Estuarine Conditions as of July 1, 2008

  

St. Lucie Estuary

 

Current Conditions:

There were no releases through S-80 from C-44 over the past week.  An average discharge of 125.52 cfs through S-48 from C-23 and 90.32 cfs through S-49 from C-24 occurred over the past week. The current weekly average salinities (in bold) at the four monitoring sites in the St. Lucie are given below in parts per thousand (ppt), along with the previous week’s (in parenthesis).  The surface salinity at A1A Bridge is a three- day average. 

 

 

Weekly Average Salinity (ppt)

 

Sampling Site

Surface

Bottom

Envelope

Palm City Bridge (S. Fork)

 13.15 (17.42)

15.43 (19.76)

 

HR1 (N. Fork)

  14.72 (17.66)

 17.95 (22.02)

 

Roosevelt Bridge

18.30 (21.51)

19.15 (23.18)

8.0 – 25.0

A1A Bridge

 24.68 (29.48)

NA (NA)

20.0 – 31.0

 

 

Compared with salinities of the previous week, average salinity decreased throughout the estuary due to local runoff.  Salinity declined between 3 ppt and 5 ppt depending on location and depth.  Salinity at Roosevelt Bridge and A1A Bridge are within the preferred range. Salinity conditions in the estuary are considered good, based on the salinity preference of the oyster, Crassostrea virginica.  The current surface salinity of 18 ppt at the Roosevelt Bridge is 10 ppt below the maximum weekly average of 28.0 ppt achieved in May 2001 during the 2000 – 2001 drought (see attached).

  

Caloosahatchee Estuary

                                                         

Current Conditions:

An average weekly discharge of 1039 cfs occurred at S-79.  The concentration of chlorides at the Olga Plant was 130 ppm yesterday, down from 228 ppm in the beginning of this reporting period.  Current weekly averages (in bold) may be compared to last week’s data (in parenthesis). 

 

 

Weekly Average Salinity (ppt)

Sampling Site

Surface

Bottom

Franklin Locks (S-79)

 7.79 (13.53)

8.15 (14.80)

Rt. 31 Bridge

7.96 (16.8)

 11.74 (20.10)

I-75 Bridge

  10.08 (17.96)

 15.71 (20.76)

Ft. Myers Yacht Basin

  18.31 (23.75)

21.32 (24.16)

Cape Coral Bridge

  26.68 (28.81)

26.99 (29.21)

Shell Point

  33.03 (34.37)

 33.30 (34.42)

 

Compared to last week, average salinities dropped between 3 ppt and 8 ppt depending on depth and location.  Average salinity at the Ft. Myers surface sensor was 18 ppt, which is 2 ppt below the 1-day MFL criterion of 20 ppt.  The current surface salinity of 8 ppt at S-79 is 12 ppt below the maximum weekly average of 20.0 ppt achieved in May 2001 during the 2000 – 2001 drought.  Salinity at Shell Point and the Cape Coral Bridge is within the optimal range for the oyster, Crassostrea virginica.   Salinity conditions in the upper estuary east of Ft. Myers have improved.  Conditions in the lower estuary downstream of Cape Coral are good considering the combine salinity preference of oysters and seagrasses (see attached).  

 

No Karenia brevis, the Florida red tide organism, was detected this week in water samples collected alongshore between Pinellas and Collier counties.

 

 

https://my.sfwmd.gov/portal/page?_pageid=1314,2554645,1314_19738269:1314_19738234&_dad=portal&_schema=PORTAL

  

click on “Current Week”

click on “Technical Summary”

scroll to the bottom and click on “Coastal Ecosystems”

 

 

 

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