Pensacola, Fla., ABC affiliate WEAR reported this week that construction on a $4.5 million irrigation project has been suspended before it can interfere with the summer season on Pensacola Beach, an unincorporated community on Santa Rosa Island with a high concentration of restaurants, bars and hotels.
The project’s sponsors, the Emerald Coast Utility Authority, say it will provide more access to reclaimed water for irrigation and reduce wastewater discharges into Pensacola Bay and Santa Rosa Sound. The work was scheduled to be completed by March 1 but hit “a little bit of a snag” when crews hit water while trying to install some underground pipe, Santa Rosa Island Authority executive director told WEAR.
One local pizzeria owner told the station that customers would place an order and call back a few minutes later, claiming, ‘We can’t get to you.’ The construction already ruined his Spring Break, he said, cutting business between 15 and 20 percent.
According to the Florida Museum of Natural History, the state used around 884 million gallons of reclaimed water in 2020. Besides irrigation of public green spaces like parks and highway medians, reclaimed water is also essential to wetland creation, industrial cooling, and car washing. It’s not safe to drink, but these other uses do help preserve the state’s potable water supply.
Since this phase of the project began in September, crews have installed 4,000 feet of water line, bored 1,700 feet for a 12-inch reclaimed water main, and begun work on another 1,700 feet of 16-inch pipe, according to the ECUA. Construction is expected to resume in November.
