Congratulations to John Hendrickson who has been promoted from "Environmental Scientist VI" and is now the "Supervising Environmental Scientist" for St. Johns River Water Management District! John is no doubt the most important person involved with the possible restoration to free-flowing again of the 56-mile Silver Springs-Silver River- Ocklawaha River system into the St. Johns River estuary. Hendrickson, J. 2016. Effects on Lower St. Johns River Nutrient Supply and TMDL Target Compliance from the Restoration of a Free-Flowing Ocklawaha River. Technical Publication SJ2016-1. 107 pages. St. Johns River Water Management District, Palatka, Florida. ftp://secure.sjrwmd.com/technicalreports/TP/SJ2016-1.pdf (or copy & paste "ftp://secure.sjrwmd.com/technicalreports/TP/SJ2016-1.pdf" on your browser command line.) "Ocklawahaman" Paul Nosca -- while highly recommending that SJ2016-1 should be reviewed in its entirety -- especially considers these selected parts of Mr. John Hendrickson's EXCELLENT research paper to be VERY IMPORTANT reading for all those who would favor the restoration to free-flowing again "Source to the Sea" of the 56-mile Ocklawaha River-Silver River-Silver Springs mainstream system of north-central Florida which would only be made possible by the breaching of Rodman (Kilpatrick) Dam. The following text is excerpted -- copied exactly -- from various paragraphs and sections of "Technical Publication SJ2016-1": EXECUTIVE SUMMARY This report details the results of analyses performed by the St. Johns River Water Management District about the possible downstream effects of restoring of the lower Ocklawaha River to a free-flowing condition by removing the Rodman Reservoir. The analysis represents the most comprehensive reassessment to date focusing on the changes in nitrogen and phosphorus export from a free-flowing Ocklawaha River. The original assessment, conducted in 1994 as part of the Environmental Studies Concerning Four Alternatives for Rodman Reservoir and the Lower Ocklawaha River (ECT, 1994) predicted that the removal of Rodman Reservoir would significantly increase nutrients, in particular, nitrate-nitrogen, delivered to the lower St. Johns River Estuary. With the application of additional data and improved modeling capabilities, this report yields more accurate findings intended to inform interested parties about likely outcomes of restoration. New information about the role of nitrogen in worsening eutrophication in the lower St. Johns River that was not known at the time of the restoration permit submittal has greatly influenced the findings of this study. Monitoring data indicate that the availability of nitrogen alone (i.e., without the addition of phosphorus) does not encourage algal bloom growth in the freshwater reach of the lower St. Johns River and therefore does not constitute an adverse environmental impact from restoration. In addition, while phosphorus remains the controlling nutrient for algal blooms in this reach, this analysis suggests that on average just eight additional tons of phosphorus would be added annually from restoration efforts. While phosphorus reduction elsewhere would presumably be necessary to mitigate the effects of that increase, the offset of a load of this magnitude should be attainable through the use of current technology in several nearby water bodies, including the middle St. Johns River, Lake George, or the freshwater portion of the lower St. Johns. BACKGROUND In 1991, federal de-authorization of the Cross Florida Barge Canal Project resulted in the transfer of canal lands to the state of Florida. An ad hoc Canal Lands Advisory Committee (CLAC) was formed to provide recommendations to the Governor and Cabinet on the disposition of the barge canal lands and structures. After deliberating on the recommendations of the CLAC, the 1993 Legislature passed Chapter 92-213, Laws of Florida, which directed the Department of Natural Resources (now the Florida Department of Environmental Protection [FDEP]) to “ . . . study the efficacy, both environmental and economic, of complete restoration of the Ocklawaha River, partial restoration of the river, total retention of Rodman Reservoir, and partial retention of the reservoir . . ..” Funds were provided for the St. Johns River Water Management District (SJRWMD) to undertake the study of these four alternatives. As part of the comprehensive assessment performed by SJRWMD, Volume 11 of the Environmental Studies Concerning Four Alternatives for Rodman Reservoir and the Lower Ocklawaha River, Surface Water Quality and Alternatives Analysis for Rodman Reservoir (ECT, 1994) predicted a post-restoration increase in nitrogen (in the form of nitrate+nitrite-N) and phosphorus (as orthophosphate) loads of 878 and 30 metric tons/yr to the LSJR. Despite the predicted increase in downstream nutrient load, the positive aspects related to the restoration of floodplain functions, increased unique habitat and migratory fish passage appeared to provide overall net environmental gain. At the directive of then-Gov. Lawton Chiles and the Florida Cabinet, FDEP in 1997 submitted a permit application to SJRWMD for the removal of Rodman Reservoir to restore a free-flowing lower Ocklawaha River. But in 1999, once the permit application package was complete, the case for the restoration was deemed insufficient to meet the environmental resource permit (ERP) and consumptive use permit (CUP) public interest tests, and SJRWMD staff informed FDEP that they could not recommend approval to their Governing Board. The most prominent concern contributing to the recommendation of denial centered on the potential adverse impacts of increased nutrient load to the lower St. Johns River. Adding to this concern was the fact that the lower St. Johns at the time was one of the most prominent water bodies included on the 1999 consent decree between the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and Earthjustice to establish Total Maximum Daily Loads (TMDLs) for impaired Florida waters. FDEP requested that SJRWMD not take agency action and to hold the permit in abeyance indefinitely, a status which has continued until this day. This analysis estimates that a free-flowing Ocklawaha River will increase the average TP load to the lower St. Johns River by 11.5 metric tons (MT)/yr in reservoir-full years, and by 0.1 MT/yr in drawdown years. If drawdowns are conducted once every three years (the 2012 and upcoming 2015 drawdowns were both postponed a year hence will have been conducted on 4-year cycles), then the long-term median discharge condition phosphorus load increase under a free-flowing Ocklawaha River will be 7.7 MT/yr. To put this load in context, the allocated domestic wastewater phosphorus load to the freshwater lower St. Johns River is 12.4 MT/yr, and the annual load from the Georgia Pacific Palatka Mill was estimated in 2011 to be 11.5 MT/yr (LSJR BMAP, 2011). The Tri-County Agricultural Area (TCAA) delivers an average annual estimated phosphorus load of 84 MT/yr (FDEP, 2008). Two of the SJRWMD-designed and built regional stormwater treatment systems in the TCAA together removed an annual average of 4.5 MT/yr (2009–2014; Livingston-Way, 2014 Draft BMAP). And, since 2012, SJRWMD has conducted a gizzard shad harvest program on Lake George which has annually removed approximately 4.6 MT/yr. So the predicted phosphorus load increase from a free-flowing lower Ocklawaha, while not insignificant, is in the range of other permitted phosphorus loads to the LSJR, and within the realm of reduction achieved by projects currently functioning elsewhere in the basin. Should FDEP choose to pursue this restoration, and if a mitigation were deemed appropriate to offset potential harm based on the predicted phosphorus load increase, it would likely be achievable through a combination of treatment project options directed elsewhere in the middle St. Johns, Lake George, or the freshwater LSJR. This fact, combined with the understanding of adverse impacts that accompany reservoir drawdowns, a necessary management action for the maintenance of the reservoir (Hendrickson et al., 2016), appears sufficient such that a recommendation of denial, on the grounds of the detrimental impacts to downstream water quality, is no longer a certainty for this restoration permit. DISCUSSION "One striking feature of the annual pattern is the consistency with which diminishing concentrations of NOx, and also dissolved silica (SiO2), are associated with the increase in the relative abundance of N-fixing cyanobacteria. Silica is also a fundamental regulator of phytoplankton community structure in the Lake George and the LSJR, as it is an essential growth element for diatom algae, the natural dominant group for a lacustrine blackwater river such as the St. Johns. For these same four NOx-spike years (as well as other years not shown), N-fixing cyanobacteria appear in the phytoplankton community shortly after NOx and dissolved SiO2 are very low and essentially depleted (Figure 27). Phytoplankton biomass continues to increase after the depletion of these nutrients, with N-fixing cyanobacteria the beneficiary of the niche created by the depletion of inorganic N and silica." "While data presented here clearly show the capability of Rodman Reservoir to retain nitrogen, during times of the year it appears also to be a significant sink for dissolved silica. Comparison of above and below-reservoir monthly mean SiO2-D concentration indicates that from December through June, while the reservoir is full, SiO2-D concentrations at the head of the reservoir are significantly greater than those at the mouth (Figure 29). In drawdown years, SiO2-D at the mouth greatly exceeds the reservoir condition, and even appears greater than the inflowing concentrations, indicating the possible mobilization of reservoir or floodplain stored SiO2." "These observed data suggest that additions of NOx of the magnitude expected from the restoration of the LOR will not increase LSJR freshwater reach phytoplankton standing stock. Reduction of nitrogen alone has been shown to be ineffectual to control eutrophication in freshwater lakes (Schindler et al., 2008; Havens et al., 2002), and it has been hypothesized that the retention of silica in reservoirs has contributed to the dominance of cyanobacteria in downstream waters (Koszelnik and Tomaszek, 2008; Ittekkot et al., 2000). The addition of NOx and dissolved SiO2 may instead have the effect of delaying the community succession from the late winter community of eukaryotic algae, primarily composed of diatoms, to N-fixing cyanobacteria, and patterns in the phytoplankton community composition in the LSJR and Lake George tend to support this. For phytoplankton community composition data collected at the long-term freshwater monitoring sites in Lake George and the freshwater LSJR, the mean January–March (coincident with drawdown-year low pool phase) NOx concentration is inversely correlated with spring bloom cyanobacteria biomass (Figure 30). These relationships suggest that the increased supply of NOx, and possibly also SiO2, associated with a FFR scenario would not result in increased downstream phytoplankton biomass, and may actually improve the quality of the LSJR pelagic food chain, by counteracting the adaptive advantage of N-fixing cyanobacteria and encouraging the growth of beneficial eukaryotic algae in the phytoplankton." CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS In both the Upper Ocklawaha and Lower St. Johns River basins, lake restoration projects and removal and improved treatment of point and nonpoint sources of nutrient pollution has resulted in reductions in TP concentration and significant amelioration of eutrophication of the affected aquatic ecosystems (Ceric and Winkler, 2014; Fulton, 2014; FDEP, 2014). This assessment of FFR nutrient load to the lower St. Johns River is based on models developed on the conditions that existed from the mid 1990s through 2012, incorporating historic data from a time when loading rate was much greater, hence the models may overestimate the nutrient loads and receiving water body conditions that exist presently and in the future. This fact, along with the conservative assumptions built into the downstream delivery calculations, would lead one to expect that the downstream algal biomass increases under a free-flowing Ocklawaha River will be less than portrayed based on conservative mixing load and concentration increases. This analysis estimates that a FFR will increase the TP load to the LSJR by 11.5 MT/yr in reservoir-full years, and by 0.1 MT/yr in drawdown years. If drawdowns are conducted once every three years (the 2012 and upcoming 2015 drawdowns were both postponed a year hence will have been conducted on 4-year cycles), then the long-term median discharge condition TP load increase under a FFR will be 7.7 MT/yr. To place this in context with other TP loads, the allocated domestic wastewater TP load to the freshwater LSJR is 12.4 MT/yr, and the annual load from the Georgia Pacific Palatka Mill was estimated in 2011 to be 11.5 MT/yr (LSJR BMAP, 2011). The Tri-County Agricultural Area (TCAA) delivers an average annual estimated TP load of 84 MT/yr (FDEP, 2008). Two of the SJRWMD-designed and built regional stormwater treatment systems in the TCAA together removed an annual average of 4.5 MT/yr (2009–2014; Livingston-Way, 2014 Draft BMAP), while the rough fish harvesting project conducted in Lake George in 2015 removed 5 MT of TP in the form of fish biomass. So the predicted TP load increase from a free-flowing lower Ocklawaha, while not insignificant, is in the range of other permitted TP loads to the LSJR, and within the realm of reduction achieved by projects currently functioning elsewhere in the basin. Should FDEP choose to pursue this restoration, and if a mitigation were deemed appropriate to offset potential harm based on the predicted TP load increase, it would likely be achievable through a combination of treatment project options directed elsewhere in the middle St. Johns, Lake George, or the freshwater LSJR. This fact, combined with the understanding of other adverse impacts that occur as a result of reservoir drawdowns, a necessary management action for the maintenance of the reservoir, appears sufficient such that a recommendation of denial, on the grounds of the detrimental impacts to downstream water quality, is no longer a certainty for this restoration permit. APPENDIX A—WATER BUDGET FOR THE LOWER OCKLAWAHA RESERVOIR REACH Discharge statistics for this nutrient loading analysis were developed for the Rodman Reservoir reach of the Lower Ocklawaha River (LOR), and for the freshwater reach of the Lower St. Johns River (LSJR). A 20-year baseline period of record from October 1993–September 2013 of observed and simulated daily mean discharge were used in the analysis, as this corresponds to the available discharge record for the LSJR. The total reservoir reach inflow was calculated as the sum of the measured discharge data for Eureka (USGS #02240500, at County Highway 316, approximately 26 miles above the Ocklawaha Mouth), Orange Creek (USGS #02243000 on Hwy. 21 in Orange Springs), and Orange Springs (SJRWMD station #10362775), with simulated discharge used to estimate flow from ungauged areas. Outflow was calculated as Rodman Dam plus the volume exiting during boat lock-throughs at the Buckman Lock. One Buckman lock-through at a reservoir stage of 20’ is equivalent to 1.008 million cubic ft, or, 11.67 cubic feet/sec per day per lock-through, which is roughly equivalent to one percent of the dam mean daily discharge per lock-through. Lock-through discharge data are available from 1995 – 2004, with the subsequent time period estimated from recent reports from September 2009 to the present, which indicate a range of 34 to 72 lockages per month. In his groundwater modeling analysis, Tibbals (1989) predicted that the impoundment of Rodman Reservoir elevated the regional Florida aquifer potentiometric surface by up to 2 ft, extending a distance of 10 – 15 miles, and increased regional artesian spring discharge by 14 ft3/s. If this is the case, then conversely, one might expect that removal of the reservoir would result in a reduction in the discharge of artesian springs in the region. Such a regional groundwater change would likely have some bearing on the free-flowing river effects on the LSJR, as it indicates that increased LOR flow (and load) would be compensated to some degree by artesian spring discharge reduction in other St. Johns River springs. Examination of the local upper Floridan monitoring well water level data during reservoir drawdowns suggests that changes in reservoir stage are communicated to the regional potentiometric surface through the changes in head pressure over the submerged springs. Abrupt reductions in the upper Floridan water level in the Forest Road No. 77 well, located adjacent and just to the south of the reservoir, can be seen coincident with reservoir drawdowns (Figure A-4). Delayed and less abrupt reductions in water level in the Frontier Dance Hall well, located 9.3 miles southeast of the reservoir are also discernible during reservoir drawdowns. Temporary reductions in artesian spring discharge are also apparent in the discharge time series for Silver Glen Springs, and in the intermittent discharge measurements made for Salt Springs and Croaker Hole. These transient changes in Florida Aquifer water level and artesian spring discharge could also occur from normal seasonal changes in aquifer recharge. The relationship between reservoir stage, upper Floridan aquifer water level and artesian spring discharge are not well known as of this writing, and will need to be verified with additional data collection, analysis and groundwater modeling. For the purpose of this analysis, an operational presumption is followed such that any increases in discharge contributed by artesian springs submerged in Rodman Reservoir will be offset by decreases in artesian spring discharge elsewhere to the St. Johns River. As Rodman Reservoir submerged springs, based on limited sampling data, exhibit chemical constituent makeup similar to that of the St. Johns River springs group, the presumption in this analysis is that the reallocation of artesian spring would result in no net nutrient load change to the St. Johns. Hence, the submerged spring load is omitted from the free-flowing river load estimate. This presumption is incorporated in part because it imparts another conservative assumption into the analysis, as the omission of low concentration artesian spring flows increases downstream concentrations by omitting their dilution effect. APPENDIX G — PROPOSED OCKLAWAHA RIVER RESTORATION NUTRIENT LOAD EFFECTS ASSESSMENT PLAN In a draft revised restoration plan (FDEP, 2010), additional pre-construction phases have been proposed to moderate the transition of reservoir to river floodplain forest prior to construction, and to reduce the transient effects from oscillating wetting and drying cycles that accompany reservoir refills and storm-event related floodplain inundation and dewatering. This revised plan calls for successive reservoir drawdowns, separated by partial refills lasting for 18 to 20 months. The first drawdown to 11 feet would be initiated in October, with the first partial refill the following February to 16.5 ft This would be followed by another drawdown to 11 feet in 19 months, again to 11 feet, then a partial refill to 14.5 feet. A final drawdown would again be done in another 19 months to 9.5 feet, with the last refill to 11 feet. The restoration construction phase would begin after the stabilization at the 11 feet stage. -------------------------------------------- "Let us leave no bit of useful information uncollected, unstudied, or unused in our shared work for the restoration to free-and-swift-flowing again of Florida's 56-mile Ocklawaha and Silver River system" - "Ocklawahaman" Paul Nosca. The SJRWMD "Technical Publication SJ2016-1" by John Hendrickson contains the data -- about DISSOLVED SILICA, NITROGEN, and PHOSPHORUS (and their combined effects on possible [downstream] St. Johns River harmful algal blooms) -- best supporting that the restoration of the Ocklawaha River will be beneficial for the entire St. Johns River basin. Hendrickson, John. 2016. Effects on Lower St. Johns River Nutrient Supply and TMDL Target Compliance from the Restoration of a Free-Flowing Ocklawaha River. Technical Publication SJ2016-1. 107 pages. St. Johns River Water Management District, Palatka, Florida. FOLKS, we are continuing to add more FOR-FREE $$$ signatures supporting the "FREE THE OCKLAWAHA RIVER BY THE BREACHING OF RODMAN DAM" (https://www.change.org/p/st-johns-river-water-management-district-free-the-ocklawaha-river-by-the-breaching-of-rodman-dam) online petition. This is possibly the most important petition in the history of the Ocklawaha River issue since those that were sent to President Lyndon Johnson (D) and later President Richard Nixon (R) asking that the Cross Florida Barge Canal (CFBC) be stopped. Remember that it was the Republican -- President Nixon --that halted the CFBC (1/19/1971). "Lest we forget" all that has been accomplished for Ocklawaha River restoration and the breaching of Rodman Dam by the various non-governmental watchdog "alphabet-soups" of groups since 1971. Has it amounted to "a spit in the river?" "Ocklawahaman" is willing to believe that you might have a sincere opinion about that question. "Ocklawahaman" is of the honest opinion that you should consider the following while you still can: PLEASE SIGN -- FOR-FREE $$$ -- THIS PETITION! When you join with the "Ocklawahaman" to "FREE THE OCKLAWAHA RIVER BY THE BREACHING OF RODMAN DAM" by signing the online petition FOR-FREE $$$ it costs you NO $$$. "Ocklawahaman" has NO lawyers for you to payroll! YOU get to buy a backpack, BBQ dinner, canoe, or kayak with your own DOUGH and enjoy the remaining segments of the free-flowing Ocklawaha River and its superbly forested jungle-like corridor. At some point "Ocklawahaman" would perform the final delivery of petition signatures and comments to SJRWMD and FL DEP along with contacting SJRWMD to arrange -- if possible -- for a hearing(s) with certain staff and/or management where "Ocklawahaman" would do his best to represent the will of this petition's signatories: Who, "do hereby respectfully petition the SJRWMD and the Florida Department of Environmental Protection (FL DEP) to earnestly begin, move forward with, and finally carry out the process of restoring to free-and-swift-flowing-again the Ocklawaha River -- 'Source to the Sea' -- from its Silver Springs supreme headwaters to its St. Johns River estuary. This restoration process would require the breaching of the earthen Kirkpatrick (Rodman) Dam at the location where the historic Ocklawaha River channel flowed through it prior to September 30, 1968." It may be the MOST IMPORTANT THING that YOU can do (or have ever done) to assist SJRWMD and FL DEP to determine that the best interests of the greater St. Johns River basin are enhanced by the restoration of a free-and-swift flowing-again "Source to the Sea" 56-mainstream-mile "Real-Florida-By-God" Silver Springs-Silver River-Ocklawaha River system. Where else can you get "this much bang for the $$$ buck?" "Ocklawahaman" NEEDS YOUR FOR-FREE $$$ HELP! Show your support for the free migration -- St. Johns River to Silver Springs -- of the Florida manatee, channel catfish, and Atlantic-race STRIPED BASS. Note that the native Atlantic-race STRIPED BASS lost its only suitable spawning habitat of the entire St. Johns River basin (and the most southern in the U.S.) when Rodman (Kirkpatrick) Dam was closed across the Ocklawaha River on September 30, 1968. Riverine LARGEMOUTH BASS have been native to the Ocklawaha River for perhaps thousands of years -- they don't need Rodman Dam or Rodman Reservoir for their survival! Thank you to all that have already signed this petition FOR-FREE $$$ https://www.change.org/p/st-johns-river-water-management-district-free-the-ocklawaha-river-by-the-breaching-of-rodman-dam and desire a free-and-swift-flowing-again "Source to the Sea" 56-mainstream-mile "Real-Florida-By-God" Silver Springs-Silver River-Ocklawaha River system! Currently (as of 1800 hrs EDT 3/27/18) there are 2,333 signatures supporting the breaching of Rodman Dam. What does this number represent? "Ocklawahaman" reckons it means that 2,333 INDIVIDUALS so far have been willing to BOLDLY and PUBLICLY add their name (sort-of like "John Hancock" did in 1776) FOR-FREE $$$ -- following their own sincere whims, wishes, wants, or purposes (whatever) -- to this outdoorsman-single-citizen-created "Declaration of Independence from Rodman Dam" proclamation that is officially known to SJRWMD and FL DEP as the "FREE THE OCKLAWAHA RIVER BY THE BREACHING OF RODMAN DAM" online petition. -------------------------------------------- Read this 7/11/16 email from SJRWMD's contact person to "Ocklawahaman" Paul Nosca: "Paul, So long as everyone is aware that we are housing the petitions, and so long as everyone knows we will not be sending receipts to petitioners, I think we are fine. You will always have an open dialogue available with me, and I may even recommend you come to our board meeting tomorrow to tell our board that you have over 1,000 signatures; which is an impressive feat!" -------------------------------------------- If "Ocklawahaman" meets in the future with staff and/or management of the SJRWMD in Palatka wouldn't it be impressive to have many more than 2,333 such "votes" of individual citizens supporting restoration that "Ocklawahaman" represents? Encourage others and spouses and/or significant others to support this grassroots petition! ONE problem that "FREE THE OCKLAWAHA RIVER BY THE BREACHING OF RODMAN DAM" has now is that an individual person signs it BUT THEIR SPOUSE OR SIGNIFICANT OTHER DOES NOT! So instead of TWO signatures the petition only gets ONE! Remember that in the "Rough and Tumble" of politics, TWO (or THREE) "votes" beats ONE! Both "Ocklawahaman" Paul Nosca and Captain Erika Ritter have signed FOR-FREE $$$ this petition. Are WE (including YOU) serious about getting Ocklawaha restoration started in earnest? Or are WE (including YOU) just talking TRASH? IMPORTANT NOTE: "Ocklawahaman" Paul Nosca is a totally non-commercial, retired, private citizen and does not seek $$$ and does not accept any $$$ contributions for the administration and promotion of his individually-created petition! The State of Florida and the United States governments -- that provide me retirement benefits (for my past services to them) -- OWN almost all of the Ocklawaha River's water and its submerged and corridor lands and collect taxes from MOST all of us. Lets FOR-FREE $$$ encourage Florida and the U.S.A. to wisely follow the principals of ecology and FREE THE OCKLAWAHA RIVER BY THE BREACHING OF RODMAN DAM! Sign the petition FOR-FREE $$$! And keep in mind that the last available online data -- that "Ocklawahaman" has been able to uncover -- about the "Save Rodman Reservoir, Inc." not-for-profit group shows that they have about 1,700 contributing $$$ members! Are we serious about getting Ocklawaha restoration started in earnest? Or are we just talking TRASH? Please be aware that many active public employees of the Federal and/or State of Florida governments -- or applicants for such positions -- who otherwise agree with this "FREE THE OCKLAWAHA RIVER BY THE BREACHING OF RODMAN DAM" petition might be very reluctant to sign it publicly because of social media policies that may apply to them -- they have their careers, retirements, and families to consider! "Ocklawahaman" understands their situation because "Ocklawahaman" himself was a dedicated, loyal, and patriotic U.S. and Florida governmental employee before retirement. For these government employees that aren't allowed to sign the petition publicly, "Ocklawahaman" has created a SECRET VOTE "Do You Favor the Breaching of Rodman Dam to Restore a Free-Flowing Ocklawaha River?" online poll at http://www.poll-maker.com/poll790342x4Bd4496B-32. As of 1800 hrs EDT on 3/27/18 the results of this SECRET VOTE online poll are 227 "Yes" for breaching Rodman Dam and only 21 "No" (against breaching Rodman Dam). "Ocklawahaman" Paul Nosca, who strives for accuracy and honesty, worships zealously a more natural Ocklawaha River valley that includes the restoration of the 56 mainstream river miles from Silver Springs to the St. Johns as a free-and-swift-flowing stream again. I am a private, retired citizen and U.S. Army veteran and a member of NO environmental organization but I volunteer my Ocklawaha River experience, observations, research, and sources to sincere individuals or groups that share my zeal for restoring this old "crooked river." "Ocklawahaman" has canoed, explored, fished, hiked, and lawfully hunted the Florida outdoors since 1962 (and still does). UNLIKE ALMOST EVERYBODY ELSE INVOLVED WITH THIS ISSUE, more of my life's outdoor time -- fishing, exploring, and hunting -- has actually been spent in the Ocklawaha River basin (canoeing its waters and swamp-stomping or hammock-humping its jungle-like swamps and hammocks) than anywhere else. My Florida bass fishing began 52 years ago in 1965 and I want Rodman Dam breached to allow the restoration to free-and-swift-flowing again of the 56-mile "Real-Florida-By-God, Source-to-the-Sea" mainstream Ocklawaha River-Silver River system. And "Ocklawahaman" has actively advocated for Ocklawaha River restoration since 2006. ALL PROBABLY SHOULD KNOW THE FOLLOWING FACT: "Ocklawahaman" already has bass-fishing, canoeing, hunting, and exploration access to the best, coolest-watered, and most natural remaining part of the Ocklawaha River and its splendidly-forested wilderness corridor (i.e., the middle Ocklawaha River from the Silver River inflow/SR-40 Bridge to the Eureka/CR-316 Bridge). Along with Captain Erika Ritter, "Ocklawahaman" owns property at Eureka that borders the Marjorie Harris Carr Cross Florida Greenway and the Ocklawaha. "Ocklawahaman" can request the FWC to stock more striped bass and channel catfish into those 18 river miles. And "Ocklawahaman" can go back to being happily retired! But for now until somewhat more than 2,333 supporting signatures have been obtained, "Ocklawahaman" is going to try to do a selfless thing as JOB #ONE -- promote and administrate this "FREE THE OCKLAWAHA RIVER BY THE BREACHING OF RODMAN DAM" online petition so that WE, while daring greatly for a worthy cause, can finally make a difference! At some point in the future, "Ocklawahaman" will be hoping to negotiate his best possible hearing(s) with staff and/or management of the SJRWMD -- the more public signatures that he represents, the louder shall be the "voice" of "Ocklawahaman" for breaching Rodman Dam! Captain Erika Ritter was once told by a high-ranking official of the Marjorie Harris Carr Cross Florida Greenway, "The squeaky wheel gets the grease!" Help "Ocklawahaman" if possible FOR-FREE -- sign the petition (if you haven't already) which currently (as of 1800 hrs EDT 3/27/18) has 2,333 signatures. Thank you very much to all of you for your time reading this webpage and for any positive consideration that you might have towards signing the "FREE THE OCKLAWAHA RIVER BY THE BREACHING OF RODMAN DAM" petition and/or encouraging others to do so! And know that I am in favor of a free-and-swift-flowing-again "Source to the Sea" 56-mainstream-mile "Real-Florida-By-God" Silver Springs-Silver River-Ocklawaha River system! How about YOU? Most sincerely, "Ocklawahaman" Paul Nosca Administrator of the FREE THE OCKLAWAHA RIVER BY THE BREACHING OF RODMAN DAM online petition. "FREE THE OCKLAWAHA RIVER BY THE BREACHING OF RODMAN DAM" Facebook public group page at https://www.facebook.com/groups/1937718656450177/. THE SONG "Ocklawaha, Set Her Free" videos at: https://vimeo.com/179479588 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aIUn5Hg5ePE "There are lake fishermen, and there are river fishermen, and seldom do the twain agree!" - The original author’s name is unknown to me.