by David Chapman
Staff Writer
For the past ten years, the St. Johns River has had an independent voice — and thanks to it, Northeast Florida has been able to hear what it’s saying a little clearer.
The St. Johns Riverkeeper, a nonprofit and privately funded river advocacy group, celebrates its 10th year fighting on behalf of one of Florida’s most recognizable resources this year, but don’t expect organization officials to sit back and rest on their laurels — there’s still work to be done.
“It’s an accomplishment,” said Jimmy Orth, St. Johns Riverkeeper executive director, “but at the same time we’re at an important crossroads with the river.”
Like the river itself, though, the way people perceive the river and the organization itself has changed since Roger Bass founded it in 1999.
“I think people value the river more,” said Neil Armingeon, St. Johns Riverkeeper. “We’ve helped the cause, now we need to continue the cause.”
The organization has shined a light on many of the river issues — like levels of pollution and their impact and withdrawal practices — that the public wasn’t educated on.
“We’ve definitely changed people’s mentality,” said Armingeon. “We’ve got their attention.”
Both Orth and Armingeon credit Bass for setting the standard and having the passion for creating the organization and serving on its board of directors for the first six years. While not as actively involved anymore, Bass does keep in touch with the group.
“I’m very proud of it and I think today it’s everything we envisioned it would be,” said Bass.
His core philosophies revolved around getting more people on the St. Johns River and getting in the ears of politicians and policy makers on river issues, both of which Orth and Armingeon continue to do today.
“Our policy, our mission is still the same,” said Orth. “We’re going to focus on what’s best for the river and get back to our roots.”
While the community is more involved in the river today, Orth points to educational materials like the St. Johns River “Get Your Feet Wet” guidebook released last year and the ability to persevere in legal battles with larger, better funded corporations in the courtroom as achievements. Armingeon reflects back to public awareness on the river’s importance and the issues that swirl with it as vital steps in creating a base of advocates to further efforts in the future.
During his tenure, Bass faced numerous issues but there were two that stood out to him: calling attention to “Condom Creek” off the Ortega River that resulted in fines and money used on environmental projects and the fight against the Freedom Commerce Center development.
While the organization has picked up additional support in its history, not everyone has become a fan. Several utility, manufacturing plants in other counties and organizations — most of which are legally better equipped and have deeper pockets — that simply think in terms of the bottom line have fought the organization on issues, said Orth, but Riverkeeper hasn’t backed away from its advocacy stance.
“We’re still in there,” said Orth.
Now that the problems have been identified, the efforts will be needed to create change.
Nitrogen and phosphorous levels are still too high in the river, said Armingeon, causing toxic algae blooms that in turn damage the river. Upcoming reports will likely show a water shortage for Northeast Florida (“There isn’t a water shortage problem,” said Orth. “There’s a water usage problem.”) that could be altered drastically, they said, with conservation efforts.
Legislative issues that could relax environmental restrictions, in an attempt to spur construction, could further damage the river and are an example of short-term thinking, said Orth.
“The river is essential to our sustainability as an economy,” said Orth. “It brings people here, it creates jobs, it improves our quality of life ... if we ruin it with short-term solutions, then what?”
While the down economy has been down overall, it’s actually been good for the river, explained Orth. Massive and constant buildup, along with the flood of permits that environmental compliance officials have to examine, have slowed and allowed a more strenuous examination of how past buildup has affected the river. The timing allows officials to examine mistakes and gives organizations like Riverkeeper an opportunity to change public policies.
“We’ve come to this point because of poor planning and inefficient use of water and resources,” said Orth. “If we just go back to business as usual, it’s only going to make matters worse.”
In 2020, Orth and Armingeon hope the public will be able to look back on its first ten years as positive and a time when things continued changing for the better.
“I hope in 10 years, the green river is gone,” said Armingeon. “People couldn’t believe what we were doing back then, much like we look back now and can’t believe what people were doing to the river.”
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