Estuarine Conditions as of August 14,
2007
St. Lucie Estuary
Current Conditions:
No releases occurred at S-80 over the past week.
Salinities on the surface remained about the same this week at 4.7 ppt in the
South Fork (Palm City
Bridge) and 3.5 ppt in the North Fork (Harbor Ridge Station). Bottom
salinities were down slightly in these same locations to 5.2 ppt and 6.7 ppt,
respectively. At the Roosevelt
Bridge, averaged
salinities were 9.5 ppt on the surface and about 10 on the bottom, remaining
within the preferred range of 8-25 ppt. Corresponding values further downstream
at the A1A Bridge were up slightly from last week to about 17 ppt and 22 ppt,
which is near the bottom of the preferred range (20-31 ppt). Therefore,
salinity conditions are fair in the estuary (see attached).
Caloosahatchee Estuary
Current Conditions:
The average discharge at S-79 was up this week to 363
cfs and the monthly average discharge is 252 cfs. Chloride concentration at the
Olga Plant remain stable, averaging about 83 mg/l. Average surface salinity in
the upper estuary during the last week also was nearly unchanged, with both
S-79 and the I-75 Bridge sensors reporting 4.6 ppt. Bottom salinities ranged
from 4.8 ppt to 7.9 ppt, respectively. The salinity sensors at Ft. Myers
are providing sporadic information. Surface salinities appear to be near 10 ppt
for the week and the 30 day average remains above 10 ppt . Average surface and
bottom salinity for the week at the Cape
Coral Bridge
was 18 and 20.1 ppt. The average bottom salinity at Shell Point was 31.9 ppt.
Salinity conditions in the upper estuary are fair and they are good in the
lower estuary (see attached).
FWRI reports that
no Karenia brevis, the Florida
red tide organism, was detected this week in water samples collected alongshore
between Pinellas and Collier counties. Discolored water due to a bloom of the
cyanobacteria Trichodesmium has been reported offshore along the
southwest Florida coast and remains possible
alongshore in portions of Charlotte, Lee (including San Carlos Bay)
and Collier counties.
To view reports and graphs on line go to:
https://my.sfwmd.gov/portal/page?_pageid=1314,2554645,1314_19738269:1314_19738234&_dad=portal&_schema=PORTAL
Back to Lake Okeechobee Operations
Main Page
Back to U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
WSE Homepage