Alliance to Protect Water Resources activist group disbands

By Lauren Ritchie

A death occurred on Nov. 13, and nobody even has noticed. The way things are now, they probably never will.

That's the day the Alliance to Protect Water Resources, an activist group in south Lake [County], voted to disband, saying few people came to meetings, nobody has time to work on projects and membership had dwindled to a few, mostly older folks who just can't keep it going.

The group simply wasn't able to accomplish much, and its passionate leaders grew weary of a proverbial gun battle in which they were armed with a pen knife.

"We live in the land of God's waiting room," mused President Peggy Cox, 66. "You'd think somebody would have some time on their hands. The minutiae of life consumes them."

Ironically, the disbanding of the Alliance comes at a time when the question of where to get drinking water never has been more important in Florida. In fact, it might be said that the state is on the verge of crisis because over-building has nearly drained the Floridan Aquifer.

Officials frantically are scrambling for "alternate sources" so that even more houses can be built, ignoring the balance between nature's underground water-storage system and how many humans and animals can be supported on the surface.