A federal judge has sided with the group Bear Warriors United in rejecting Florida’s bid to dismiss a lawsuit alleging that the state’s oversight of wastewater discharges in Central Florida has led to the death of hundreds of manatees.
Judge Carlos Mendoza issued the decision on Dec. 18 in the Middle District of Florida. The ruling allows the litigation against the Florida Department of Environmental Protection (FDEP) to move forward on the question of whether there is “an ongoing risk of manatee takings” under the department’s wastewater regulations governing the North Indian River Lagoon.
The manatees, which are aquatic mammals that the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission says typically weigh 1,000 pounds and are 9 to 10 feet in length, have suffered two mortality events in recent decades – in 2011 to 2013 and the period of 2020 to the present, according to the court decision.
Researchers attribute the mammal deaths to widespread seagrass loss in the lagoon due to algae blooms, which lead to habitat conditions causing manatee starvation, according to Mendoza’s decision.
“The only remaining issue of fact for the jury is whether there is an ongoing risk of manatee takings under FDEP’s regulatory regime,” the judge said in his opinion, which denied the defendant’s motion for a summary judgment and allowed Bear Warriors United to continue with its lawsuit.
“We're pleased,” the plaintiff’s attorney, Lesley Blackner, told the Florida Record. “The judge wants more evidence, and we can get the court more evidence of the fact that the sewage-induced eutrophication of the lagoon will foreseeably continue to harm manatees in the Northern Indian River.”
The court has set a Jan. 16 status conference for the parties, and Blackner expressed optimism about gaining more protections for the manatees, which is a species listed under the federal Endangered Species Act.
“I think we're on third base,” she said. “The case is not about water quality. It's about how the state authorizes sewage that leaks nitrogen into the lagoon and creates algae blooms that kill seagrass. That’s the food supply for the manatees.”
The lawsuit argues that the FDEP’s wastewater discharge regulations and enforcement actions unlawfully “take” manatees in the lagoon region in violation of the Endangered Species Act. The plaintiff is also asking for a court judgment that the agency violated the federal law.
“It has been estimated that the North (Indian River Lagoon) lost between 50% and 90% of ist historical seagrass cover between 2009 and 2019,” Mendoza’s opinion states.
The FDEP has argued in court documents opposing the plaintiff’s motion for a summary judgment that the group has failed to show a legal basis that it has standing to sue.
“... The plaintiff has offered evidence that individuals have experienced emotional harm when observing past events associated with the claims in this case – namely the presence of deceased manatees,” the DEP argued. “However, (the) plaintiff cannot show a relevant, concrete and particularized injury. Plaintiff cannot show that DEP’s actions are the cause of (the) alleged injuries.”
The state has also argued that it has also taken steps to reduce nitrogen and phosphorus concentrations in the lagoon region and that the plaintiff cannot show that its regulatory enforcement caused the manatee deaths. The installation of septic tanks in the region, which were not under the department’s control until 2021, preceded the manatee mortality events, the FDEP pointed out in its memorandum.