The Southwest Florida Water Management District Governing Board last week issued a new public supply water use permit (WUP) for the Sun ‘n Lake Improvement District.
The service area includes approximately 7,150 acres located four miles south of the intersection of State Road 64 and U.S. Highway 27 in Highlands County.
The Sun ‘n Lake Improvement District had an existing permit that included public supply and golf course irrigation. Its annual average was 1,006,200 gallons of water per day (gpd.)
The new permit is for public supply only with an annual average of 1,104,000 gallons of water per day (gpd.)
The previous permit, which is now used only for irrigation, has an annual average of 548,300 gpd.
As part of the public supply permit, the area’s per capita rate must remain at 96 gallons per person per day.
The increase in quantity is based on an estimated increase in population.
The area’s annual growth during the past ten years has been approximately 7.1 percent. However, the Improvement District asked for an increase in quantities based on 9.6 percent annual growth. As part of the permit, Sun ‘n Lake must submit a report in 2011 to validate its actual population growth. If the actual growth is substantially different from the projected growth, the Sun ‘n Lake Improvement District may apply for a permit modification.
The area must also investigate the feasibility of using reclaimed water or other alternative water supplies. Another requirement of the permit is for the area to implement a water conservation plan.
The permit expires Nov. 26, 2013.