Estuarine Conditions as of October 10, 2007

 

St. Lucie Estuary

 

Current Conditions:

No releases occurred at S-80 over the past week.  Weekly average salinities at the four monitoring sites in the St. Lucie are given below in parts per thousand (ppt).

 

 

Weekly Average Salinity (ppt)

 

Sampling Site

Surface

Bottom

Envelope

Palm City Bridge (S. Fork)

0.3

0.4

 

HR1 (N. Fork)

0.3

0.4

 

Roosevelt Bridge

0.9

1.0

8.0 – 25.0

A1A Bridge

6.8

16.1

20.0 – 31.0

 

 

Rainfall and associated local runoff lowered average salinity throughout the estuary last week.  Average salinity for the week was below the preferred at the Roosevelt and A1A Bridges. Based on the salinity tolerances of the oyster, Crassostrea virginica, salinity conditions in the estuary are poor (see attached).

 

 

Caloosahatchee Estuary

 

Current Conditions:

Discharge at S-79 averaged 188 cfs over the past week.  The concentration of chlorides at the Olga Plant is 76 mg/l.  Average salinity increased slightly throughout the estuary last week.  Data for specific sites are given below in parts per thousand (ppt). The Ft. Myers site is being repaired.

 

 

Weekly Average Salinity (ppt)

Sampling Site

Surface

Bottom

Franklin Locks (S-79)

4.7

4.7

Rt. 31 Bridge

3.6

4.9

I-75 Bridge

3.5

6.6

Ft. Myers Yacht Basin

NA

NA

Cape Coral Bridge

17.13

23.1

Shell Point

26.7

28.1

 

Salinity conditions throughout the system are good (see attached).

 

FWRI reports that no Karenia brevis, the Florida red tide organism was detected this week in alongshore samples collected between Pinellas and Collier counties. Additional offshore samples collected 3 to 33 miles west of Sarasota County contained K. brevis concentrations ranging from not present to very low. 

 

 

To find this information on the web:

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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