A Look at Water in South Central Florida

If you stay abreast of water media you may be familiar with Dr. Mary Lusk from handy insight on reclaimed water in Florida and topical research on septic system pollutants. You may also recognize Dr. Lusk as the UF/IFAS Water Regional Specialized Agent for the South Central District. This spring during the Urban Landscape Summit, Dr. Lusk agreed to speak with IrriGator for our on-going series featuring Water RSAs and their districts.

What drew you to the Water RSA position?

ML: I really like that it combines science with communication to the public. To me Extension is just the perfect job because you’re taking scientific information and you’re conveying that to the public. I love that combination. It’s the best of all worlds to me: science and communication.

What are the critical water issues in the South Central District?

ML: My district is a mixed bag. We definitely have a lot of urban land with the Tampa/St. Pete area, and the Sarasota, Port Charlotte and Naples areas. We also have huge amounts of ag in this district. We have strawberry and vegetable row crops in the Hillsborough County area - all the row crops in the Immokalee area. I really have to wear two hats between the urban and ag world.

If you had to focus on one issue as being most important, it’s probably nutrient storage. We have a lot of water bodies that are impaired because of excess nutrients. What I focus a lot on is ways to get the message out of things we can do to reduce our nutrient footprint, reduce that transport of nutrients from land, whether it’s urban or agricultural, to the water.

Dr @UF_MaryLusk led a team to write longest article in "Critical Reviews in ES&T" on septic systems pollutants." https://t.co/n9YBw0YNLf

— Gurpal Toor (@ToorUMD) May 19, 2017

Do you consider your first year as an RSA a success?

ML: I feel like this past year has been a success. I’ve seen firsthand the issues. I know who the players are. I’ve met so many people at agencies like DEP, FDACS, the water management districts. I’ve learned who the people are and what they’re working on, what’s important to them and by default learned what’s important to Florida. Now that I have this information I feel that I’m ready to go, ready to start tackling some of those problems.

How do you feel having a digital presence on Twitter benefits you and your work?

ML: I really was looking for ways to just expand my reach, reach those folks that I don’t see face to face, perhaps I’ve never met, but folks who are out there looking for this information. Expand my reach. That to me is great. The more people we can get in touch with, all the better.

Read about Water RSAs Charles Barrett, James Fletcher and Lisa Krimsky.