Freshwater Springs

Keith Padgett paints the winding rivers, waterside forests and old-timey shrimp boats of Florida’s rural Gulf Coast. Yet, like many other artists who paint landscapes of nature in Florida, he fears the myriad of threats chipping away at the very subject of his work.

The long-awaited move comes nearly nine years after a state law mandated the Florida Department of Environmental Protection to propose more protective rules for pumping springs.

If you want to visit one of the best known springs and manatee watering holes in the state - you're out of luck. At least through November. Three Sisters Springs at Crystal River is closed as workers try to undo decades of damage from too many visitors.

Florida's population grows every year. And the state is trying to come up with ways to meet people's needs without ruining natural water resources.

Nestlé wants to increase the amount of water it withdraws from Ginnie Springs to nearly 1.2 million gallons a day, to the dismay of environmental groups and local activists.