ZEPHYRHILLS, Fla. (AP) — Seen from the air, a Florida freshwater spring is a bit of liquid heaven, luring humans and wildlife to enjoy its aquamarine cool. With at least 1,000 of them — more than any other state — the springs serve as beaches for large swaths of central and northwestern Florida far from the ocean, with teenagers backflipping from docks and snorkelers peering into the crystalline depths.
But these treasures are under threat from agricultural pollution, rapid development and climate change.
Some places, such as fast-growing Zephyrhills in west-central Florida, have paused some construction as it struggles to stay within limits on the drinking water it can withdraw from a vast underground aquifer. Zephyrhills is home to Crystal Springs, source of the bottled water named after the town and several other brands.
“We really had to do something,” said Steven Spina, a member of the town council. “A lot of residents thought it was a good thing. People were happy to see us take a breath.”
Covering an estimated 100,000 square miles (250,000 square kilometers), the underground Floridan Aquifer is the source of 90% of Florida's drinking water. Because of the porous nature of the state's bedrock, millions of gallons of water find their way to the surface in the form of clear, clean springs that, in turn, feed into rivers.
The highest concentration of springs are in central and northern Florida, including most of the 30 “first magnitude” springs — those that discharge at least 65 million gallons (246 million liters) of water every day. All but four of them are considered polluted.
“We just have too much pollution going into the ground and too much water coming out of the ground,” said Ryan Smart, executive director of the nonprofit Florida Springs Council. “And when you get that combination, you end up with springs that are no longer blue and vibrant and full of life.”
In rural Florida, runoff from fertilizers and pesticides used in farm fields is a major part of the problem. Fertilizers containing phosphates and nitrogen promote algae blooms that can suffocate a spring. Livestock waste contributes, too.
“When that algae covers everything, then you lose all of the seagrasses. The seagrasses are the forests of the water,” Smart said. “Then you begin to lose the biodiversity. And it even puts our drinking water at risk.”
Elsewhere in Florida, rampant development is the threat. With over 1,000 people moving to Florida every day, more housing subdivisions are sprouting, along with the roads, strip malls, restaurants, golf courses and everything else that comes with them.
That means more paved surfaces that keep rainwater from percolating down into the aquifer and more pollutant-laden runoff from lawn fertilizers, parking lots, ever-widening roads and sometimes septic tanks. It also means more and more people, many of whom enjoy tubing, paddleboarding, kayaking and swimming in the springs.
It gets so busy in summer at some springs located in state and local parks that entry is halted by late morning. At Ichetucknee Springs State Park north of Gainesville, the daily limit of 750 tubers on the upper river is often reached within an hour after the park opens.
Kaelin Gibbs, on vacation in June with his family from Georgia, was swimming in the Blue Hole Spring along the Ichetucknee River.
“This is simply incredible; the water is cool and clear,” said Gibbs. “We’ve been to Florida’s beaches and to Orlando. There is no comparison to how beautiful this spring is.”
But that's in peril, said Dennis Jones, a Republican former legislator deeply involved in springs issues. He said the volume of permits being issued for water use isn't sustainable.
“You cannot keep taking water out of the aquifer because it’s not an endless supply,” Jones said.
Phosphate mining has also taken a toll on springs. Their operations require a great deal of water, which reduces water pressure available for springs. Some have died almost completely from mining and other factors, including White Sulphur Springs in north Florida, which was a sacred place for Native Americans and later a tourist resort that attracted famous visitors such as Henry Ford and Theodore Roosevelt.
A more subtle threat to the health of springs involves Earth's changing climate. It is altering rainfall patterns around the globe, threatening the balance that feeds Florida's springs.
In addition, some springs along the coasts are facing an intrusion of salt water, according to the Southwest Florida Water Management District. Four major springs are becoming increasingly brackish because of sea level rise and declining rainfall.
"As a result, freshwater vegetation has a hard time surviving in this saltier environment and unwanted vegetation moves in," the district said in a website post.
Florida spends billions every year on water quality projects, including about $800 million this year for Everglades restoration work. State funding for springs runs about $50 million a year, according to state documents.
Two state efforts at improving springs' quality, both around a decade old, remain bottled up in court and administrative challenges. One would strengthen rules for permits to draw water from the major springs. The other would enhance rules to reduce the amount of nutrients such as nitrogen and phosphates that goes into springs that are considered impaired.
Jones, the former legislator, said lobbying by powerful agricultural interests and related political pressures have blocked progress on the nitrogen reduction plan that was expected to take about 20 years.
“We’ve burned up almost 10 years and they haven’t got on stage one. We got more nitrates now than when we started," Jones said.
In Congress, U.S. Rep. Randy Fine recently filed a bill that would create a Florida Springs National Park across several counties, centered around the Ocala National Forest. Fine said in a statement the designation would protect the springs and increase funding. “Our Florida springs are something unique, not just to Florida but to the country,” Fine said.
It costs bottling companies just $115 for a permit allowing them to withdraw millions of gallons of water in perpetuity. But they do pay local taxes.
Blue Triton, the company that bottles Zephyrhills water, pays about $600,000 a year in taxes for things like schools, public safety and so forth, said Spina of the city council.
“They are one of our largest taxpayers,” he said.
Though they have challenges, Florida's freshwater springs have energetic friends, too.
Michelle Jamesson loves the springs; she grew up swimming in one and is determined to help protect them for future generations. She volunteers for SpringsWatch Citizen Science Program, coordinating and working with other volunteers for monthly tests on the Wekiva River, north of Orlando.
They test water quality, take photos of underwater vegetation, count birds and more, seeking to spot any big changes that may require action. The Wekiva is fairly stable, she said, though it carries a lot of excess nutrients.
“The wildlife and the ecology, and all of it — it's so full of life,” Jamesson said.
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