A leaking containment pond at a former phosphate plant is in danger of collapsing and dumping a 20 foot wall of toxic water into the surrounding community in Manatee County, Florida. To try to prevent the collapse, officials have been pumping huge quantities of polluted wastewater into Tampa Bay. Pollution from phosphate plants has contributed to persistent harmful algae blooms in the state, prompting fears that this disaster will contribute to worsening algae blooms impacting tourism and causing massive die-offs of marine life.
Greenpeace USA Oceans Campaign Director John Hocevar said:
“Typically, evacuation orders in Florida mean a hurricane is coming. This time, the perfect storm is caused by irresponsible corporations and the corrupt politicians that refuse to hold them accountable. In the past week, over 150 million gallons of untreated industrial wastewater has been pumped into Tampa Bay under the approval of the Florida Department of Environmental Protection. Governor DeSantis referred to this as a controlled discharge, but is more accurately described as a desperate move resulting from a half century of failure to ensure the plant was maintained safely.
“Florida is home to some of the most spectacular natural areas in the world, but Big Sugar companies, phosphate mines, and greedy developers are killing off the state’s coral reefs, Everglades, coastal mangroves, and seagrass beds.
“Ultimately, we need to step up efforts to shift to organic farming and curb use of fertilizer, often produced by phosphate operations like the one at Piney Point. The infamous dead zone in the Gulf of Mexico, an area nearly the size of New Jersey with oxygen levels too low to sustain most forms of marine life, will not begin to recover until we stop using so much fertilizer.
“Hats off to the workers trying to contain this spill and prevent this disaster from becoming far worse. Moving forward, this has to be a wake up call. Florida politicians need to start protecting their constituents – including the environment which fuels the state’s tourist economy – or they are going to be voted out and replaced.”
ENDS
Contact:
Valentina Stackl, Senior Communications Specialist, [email protected], (734) 2766260
