LAKE WORTH — Outrage stemming from the city's proposal to dump nutrient-rich wastewater near a pristine coral reef has caused city commissioners to consider other options.

The city has applied for a permit to discharge briny concentrate through a 92-foot-deep pipe near Horseshoe Reef, the area's premier diving locale and home to a 4-foot brain coral.

Post your comments on this story below See more photos Video: See underwater footage of the reefs, hear Ed Tichenor of Reef Rescue Map: Pipe and reef Photos by John J. Lopinot / The Post enlarge A nurse shark swims over a coral head on the Horseshoe Reef off Lake Worth. enlarge Ed Tichenor, Director of Palm Beach County Reef Rescue, uses a tape to measure a giant brain coral growing on the Horseshoe Reef off Lake Worth. Tichenor and Terry St. Jean (out of picture) found the coral to be about 4 feet in diameter, making it one of the oldest living creatures in Palm Beach County. enlarge Ed Tichenor, Director of Palm Beach County Reef Rescue, surveys an outfall pipe that extends from Lake Worth Beach out to beyond the deep reef in about 92 feet of water. More local news Latest breaking news, photos and all of today's Post stories. Share This Story

But critics say the discharge will cause harmful algae blooms that will smother the sensitive coral reef ecosystem. Some have suggested dumping the concentrate into the brackish Lake Worth Lagoon as an alternative, but others argue that also could cause environmental damage.

At a public meeting last week, several people questioned why the lagoon was not thoroughly evaluated. Florida Department of Environmental Protection officials said the city never made such a request.

The next day, at a June 19 city commission meeting, consultants for the city told commissioners that DEP officials said the Lake Worth Lagoon was not a viable option, so they didn't pursue it further.

The conflicting statements have prompted Commissioner Cara Jennings to seek answers from Utility Director Samy Faried. She has asked him for documents that show whether the city considered the lagoon as an alternate site to dump up to 4 million gallons of wastewater.

"I want to know what our consultants approached the DEP with, if anything," Jennings said. "I don't know who's being accurate."

The city's consultants, Mock, Roos & Associates Inc., previously had determined that the lagoon was a viable but more expensive option because a new 16-inch outfall pipeline would be needed at the master pump station, according to a letter sent to the DEP in April 2005.

"Disposal of (reverse osmosis) concentrate via Intracoastal discharge is a technologically and economically feasible option," the letter stated.

It concluded that both the ocean and Intracoastal options "should not adversely affect fish and wildlife," but that monitoring requirements, construction and maintenance costs for the Intracoastal option would raise water costs for utility customers.

Tim Powell, a DEP wastewater permitting manager, said initial observations of the Lake Worth Lagoon showed it did not make an ideal discharge location because there isn't enough current to dilute the concentrate, which contains nutrients such as ammonia, phosphorus and nitrogen that cause harmful algae blooms. The reverse osmosis concentrate is formed during a desalinization process to purify drinking water.

"It's not a very good option because of a lack of flushing and potential for degradation," Powell said.

But recent suggestions of adding a filter mangrove marsh in the Lake Worth Lagoon has piqued interest among scientists and the DEP.

"We'd be interested to pursue that if the county and the city wants to pursue it," Powell said.

A similar project has been developed in Vero Beach. Indian River County is seeking to mix its reverse osmosis concentrate with water from the Indian River Lagoon, then send it through a marsh and mangrove filter to remove the nutrients and then flush it back into the lagoon, said Christianne Ferraro, water facilities program administrator for the environmental department's central district in Orlando.

In the next few weeks, the DEP will consider approval of Lake Worth's ocean outfall draft permit after reviewing extensive objections and recommendations, including comments from world-renowned coral reef experts, marine ecologists and divers.

They fear Horseshoe Reef is too delicate to handle more nutrients, while the city and DEP contend the nutrient levels will quickly dilute to an innocuous level and float to the top of the water.

Jennings said if it is determined that discharging the concentrate into the Lake Worth Lagoon would be environmentally friendly, she may ask commissioners whether they want to begin that permit process and stop the ocean outfall permit.

"If it's not a viable option, I don't want us to waste time to pursue it," she said. "If it could be a win-win situation, then it's absolutely worth the extra time it would take to pursue a new permit."

Commissioner Jo-Ann Golden also wants to explore alternatives. She would like to poll residents to see how much more they are willing to pay for an eco-friendly system. "We can do anything," she said. "It's just a matter of money."

Dr. Richard Walesky, director of the county's department of Environmental Resources Management, has criticized the DEP's draft permit, citing lack of research and monitoring requirements. He said other reverse osmosis concentrate discharges into tidal waters, like the Lake Worth Lagoon, have been successful.

"It should be easier to put in the Intracoastal than it would be to put it close to a coral reef," he said.

But some worry dumping the concentrate into the brackish lagoon could undermine a multi-agency lagoon restoration effort.

The county's environmental department has worked with the DEP, South Florida Water Management District and Army Corps of Engineers to improve water quality and restore habitat, including the $17 million Snook Islands Natural Area, a series of man-made islands just north of Bryant Park in Lake Worth.

The coalition of government agencies has formed a draft management plan for the lagoon that will be discussed in a public hearing from 3-7 p.m. today at the Vista Center in suburban West Palm Beach, said Julie Bishop, the city's environmental program supervisor for the Lake Worth Lagoon freshwater section.

High nutrient and copper levels from Lake Worth's discharge could harm the sea grass, oyster beds and overall water quality, Bishop said.

"That's never a good thing to put elevated (nutrient) levels into a system that has trouble flushing," she said.

Mayor Jeff Clemens said he is willing to explore alternative discharge solutions that are proven to be environmentally friendly and don't swell the cost of the system.

"I'm not in favor of taking one problem and creating another somewhere else," he said.

Clemens said the best alternative may be to extend the old sewage outfall pipe into deeper water.

Ed Tichenor, director of Palm Beach County Reef Rescue, which has led the fight to stop the ocean outfall permit, said the city's willingness to consider the lagoon is "the first positive step" he has seen since he raised questions regarding the nutrient levels and proposed monitoring of the ocean outfall permit.

"It shows they may realize there is more to this picture than a free pipe," he said.