The Florida Department of Environmental Protection reported Jan. 6 the discovery of three “low-volume seepage areas” at the Piney Point phosphate site.
The DEP said less than 3 gallons per minute of “seepage” was observed upslope of a stormwater drainage ditch along the south wall of a containment compartment at the site.
The state’s day-to-day reporting from Piney Point began last spring, after leaks in containment systems resulted in the state authorized discharge of 250 million gallons of nutrient-rich wastewater from Piney Point into the Tampa Bay estuary system.
“Currently, there is no indication of any concern with the integrity or stability of the stack system and there will be no offsite discharges at this time,” the DEP said in its Jan. 6 report. “Seepage volume remains low and is completely contained within the on-site lined stormwater management system.”
At that time, an investigation was underway and the location of the leak or leaks not determined.
If the seepage flow increased, the state said the wastewater would be pumped back into the compartment.
Meanwhile, work continued to drill a deep injection well to take Piney Point’s polluted water so that the site could be closed.
— Lisa Neff