Lazaro Aleman
ECB Publishing, Inc.
By now many in Jefferson County and beyond are probably aware of recent social media posts alleging that the Trulieve medical marijuana facility near Waukeenah is compromising the water quality of an adjacent creek whose waters ultimately run into the aquifer.
The complaint stems from an adjacent property owner through whose land runs a creek that Trulieve has allegedly contaminated with overflow from its pond and who has reportedly been dealing with Trulieve over the issue for some time now. As a result of the social media posts, however, what started out as neighbors’ dispute has been brought into the public sphere and to the attention of State Representatives Allison Tant and Jason Shoaf and involved the Suwannee River Water Management District (SRWMD), Florida Department of Environmental Protection (FDEP) and Florida Department of Health-Jefferson (FDOH-Jefferson).
“The creek used to be a clean clear water creek which has now filled with algae …” states in part the Facebook post that largely publicized the situation, adding that a test of the creek by Ackuritlabs-Water Testing showed that “the nitrate level of the water was at 14.9 ppm.”
“FDEP is concerned with 0.35 ppm when testing the water at the Wacissa River,” the post states, adding that the creek waters ultimately dump into the Floridan aquifer.
A copy of the water test result, ostensibly from Ackuritlabs, is included in the post. The result shows a set of the ingredients per units supposedly found in the creek water, including alkalinity, bicarbonate, carbonate and calcium. The result indicates that the total nitrogen found was 14.9 and the nitrate, 14.5.
A subsequent Facebook video was posted as “proof of the algae/chemical-filled water that they (Trulieve) pump out from their ‘holding’ pond onto property that is not theirs,” states the accompanying text in part, adding that the pumping is done more than once monthly, especially during the rainy season.
The video, according to the post, shows a pump at the back of the pond in the corner of Trulieve’s fence. It shows water cascading over a small drop and running downstream and eventually into an algae-infested area.
The affected property owner has so far declined to speak with the Monticello News, reportedly on the advice of attorneys. However Blane Tatum, a county native who is related to the property owner and who is responsible for the Facebook posts, spoke to the Monticello News on Wednesday, April 8. Tatum noted upfront that he was limited in what he could say, other than to address the issue publicly stated in his posts.
He clarified that Trulieve wasn’t actually pumping water directly into the neighboring property. Rather, it was allowing water from a small pond behind its holding pond to overflow into the neighboring property, he said.
“They're dumping it over into it and then it just overflows from it down through the property and it's running basically downhill,” said Tatum, who is intimately familiar with the area, noting that the creek eventually crosses under CR-259, runs into Lloyd Creek, and ultimately becomes part of the Miccosukee Lake Basin and the aquifer.
He called the situation worrisome, given the contents of the holding pond and that they may ultimately be going into the aquifer.
“It’s basically the water that they have used in the process of growing the plants,” Tatum said. “It has all the nitrates, phosphorus, all the fertilizers that they use in there, and then it also has, and the reason I know this is because it came from somebody who used to work there, they use acids. Once they remove all the plants and the pots and everything, then they use acid to clean the algae off of everything inside and all that washes down to this pond. So it's got all kinds of chemicals in it. If it was designed to be a holding pond for rainwater, well, it's holding a lot more than rainwater.”
The pond, according to Tatum, gets pumped periodically when it nears overflowing, a process that he said has apparently been going on since the facility opened about 2020.
Trulieve, he said, was aware of the situation, as the property owner had long been complaining about the overflow, he said. However, he reiterated that he was limited in what he could say.
There are reports that litigation on the issue is ongoing. A review of cases associated with Trulieve in the Second Judicial Circuit, however, failed to produce a relevant result. The only case in Jefferson County that came up involved a 2025 complaint filed by a former employee. In Leon County, multiple cases involving Trulieve turned up, some dating as far back as 2002, but none that related to the current affair.
Tatum noted that, unlike farmers who put fertilizers on their fields and spread it over hundreds of acres, Trulieve’s dumping is concentrated to a single location.
“They're dumping all this in one spot, and it's running right down to what used to be a clear, sandy bottom creek,” Tatum said. “I hunt on the properties around there. I had no idea that this was going on. I mean, they're basically contaminating the water that deer and other animals drink with all this stuff.”
Did he attribute the alleged degradation of the creek directly to Trulieve?
Tatum conceded that he didn’t know it for an absolute fact. What he did know, however, was that the creek was no longer clear as it had been, going back to his boyhood days when he had roamed the area.
“I really don't know,” he said. “That's speculation on my part, but I've never seen it the way it is until the last five or so years.”
Rep. Tant is aware of the issue and has stayed on top of it. She told the Monticello News that she has discussed the topic with the SRWMD, FDEP, FDOH and even the governor. So far, she said, the SRWMD and DOH-Jefferson had responded.
“The question is, where is the FDEP?” Tant said, adding that this agency had told her that the issue was one that was the water management district’s to investigate and correct, not its responsibility.
From her point of view, however, all three agencies – the SRWMD, FDEP and FDOH – needed to be involved, Tant said.
She said that word from the SRWMD was that Trulieve’s site-build plan was followed correctly. The question, she said, was whether the system was being operated correctly. The SRWMD, she said, planned next to conduct an inspection of the facility from an operational point of view to ensure it was operateing properly.
Troy Roberts, chief of the communications and outreach office with the SRWMD, confirmed late last week that the district was aware of the problem and acting on it.
“The district received a request several weeks ago to investigate a permitted stormwater site at the Trulieve facility in Monticello,” Roberts said on Friday, April 10. “Staff conducted a site visit and are evaluating the stormwater plan to ensure that the site is in compliance with all permits and regulations.”
He added that regarding the water quality concerns, the district was working with the FDEP to address these issues, if warranted.
“Both the district and FDEP have conducted sampling at nearby sites,” Roberts said. “District sampling results are expected in a few weeks.”
In a follow-up email late Friday, Roberts said the SWRWM staff had conducted a second site visit to Trulieve that very day and had requested additional information from Trulieve regarding operational functions at the site.
A few minutes later, he texted that it appeared the SWRMD staff had also spoken with the complainant on the same day.
Tant, meanwhile, pointed out that the FDOH-Jefferson was giving free test kits to property owners who wanted to check their water for lead, E. coli and bacteria, all of which can cause serious illnesses. Nitrate tests were also available from the department for $45, she said.
“So if people pick up the free test and purchase the $45 nitrate test, they are getting a $95 valued test for $45,” she said.
Chelsey McCoy, senior public health services manager at the FDOH-Jefferson, confirmed the free kits were available to residents who lived within a two-mile radius of the marijuana facility. She said the department had acquired a total of 75 kits and 26 remained as of last Wednesday, which was to be the last day of the give-away.
Tant said she would continue to monitor the situation. Her goal, she said, was ultimately to ensure that the water that people drank and used for their livestock was safe.
“We’re not going to stop until we get the answers,” Tant said.
Meanwhile, Steve Vancore, a spokesperson for Trulieve, responded as follows:
“As a Big Bend neighbor and rural plant nursery, Trulieve has a direct stake in the health of our local ecology. Since opening, we have worked closely with the state water management district to meet or exceed all water quality standards. We also reclaim and reuse the majority of our water outflow, reducing our environmental footprint further. Every test, inspection, and agency review – including state-certified labs – has confirmed our water quality is within normal limits. Our record speaks for itself. If a problem exists in the local watershed, it does not originate from our facility.
Vancore included two documents with his emailed response.
One was an internal memo from Eric Powers and Kyle Landrum to Trulieve founder and CEO Kim Rivers regarding the Jefferson County facility, dated April 8, 2026. Powers is the chief legal officer and Landrum the chief production officer at Trulieve. The memo concerned water quality and odor mitigation at the Jefferson County facility.
“Public comments have raised concerns that Trulieve’s Jefferson County cultivation facility may be causing water pollution, creating unacceptable odors, or operating without proper oversight,” the memo reads in part. “These concerns are not supported by environmental testing data or the facility’s permitting record. The facility is in compliance, its permits are current, and its water supply is clean.”
The memo notes that the water had been tested multiple times between 2023 and 2026 by a certified Florida laboratory, including samples of the well water, irrigation water and retention pond/discharge water.
“The results show that site water is clean and within safe limits,” the memo states. “Nutrients, salts, and metals are present at levels typical for the area and far below those linked to harmful pollution. There are no unsafe pollutant levels and no worsening trend over time. There is no evidence of off-site impact.”
It further notes that the facility is regulated under an SRWMD issued Environmental Resource Permit that governs the stormwater design, runoff management and water reclamation systems.
“The record shows compliance, transparency, and ongoing monitoring,” the memo states.
The second document contained letters from SRWMD Executive Director Hugh Thomas to Powers dated Sept. 5, 2024, and May 12, 2023, attesting to the issuance of an environmental resource permit (ERP) to Trulieve. The ERP is a legal authorization required for construction, alterations or development activities that impact wetlands, surface waters, or alter surface water flows, such as stormwater systems.