Archive of Bathymetry Data Collected in South Florida From 1995 to 2015

Project Description - Caloosahatchee River (2002)

Figure 20. Project study area - Caloosahatchee River, Florida. [Click on icon for link to data page]

The Caloosahatchee River is located in southwest Florida and drains northern parts of the Florida Everglades (fig. 20). The river stretches 110 kilometers (km) inland and empties into the Gulf of Mexico at Fort Myers and Cape Coral, Florida. The lower section of the river is part of the Estero Bay estuary system and provides critical habitat for a large variety of plants and animals. The river has been greatly altered for navigation, agriculture, and human development needs, and its flow is managed by a series of upland locks and dams.

This project addresses the collection and interpretation of data necessary to develop the present day bathymetry of the Caloosahatchee/Estero Bay region. This project supports several South Florida Water Management District (SFWMD) efforts including the minimum flow levels (MFL) development for Estero Bay, the Caloosahatchee estuary MFL, and the Southwest Florida Feasibility Study. The project also supports hydrodynamic modeling and other nonmodeling efforts such as the determination of the oligolialine zone in the Estero Bay system.

The USGS, in cooperation with SFWMD, performed a bathymetric survey of the lower Caloosahatchee River using a single-beam, GPS, hydrographic system (fig. 21). GPS-based bathymetric surveying is a proven method to accurately map coastal and bay sea floor elevations. Survey tracklines were spaced 500-meters (m) apart oriented along the long axis of the river. Tracklines collected across the river (intersecting tracklines) functioned as a cross-check and to assess the relative vertical accuracy of the survey.

Figure 21. Aerial photo of the Caloosahatchee River looking west toward the Gulf of Mexico (Source: SFWMD). [Click to enlarge]

SURVEY HIGHLIGHTS

Area of Coverage Project extended from the railroad bridge on Beautiful Island to Shell Point. Water depths ranged from 0.6 meter (m) to 9.3 m.
Survey Date Survey data were collected during a single field effort in October 2002.
Data and Formats X,Y,Z soundings and bathymetric contour map. Number of soundings: 140,388. Comma-delimited text, ESRI point shapefile, and PDF formats.
Survey Control All data were processed relative to the WGS84(G1150) ellipsoid. In order to maintain the 15 km guideline, two new monuments were established along the river, each being occupied for multiple long-duration (8 hours or greater) sessions. Coordinates of the control locations are listed here. The methodology for establishing new control locations is described in Establishing New Control using GIPSY, SCOUT and OPUS.
Accuracy Precise differential GPS was used to determine horizontal and vertical positions. All data were acquired relative to the WGS84 ellipsoid. The estimated horizontal and vertical accuracy of the soundings was approximately 6 centimeters (cm) and 8 cm, respectively.