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County staff brief commissioners on proposed surface-water and wellhead protection map updates
Summary
Planning commission staff presented a public-initiated comprehensive-plan amendment to revise the Surface Water Resource Protection Area map and the Wellhead Resource Protection Area maps; the workshop was informational and no action was taken.
Diego Guerra, planning commission staff, presented a public-initiated comprehensive-plan amendment to change how Hillsborough County maps surface-water resource protection areas and wellhead resource protection zones.
The amendment would limit the Surface Water Resource Protection Area to named tributaries that are directly connected to the Hillsborough River and the Alafia River and that flow for most of the year, removing ephemeral tributaries that do not flow for more than about three quarters of the year. For the Wellhead Resource Protection Area the applicant proposed removing Zone 1 protection areas from the adopted map and to redefine and expand portions of Zone 2 to add an additional buffer around cones of contribution.
The presentation was informational only; the workshop format means the Board of County Commissioners did not take formal action. Staff said the proposal has been distributed for agency review and that Tampa Bay Water would have an opportunity to comment before the item returns to the board for decision.
Planning staff described the existing adopted map series as part of the Future Land Use Map series and explained the proposal as a map amendment that is being processed like a text amendment. The presenter displayed the current adopted map (surface-water protection areas cross-hatched in green) and the proposed map that removes ephemeral tributaries; he also showed existing Zone 1 and Zone 2 wellhead protection delineations and the proposed map with a revised Zone 2 buffer.
Commissioners asked how the item would come back to the board and whether agency comments would be received prior to that return. Guerra said Tampa Bay Water will be able to comment and that the environmental protection coordinator and other reviewing agencies have been sent the amendment for review.
Because the meeting was a workshop, there were no votes or adopted changes during the session. Staff indicated they are available to answer further questions as the amendment proceeds through agency review and the public hearing cycle.
