Injection Wells Used to Dispose of Hazardous Waste in Florida

Florida’s waterways are under a silent but severe threat. While pollution is often thought of as trash floating on rivers or oil slicks on beaches, one of the most dangerous forms of contamination is invisible. Hazardous waste, full of toxic chemicals, finds its way into our environment through both direct dumping into rivers and a less visible method: deep underground injection wells. Both practices put human health and ecosystems at risk, and the public rarely hears the full story.

What Is Hazardous Waste, and Where Does It Come From?

Hazardous waste is any material that poses a danger to people or the environment. It often comes from:

• Factories and power plants – producing metals like lead, mercury, arsenic, and cadmium.
• Construction sites – where solvents, asbestos, and petrochemicals are left behind.
• Farms – releasing fertilizers and pesticides filled with nitrates and phosphates.

Once in water, these chemicals don’t just vanish. They linger, sometimes for decades, entering the food chain through fish, crops, and even drinking water. Lead and mercury can damage the brain and nervous system. Arsenic is a known carcinogen. Even low doses can cause long-term harm.

Florida’s Troubling Pollution Record

A 2018 report from the Environment Florida Research and Policy Center revealed a shocking statistic: industrial facilities in Florida dumped 270 times the legal pollution limit into state waters. That ranked Florida as having the tenth-worst pollution record in the entire nation.

According to the Florida Department of Environmental Protection (DEP), there are over 2,100 industrial wastewater facilities operating in the state. Many rely on freshwater to carry waste away into rivers, lakes, and coastal areas. Wastewater, in simple terms, is “used” water contaminated by chemicals, oils, or metals.

For example, power plants—often built near lakes and rivers—discharge wastewater laced with toxic substances. This includes:

• Heavy metals like chromium, mercury, and cadmium.
• Chemical solvents such as perchloroethylene (used in dry cleaning).
• Excess fertilizers that trigger harmful algae blooms.

Once in the water, these pollutants don’t just poison fish and plants—they can make their way into our drinking supplies.

The Hidden World of Injection Wells

Since the 1960s, Florida has relied on deep injection wells (DJWs) to dispose of hazardous liquid waste. The idea was simple: if you pump toxic waste deep underground, far below the aquifer that provides drinking water, it won’t harm people.

But reality is more complicated. Here’s how they work:

1. Wastewater is pressurized and forced down long underground pipelines.
2. The waste is injected into deep rock layers thousands of feet below ground.
3. In theory, these layers trap the waste.

The problem? Leaks happen. Waste fluids can migrate upward, especially through old, abandoned wells or cracks in underground rock formations. Once toxic waste escapes, it can mix with groundwater—the very source of Florida’s drinking water.

What makes this issue especially alarming is its invisibility. Unlike oil spills or plastic pollution, injection wells are underground. Communities rarely see what’s happening beneath their feet.

Weak Oversight, Strong Risks

Florida has weak enforcement laws when it comes to industrial polluters. Companies are rarely held fully accountable for what they dump into waterways or push underground. Regulators have limited resources to monitor the thousands of facilities, meaning violations often go unchecked.

This lack of oversight effectively gives industries a hidden dumping ground. And while it may save companies money in the short term, the long-term costs, contaminated drinking water, poisoned wildlife, and public health crises fall on taxpayers and local communities.

What Can Be Done?

Experts and environmental groups suggest multiple solutions:

• Stop pollution at the source. Stricter rules can force industries to reduce toxic chemicals before they ever leave the factory.
• Strengthen laws and enforcement. Regulators need real power—and funding—to fine violators and shut down dangerous operations.
• Reevaluate injection wells. Safer alternatives, such as advanced treatment plants, need investment.
• Make personal choices that matter. Using non-toxic cleaners, reducing fertilizer use, and supporting companies with strong environmental standards all help reduce the demand for hazardous materials.

Florida’s aquifers provide drinking water for millions of people. Once these underground reserves are contaminated, cleaning them is nearly impossible. The toxic chemicals don’t just disappear—they persist, travel, and accumulate in our bodies and the environment.

This isn’t just an “environmental issue.” It’s a public health crisis waiting to unfold. Children are especially vulnerable to heavy metal poisoning. Coastal economies that depend on fishing and tourism are at risk when pollution destroys marine life.

The bottom line: what we can’t see underground can absolutely hurt us.

Further Reading

• Environmental Florida: Troubled Waters
• Environmental Protection Agency: Industrial Wastewater
• Green Living: Effects of Ocean Pollution on Marine Life
• Oxford Academic: Alligators and Endocrine Disrupting Contaminants
• World Wide Fund for Nature: Over 80% of marine pollution comes from land-based activities