62-520.300. Purpose and Intent for Ground Water

(1) Purpose.

(a) Article II, Section 7 of the Florida Constitution requires abatement of water pollution and conservation and protection of Florida’s natural resources.

(b) The present and future most beneficial uses of all ground waters of the state have been designated by the Department by means of the classification system set forth in this chapter in accordance with Section 403.061(10), F.S. Water quality standards are established by the Department to protect these designated uses.

(c) Because activities outside the state sometimes cause pollution of Florida’s waters, the Department will make every reasonable effort to have such pollution abated.

(d) Water quality standards apply equally to and shall be uniformly enforced in both the public and private sector.

(e) “Public interest” shall not be construed to mean only those activities conducted solely to provide facilities or benefits to the general public. Private activities conducted for private purposes may also be in the public interest.

(f) The Department shall use the best environmental information available when making decisions on the effects of chronically and acutely toxic substances and carcinogenic, mutagenic, and teratogenic substances. Additionally, the Department shall encourage innovative research and development in waste treatment alternatives that might better preserve environmental quality and reduces the energy and dollar costs of operation.

(g) The present and future most beneficial uses of ground waters of the state shall be protected to ensure the availability and utility of this invaluable resource. To achieve such protection, the ground waters of the state are classified and appropriate water quality criteria for those classes are set forth in this chapter.

(h) The criteria set forth in this chapter are minimum levels that are necessary to protect the designated use of ground waters. Permit applicants shall not be penalized because of a low detection limit associated with any specific criterion.

(2) History of Intent.

(a) The Department rules that were adopted on March 1, 1979, regarding water quality standards are designed to protect public health or welfare and to enhance the quality of waters of the state. They have been established taking into consideration the use and value of waters of the state for public water supply, agricultural, industrial, and other purposes.

(b) The Department rules that were adopted on March 1, 1979, regarding water quality standards are based upon the best scientific knowledge related to the protection of the various designated uses of waters of the state.

(c) The zone of discharge and exemption provisions are designed to provide an opportunity for the future consideration of factors relating to localized situations which could not adequately be addressed in the rulemaking hearing of March 1, 1979, including economic and social consequences, attainability, irretrievable conditions, natural background, and detectability.

(d) Paragraphs (a) through (c) encompass an even-handed and balanced approach to attainment of water quality objectives. The Commission specifically recognized that the social, economic, and environmental costs may, under certain circumstances, outweigh the social, economic, and environmental benefits if the numerical criteria are enforced statewide. It is for that reason that the Commission provided for zones of discharge, exemptions, and other provisions in chapters of Title 62, F.A.C. Furthermore, the continued availability of moderating provisions is a vital factor providing a basis for the Commission’s determination that water quality standards applicable to ground water classes in this chapter are attainable, taking into consideration environmental, technological, social, economic, and institutional factors. The companion provisions of Chapter 17-4 (now in Chapter 62-520, F.A.C.) and 17-6 (now in Chapters 62-600, 62-601, 62-610, 62-611, 62-660 and 62-670, F.A.C.), F.A.C., originally approved simultaneously with the water quality standards contained in this chapter are a substantive part of the state’s comprehensive program for the control, abatement, and prevention of water pollution.

(e) Without the moderating provisions described in paragraph (c) above, the Commission would not have adopted the revisions described in (b) above nor determined that they were attainable as generally applicable water quality standards.

(3) The Commission, recognizing the complexity of water quality management and the necessity to temper regulatory actions with the technological progress and the social and economic well-being of people, urges, however, that there be no compromise where discharges of pollutants constitute a valid hazard to human health.

Rulemaking Authority 403.061, 403.087 FS. Law Implemented 403.021, 403.061, 403.087, 403.088, 403.502, 403.702 FS. History–Formerly 17-3.071, Amended and Renumbered 1-1-83, Formerly 17-3.401, Amended 9-8-92, 4-14-94, Formerly 17-520.300, Amended 12-9-96, 7-12-09.