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Groveland May Have To Pay Niagara's Legal Fees

The city of Groveland in Lake County may be ordered to pay as much as four million dollars to cover Niagara Bottling Company's legal fees. The city recently lost a court battle to block Niagara from withdrawing nearly 500 thousand gallons of water per day from the aquifer there. Groveland officials claimed the increased withdrawals would reduce water levels in the aquifer and damage surrounding wetlands. An Orlando judge ruled against Groveland and the St. John's River Water Management District issued a permit for the increased pumping last month. Niagara says it tried to reach an out-of-court settlement but since city and county officials insisted on taking the matter to court, they should be responsible for legal costs. Those costs could range between two and four million dollars. An administrative law judge will hear arguments on the legal fees in late January.

 

 

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