ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) — Gov. Ron DeSantis says Florida will permanently close the leaky Piney Point reservoir that poured millions of gallons of wastewater into Tampa Bay while threatening to burst open and flood nearby homes and businesses. The Republican governor said at a news conference at the site that problems at the chronically troublesome reservoir must end. The facility holds polluted water from an old phosphate plant. DeSantis said he directed the Department of Environmental Protection to develop a closure plan. DeSantis said the agency will spend $15.4 million to treat the water to reduce the nutrients that can cause algae blooms and fish kills.
