Water Quality in Southern Florida Florida, 1996–98

By Benjamin F. McPherson, Ronald L. Miller, Kim H. Haag, and Anne Bradner

U.S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY CIRCULAR 1207

The full report is available in pdf.  Links to the pdf.

A contribution of the National Water-Quality Assessment (NAWQA) Program

• NATIONAL WATER-QUALITY ASSESSMENT PROGRAM
• SUMMARY OF MAJOR FINDINGS
  • Surface-Water Highlights
  • Ground-Water Highlights
• INTRODUCTION TO THE SOUTHERN FLORIDA NAWQA STUDY UNIT
  • Rainfall
• MAJOR FINDINGS
  • Nutrient enrichment is prevalent in surface water
  • NATIONAL PERSPECTIVE—Nutrient concentrations vary widely in southern Florida and the Nation
  • Nutrient concentrations in ground water are highly variable
  • Dissolved organic carbon concentrations are often high
  • Pesticides are present in most surface-water samples
  • NATIONAL PERSPECTIVE—Pesticide detections vary with land use in southern Florida and the Nation
  • Regional patterns of pesticides, VOCs and trace elements are evident in ground water
  • NATIONAL PERSPECTIVE—What combinations of pesticides occur most frequently in southern Florida and the Nation?
  • Pesticides, PCBs, other organics and trace elements have accumulated in bottom sediment and fish
  • Mercury is a contaminant in the Southern Florida Study Unit
  • Biological communities are influenced by water quality
  • NATIONAL PERSPECTIVE—Southern Florida aquatic communities in a national context
  • Exotic species are a threat to native biota
• STUDY UNIT DESIGN
• APPENDIX A—WATER-QUALITY DATA FROM SOUTHERN FLORIDA IN A NATIONAL CONTEXT
• References
• A Coordinated Effort
• Glossary