Estuarine Conditions as of December 30, 2008

 

St. Lucie Estuary

 

Current Conditions:

Over the past week discharge averaged 0 cfs at S-80. Discharge from the Lake at S-308 averaged 76 cfs.  Provisional data indicated that no discharge occurred at S-97 on C-23, and at S-49 on C-24.  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)

11.3  (10.6)

  11.5 (12.1)

 

HR1 (N. Fork)

 15.6 (14.3)

 16.2 (17.2)

 

Roosevelt Bridge

 16.0 (17.0)

 17.7 (18.7)

8.0 – 25.0

A1A Bridge

 26.8 (25.3)

 28.0 (27.2)

20.0 – 31.0

  

Salinity changed only slightly throughout the estuary during the past week.  Salinity at Roosevelt Bridge and A1A Bridge are within the preferred range.  Salinity conditions in the estuary are considered to be good based on the salinity preference of the oyster, Crassostrea virginica, and location in the estuary.  

  

Caloosahatchee Estuary

                                                         

Current Conditions:

During the last week, discharge averaged 640 cfs at S-79, 340 cfs at S-78, and 470 cfs at S-77.  The concentration of chlorides at the Olga Plant was 71 ppm yesterday.  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)

   4.4 (4.4)

4.7 (4.7)

Rt. 31 Bridge

   4.8 (4.4)

   5.2 (5.2)

I-75 Bridge

   5.0 (4.6)

8.0 (8.5)

Ft. Myers Yacht Basin

   11.0 (11.0)

  13.3 (14.3)

Cape Coral Bridge

 17.9 (17.0)

  19.8 (19.3)

Shell Point

 29.5 (27.8)

  28.6 (27.9)

 

Salinity conditions in the upper estuary east of Ft. Myers are fair (30 day average at Ft. Myers =10.8 ppt).  Salinities at the Cape Coral Bridge are within the preferred range for the oyster, Crassostrea virginica, and well within the range tolerated by seagrass, Halodule wrightii.  Therefore, conditions in the lower estuary are good.  Salinity at Shell Point indicates that conditions are good in San Carlos Bay.

 

FWRI (Fish and Wildlife Research Institute) reports that water samples collected alongshore between Pinellas and Monroe counties contained no K. brevis. (www.floridamarine.org).  Monitoring data collected by the River, Estuary and Coastal Observing Network (RECON) of Sanibel-Captiva Conservation Foundation (SCCF) indicated that over the last week Chlorophyll concentrations ranged between 3.0 and 8.0 µg/L at Ft. Myers and 1.5 to 2.8 µg/L at Shell Point.  The DO concentration at the two locations ranged from 5.7 to 8.0 mg/L (www.recon.sccf.org).

 

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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