- Named Best Florida Newspaper In Its Class -
VOL 21 No. 48
September 8, 2021
Piney Point deep water injection well permit issued Manatee County has obtained a draft permit to build a deep injection well to hold contaminated water from Piney Point underneath the Floridan Aquifer. BY CINDY LANE JASON SCHAFFER | SUN
SUN STAFF WRITER | clane@amisun.com
PALMETTO – The Florida Department of Environmental Protection (FDEP) has issued a draft permit for Manatee County to build and test an underground injection well to store contaminated water from Piney Point under the Floridan aquifer, the state’s drinking water source. The April 20 permit request by the Manatee County Utilities Department is for two wells at 3105 Buckeye Road – an injection well and a monitor well. Under the permit, issued Sept. 1, the injection well would be up to 3,300 feet deep and
Labor Day getaway
SEE PINEY POINT, PAGE 20
CONNOR FIELD | SUN
Despite the threat of COVID-19 and red tide, visitors still flocked to Island beaches for the Labor Day holiday, enjoying sunny skies and clear, blue water. Story on Page 5.
No red tide detected, a first since April BY CINDY LANE SUN STAFF WRITER | clane@amisun.com
Ask for proof of vaccine, get a fine Florida will begin issuing $5,000 fines to schools, businesses and government agencies that require anyone to show proof of COVID-19 vaccinations. BY JASON SCHAFFER SUN CORRESPONDENT | jschaffer@amisun.com
ANNA MARIA ISLAND - Florida is poised to begin enforcing the state law banning vaccine “passports” this month, imposing $5,000 fines on schools, government agen-
INSIDE NEWS LETTERS OUTDOORS CASTLES IN THE SAND REAL ESTATE BEACH BEAT CROSSWORD
4 6 18-19 22 22-26 24 29
cies and businesses that require proof of COVID-19 vaccinations. The law, passed during the spring Legislative session, does not restrict screening protocols if they are consistent with government-issued guidance to protect public health. “I don’t tell people what to do. If you want to be vaccinated, be vaccinated. If you don’t want to be vaccinated, then don’t. The same goes for wearing masks,” said Susan Chully, owner of Beach Life AMI in Bradenton Beach. “I leave it up to individual people. They know the risks and what’s out there so it’s their call,” added Chully, speaking
of her business policy on employees and customers. The fines are on a per-instance basis, meaning that asking a single customer or employee to show proof of vaccination more than once would be subject to the $5,000 fine for each instance. “What small business owner could afford to take that chance?” asked Shawn Waters, who owns Solo’s Pizza in Holmes Beach. “It’s hard enough to keep your doors open with the lack of workers right now. You’d have to have some deep pockets to afford to take a risk on a bunch of $5,000 fines to get your point across.”
ANNA MARIA ISLAND – Red tide was not detected in any of 18 water samples tested in Manatee County on Aug. 30-31, according to Friday’s Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission weekly report. It’s the first time that no red tide has been detected since mid-April, when the toxic algae began appearing near Piney Point after 215 million gallons of contaminated water was dumped into Tampa Bay. The water contained the nutrients nitrogen and phosphorus, which act as a fertilizer for red tide. The discharge was approved by the Florida Department of Environmental Protection to prevent the collapse of a compromised gypsum stack containing the contaminated water. The former phosphate plant is in receivership and is slated for closure and the disposal of the remaining contaminated water. Despite the clean Manatee County report, red tide remains in waterways in Pinellas County to SEE RED TIDE, PAGE 20
FALL IS in the air! At
MR. BONES BBQ restaurant
least it is in Canada. Food & Wine. 21
closes its doors for good. 3
Anna Maria Island, Florida
VOTING BY mail could be more
difficult in Florida this year. 15 The Island’s award-winning weekly newspaper www.amisun.com
