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Editorial

Academic researchers at UNF and Jacksonville University recently released the State of the River report 2008, detailing all of the current issues with the St. Johns River.

According to the State of the River Report, many aquatic life indicators show good progress in the Lower St. Johns River Basin, but there’s still a lot that needs to be done.

With everyone making a big push these days to “go green” and save the environment, it’s unthinkable how the residents of Northeast Florida just seem to forget about the St. Johns River and brush its problems under the rug like a pile of dust.

While releasing the report and bringing more attention to environmental challenges the river is facing is a step in right direction, it’s not enough.

Now is the time for the Florida government to take action.

Factors threatening the health of the lower St. Johns River include man-made pollutants such as partially treated sewage from our homes and businesses that is pumped into the river for disposal.

In the lower basin, treated wastewater is the largest contributor of nutrient pollution. Wastewater is partially treated sewage that is transported by underground pipes to a wastewater utility’s plant for treatment and disinfection.

Then, in many cases, the wastewater is pumped into the St. Johns River for disposal, according to the St. Johns River Keepers Web site.

Plans for a wastewater pipeline from a Putnam County paper mill to the St. Johns River recently brought attention to Northeast Florida regarding the troubling environmental legacy on the river bottom in Jacksonville, according to a Florida Times-Union report.

Researchers found that at high enough levels these chemicals can kill small sea life that larger fish feed on, and creatures at the bottom of the food chain are probably under strain by chemical levels in parts of the river.

The St. Johns River has been suffering as a result of human negligence for too long, and First Coast citizens are more concerned about killing the weeds in their lawns than what they are doing to a part of Jacksonville that’s been here long before they were.

The St. Johns River Keepers do an excellent job of spreading the word about the issues regarding the river, and volunteers spend countless hours in an effort to clean it up.

But they can only do so much. Citizens need to contribute and do their part.

Is there a direct answer to the problem?

Probably not.

But using less fertilizer and insecticides would be a good a start. Take a stand and stop allowing paper mills and other industrial factories to dump waste into your river.