FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Patty DiPiero, Lee County Utilities
             (239) 479-8534

GREEN MEADOWS WATER TREATMENT PLANT WINS THE U.S. ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY'S SAFE DRINKING WATER ACT EXCELLENCE AWARD

FORT MYERS, Fla. (August 23, 2004) - Lee County's Green Meadows Water Treatment Plant has won the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Region 4 2004 Safe Drinking Water Act Excellence Award in the category of Large Ground Water Systems.

Region 4 serves the Southeastern U.S., including Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina and Tennessee - making the Green Meadows plant the best in the Southeast.

The Lee County Board of County Commissioners will recognize the entire staff of Green Meadows at its August 24, 2004 Board meeting at 9:30 a.m.

This award is given annually by the U.S. EPA to recognize water systems that demonstrate compliance with the Safe Drinking Water Act though outstanding operations and providing safe drinking water to the public.

The award was based on such criteria as maintaining three years of compliance with the federal and state drinking water standards along outstanding operation and maintenance practices.

The Green Meadows Water Treatment Plant is near Southwest Florida International Airport off of Airport Haul Road. It is a 9 million gallon per day (mgd) water facility. The plant is supplied from ground water drawn from the surficial and sandstone aquifers from Lee County's Green Meadows Well Fields.

The county's Utilities Division serves 66,877 water and 42,975 sewer customers in portions of North, East and South Lee County. The county operates eight wastewater-treatment plants - Fort Myers Beach, Fiesta Village, Waterway Estates, Highpoint, Pine Island, San Carlos, Three Oaks, and Gateway - with a total of 24.8-million gallons of capacity per day, and seven drinking water-treatment plants - College Parkway, Corkscrew, Green Meadows, Olga, Waterway Estates, Bartow, and Pinewoods - with a combined 30.6-million gallons of capacity per day. The Utilities Division has an annual operating budget of about $30.3 million.