The Piney Point site received more than two inches of rain yesterday and continues to receive rain today. The stormwater management system for the site is functioning as designed, managing the runoff from the rain event. Rainwater runoff is being conveyed through HRK’s permitted outfall to the drainage ditch along Buckeye Road. This is rainwater, not wastewater from the containment areas onsite. Those discharges ceased on April 9 and have not resumed. Manatee County and HRK have collected samples at the permitted outfall to confirm the stormwater meets the requirements of its permit.
The water levels in the ponds onsite are within safe levels, and DEP remains committed to its stringent oversight of HRK’s water management activities at the Piney Point site.
Key status updates and response activities:
- Approximately 213 million gallons are held within the NGS-South compartment. Pond level readings are expected to fluctuate due to a host of factors, including rainfall, water management activities and wind/associated waves in the pond.
- DEP continues to monitor and sample surrounding waterways following previous discharges. DEP’s interactive water quality dashboard details sampling locations and corresponding results to evaluate any environmental impact. Results will continue to be posted as soon as they are available.
- DEP is also working collaboratively with the Tampa Bay Estuary Program (TBEP) and local governments to cover more area and collect more data. For a comprehensive view of all sampling in Tampa Bay related to Piney Point, visit TBEP’s interactive water quality dashboard.
- DEP continues working with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) and the Florida Department of Health to monitor algal blooms and water quality. FWC continues to receive reports of fish kills in Manatee, Pinellas, Pasco and Hillsborough counties. FWC is the lead agency on red tide and will continue to update conditions on their website. For more information on red tide, please visit ProtectingFloridaTogether.gov.
Residents can find the latest information on the status of the site and response activities at ProtectingFloridaTogether.gov/PineyPointUpdate.
