Thread by @mgoldfarb999

@nikkifried @GovRonDeSantis @FLDEPNews 1/ Per bit.ly/3uAF71h Richard Luscombe @richlusc via @guardianUS ,”Scott Hopes [ @ScottHopes ] , the acting county administrator, warned that despite a low population density, the nearby area could be overwhelmed by a sudden collapse of the 77-acre pond,

2/ Per bit.ly/3uAF71h Richard Luscombe @richlusc via @guardianUS ,” even though discharges had lessened the quantity of remaining water. The pond at the abandoned phosphate mine sits in a stack of phosphogypsum, a radioactive waste product from fertiliser manufacturing.

3/ Per bit.ly/3uAF71h Richard Luscombe @richlusc via @guardianUS ,” The pond contains small amounts of naturally occurring radium and uranium. The stacks can also release large concentrations of radon gas.

4/ Per bit.ly/3uAF71h by @richlusc via @guardianUS ,”Nikki Fried [ @nikkifried ], the Florida agriculture commissioner and the only elected Democrat in statewide office, warned of an “environmental catastrophe” and...

5/ Per bit.ly/3uAF71h by @richlusc via @guardianUS ,[ @nikkifried ]”called on DeSantis – who described the toxic water as “mixed saltwater” in a tweet announcing the state of emergency – to hold an emergency cabinet meeting.

6/ Per bit.ly/3uAF71h by @richlusc via @guardianUS ,”
“Floridians were evacuated from their homes on Easter weekend. 480m gallons of toxic wastewater could end up in Tampa Bay – this might become an environmental catastrophe,” she[ @nikkifried ] said on Twitter.

7/ Per bit.ly/3uAF71h by @richlusc via @guardianUS ,”Environmental protection groups warned that more pollutants in Tampa Bay would heighten the risk to wildlife from toxic red tide algae blooms.

8/ Per bit.ly/3uAF71h by @richlusc via @guardianUS ,”Phosphate companies have had over 50 years to figure out a way to dispose of the radioactive gypsum wastes,” the activist group Mana-Sota 88 [ manasota88.org ]said.

9/ Per bit.ly/3uAF71h by @richlusc via @guardianUS ,[activist group Mana-Sota 88 manasota88.org said]”At the present time there are no federal, state or local regulations requiring the industry to make final disposition of phosphogypsum wastes

10/ Per bit.ly/3uAF71h by @richlusc ,[activist group Mana-Sota 88 manasota88.org said],"there are no federal, state or local regulations requiring the industry to make final disposition of phosphogypsum wastes in an environmentally acceptable manner.”

11/ Per bit.ly/3uAF71h by @richlusc ,[ manasota88.org ] added: “The current crisis can be traced back to the absurd 2006 decision to allow dredged material from Port Manatee to be placed into one of the gyp stacks at Piney Point,

12/ Per bit.ly/3uAF71h by @richlusc ,[ manasota88.org ] added: “... something the stack[allow dredged material from Port Manatee to be placed into one of the gyp stacks at Piney Point] was never designed for and should have never been allowed.”

13/ Per bit.ly/3uAF71h by @richlusc ,"
At the Sunday press conference, Hopes[ @ScottHopes ] said the long-term objective would be to entirely pump out the three reservoirs on the site and fill them in.

14/ Per bit.ly/3uAF71h by @richlusc ,"Later in the day,he[ @ScottHopes ]said the amount of water left in the reservoir wasNow below300m gallons.The county commission said it was more comfortable than it had been, though a catastrophic collapse was still a possibility.

15/ Per bit.ly/3uAF71h by @richlusc ,"
Hopes[ @ScottHopes ] also said: “This could have been resolved over two decades ago.”

16/ Per bit.ly/3uAF71h by @richlusc ,"The owner of Piney Point, HRK Holdings, bought the site after it was abandoned by the Mulberry Corporation, which operated the phosphate plant for more than 40 years.

17/ Per bit.ly/3uAF71h by @richlusc ,"As long ago as 2003, the Sarasota Herald Tribune reported, reservoir walls were crumbling.

18/ Per bit.ly/3uAF71h by @richlusc ,"The federal Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) previously authorized the dumping of hundreds of millions of gallons of toxic water into the Gulf of Mexico.