GOVERNMENT
our face in the river, to jump overboard in the river.”
Work on the first of the reservoirs has begun with the clearing
Port St. Lucie Magazine 15
of old grove trees that no longer produce.
TREATMENT PLANT NEXT
By the end of September, the first one should be finished.
The cost of the 206-acre reservoir is almost $1.9 million. Of
that, $645,000 came from grants. The second reservoir, costing
$1.8 million and funded with a grant from the state should be
finished by the end of this year. The rest await funding and
have no completion date.
Next on the agenda, after the reservoirs are functioning, is
a water treatment plant, although construction isn’t planned
until 2035, according to Brad Macek, senior assistant utilities
director in the city’s Utility Systems Department. A second
plant may be under construction in 2050, 10 years before the
projected build-out of the city “so it will have to have the
capacity for more water than we will need in 2050.”
Planning is ongoing, but right now the city intends to use
about 25 acres of the McCarty Ranch for the plant, and then
spread storage throughout the rest of the 3,100 acres. That
acreage is also being used for recreation such as trail riding,
primitive camping and fishing. Once a year the city hosts a
big event with a bonfire and other family-style entertainment.
Several alternatives are under consideration for freshwater
treatment and storage, Macek said. Treatment can involve
reverse osmosis to catch tiny particles and molecules and
remove them from the water; it can also include filtration,
aeration, lime, disinfection, and more. The right combination
must be selected for the water being treated.
One way to store it is to send it about 100 feet down to the
top of the Floridan Aquifer, an underground river of salty
water. Fresh water will sit on top in a sort of bubble, Macek
said, because saltwater is more dense than fresh water. Then,
it can be withdrawn as needed.
Port St. Lucie is looking at its future, Oravec said.
Or to put it another way, “The start of the project is a hallelujah
moment” for the city, Grande said. E
ACREAGE (+ or -)
McCarty Ranch: 3100
McCarty Ranch Extension
(where the reservoirs are going): 1900
Reservoir 1: 206
Reservoir 2: 239
Reservoir 3: 250
Reservoir 4: 300
Reservoir 5: 49
Reservoir 6: 99
Reservoir 7: 730 (for rainwater only)
POPULATION
Now – about 185,000
Build-out in 2060: about 401,000
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