal in Daytona Beach.

— pat@beacononlinenewscom

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