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Florida Science Center

FS 2006-3076


2006


Freshwater and Nutrient Fluxes to Coastal Waters of Everglades National Park--A Synthesis

Benjamin F. McPherson and Arturo E. Torres



COVER OF REPORT
  • Fact Sheet 2006-3076 (2,976 KB pdf)

  • CONTENTS
    Introduction
    Watershed inflows into ENP
    What are the major sources of nutrient loads?
    Current and historical work on freshwater and nutrient watershed inputs
    Water-quality (nutrient) models for restoration
    References

       

       


    Abstract

          Freshwater in the Everglades and the Big Cypress Swamp drains south and southwest into coastal regions where it mixes with seawater to create the salinity gradients characteristic of productive estuarine and marine systems.
          Studies in Florida Bay have shown that over the last 100-200 years, salinity and seagrass distributions have fluctuated substantially in response to natural climatic cycles. The timing of this change coincides at least in part with the canal construction and landscape alterations in the Everglades that have altered the quantity, timing, distribution, and quality of surface water that flows south into the coastal waters.
          Federal and State agencies have undertaken a massive Everglades restoration project that will require changes in water management throughout the Everglades, and this will affect water flows to the coastal region. A major concern involves how changes in water flow could affect salinity and nutrient availability in coastal waters.


    Suggested Citation:

    McPherson, B.F., and Torres, A.E., 2006, Freshwater and Nutrient Fluxes to Coastal Waters of Everglades National Park--A Synthesis: U.S. Geological Survey Fact Sheet 2006-3076, 4 p.

    For more information, contact:

    U.S. Department of the Interior
    U.S. Geological Survey
    Suite 215
    10500 University Center Dr.
    Tampa, FL 33612-6427
    813-975-8620

    aetorres@usgs.gov





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