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Lex Kromhout , Vero Beach, shared experiences from a farmer’s perspective. He felt that the Board needed to be responsible and maintain the population limits so there would not be too much of a burden on the water supply. He stressed that water will be a critical issue in 30- years and hoped the Water Management District would find a way to place a priority on the residents and their water needs in relation to other areas that are growing fast and acting irresponsibly to the environment. Robert Adair , Vice Chairman, Fish and Wildlife Conservation Division (FWCD), provided additional information regarding permitted wells and expressed that the County’s biggest concern was during periods of droughts and freezes because they diminished the artesian flow. He provided possible solutions to the Board then suggested the County aggressively pursue well plugging. He said this was an imminent decision that needed to be made now to aggressively and expeditiously pursue a surface water program. He suggested the Board work with Mr. Green, the Board of Directors at St. Johns, and to consider getting representation on the Board. Bob Ulevich , agreed with Mr. Kromhout’s comments and informed the Board that the two districts were generally agricultural and that they were primarily on surface water and secondary on wells. He suggested not using a short-term solution to a problem but to consider extra “straws” in the aquifer. Chairman Wheeler said the Board could not take action at that point because it was a workshop so he requested staff to provide a synopsis with a plan of action as to what the Board would pursue. He also indicated that he wanted a potential timetable in regards to what they could expect in the future. Dr. Gleason summarized the meeting and reviewed the suggested alternative water supplies. He emphasized that a decision needed to be made within five or six months December 6, 2006 10 ALTERNATIVE WATER SUPPLY