St. Lucie Estuary

 

Current Conditions:

During the last week, an average discharge of 893 cfs occurred at S-80 from C-44 including 784 cfs at S-308 from the Lake, 236 cfs at S-97 from C-23, and 407 cfs from S-49 from C-24(discharge values from S-80, S-308, S-97 are provisional).  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). 

 

 

Weekly Average Salinity (ppt)

 

Sampling Site

Surface

Bottom

Envelope

Palm City Bridge (S. Fork)

0.46 (1.07)

  0.56 (1.86)

 

HR1 (N. Fork)

   2.20 (5.65)

  4.79 (10.10)

 

Roosevelt Bridge

   3.26 (7.14)

  3.83 (9.10)

8.0 – 25.0

A1A Bridge

 10.85 (15.16)

20.18 (21.99)

20.0 – 31.0

  

Compared with the previous week, average salinity decreased throughout the estuary.  Salinities are close to the lower limit of the preferred range at A1A Bridge, and below the preferred range at Roosevelt Bridge.  Salinity conditions in the estuary are still considered to be poor based on the salinity preference of the oyster, Crassostrea virginica, and location in the estuary see attached.  

  

Caloosahatchee Estuary

                                                         

Current Conditions:

During the last week, an average discharge of 3300 cfs occurred at S-79, 1121 cfs at S-78, and 649 cfs at S-77.  The concentration of chlorides at the Olga Plant was 46 ppm yesterday, down from 59 ppm at the beginning of this reporting period.  The current weekly average salinities (in bold) at the six monitoring sites in the Caloosahatchee Estuary are given below in parts per thousand (ppt), along with the previous week’s (in parenthesis). 

 

 

Weekly Average Salinity (ppt)

Sampling Site

Surface

Bottom

Franklin Locks (S-79)

   0.24 (0.23)

0.25 (0.24)

Rt. 31 Bridge

   0.24 (0.23)

   0.25 (0.24)

I-75 Bridge

   0.26 (0.25)

0.27 (0.26)

Ft. Myers Yacht Basin

   0.29 (0.25)

0.30 (0.25)

Cape Coral Bridge

   3.10 (1.00)

   5.71(1.93)

Shell Point

 16.61 (12.95)

20.12 (16.92)

 

In the estuary, freshwater conditions extend from S-79 downstream to Cape Coral Bridge.  Salinity conditions in the upper estuary east of Ft. Myers are good (30 day average at Ft. Myers = 0.31 ppt).  

 

Compared with the previous week, average salinity remained about the same in the upper estuary. An increase in salinity for about 2-4 ppt occurred in the lower estuary downstream of Cape Coral Bridge.  However, salinities at Cape Coral Bridge and Shell Point are still below the preferred ranges for both oyster, Crassostrea virginica, and seagrass, Halodule wrightii.  Therefore, conditions in the lower estuary are considered poor see attached .

 

FWRI (Fish and Wildlife Research Institute) reports that low concentrations of Karenia brevis, the Florida red tide organism, were detected this week in water samples collected along Captiva Island (Lee County). No impacts have been reported. All other water samples collected alongshore from Pinellas and Charlotte counties contained no K. brevis. A research cruise, currently being conducted, found medium concentrations of K. brevis in Lee County off and alongshore of Cayo Costa State ParkMonitoring data collected by the River, Estuary and Coastal Observing Network (RECON) of Sanibel-Captiva Conservation Foundation (SCCF) indicated that Chlorophyll concentrations over the last week were about 4.5-5.5 ug/L at Ft. Myers and 1.5 to 4 ug/L at Shell Point.  The DO concentration at the two locations ranged from about 4 to 6 mg/L.

 

 

 

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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