TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – Raising the specter of not being able to meet future water needs, a Polk County agency is challenging a decision that would allow the neighboring Tampa Bay region to pull more water from the Alafia River.
A petition sent last week to the state Division of Administrative Hearings pits the Polk Regional Water Cooperative against the Southwest Florida Water Management District and Tampa Bay Water. The cooperative, made up of local governments, oversees water planning and projects in Polk County; Tampa Bay Water supplies water in Hillsborough, Pinellas and Pasco counties.
The Polk cooperative is fighting a July 22 permit decision by the water management district to allow Tampa Bay water to withdraw more water from the Alafia, a river that starts in Polk County before flowing into Hillsborough County…