Data Series 1031

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

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Project Description - Estero Bay to Matlacha Pass and offshore to Wiggins Pass (2003)


Figure 23. Project study area - Estero Bay and Matlacha Pass, Florida. [Click on icon for link to data page]

The Estero Bay (fig. 23) watershed is under pressure from significant development with potential impacts on stormwater runoff characteristics and changes in salinity patterns and nutrient and turbidity levels. Environmental quality in the bay is particularly vulnerable to future degradation due to increasing urbanization and the bay's limited volume. In recent years, the Caloosahatchee estuary system has also been affected because of development and water management activities. These impacts have prompted the development of minimum flows and levels (MFLs) for the Caloosahatchee River by the South Florida Water Management District (SFWMD). A District revision of the MFLs for the Caloosahatchee River and Estero Bay regions required the development of hydrodynamic and water-quality models. Updated and accurate bathymetry data are necessary to facilitate the development and proper implementation of these numerical models. This project also supports the Southwest Florida Feasibility Study (SWFFS) and other nonmodeling efforts such as determination of the oligohaline zone in the Estero Bay system.

This project addresses the collection and interpretation of data necessary to develop the present day bathymetry of Matlacha Pass to Estero Bay. The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), in cooperation with National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) and SFWMD, performed a bathymetric survey of Estero Bay and Matlacha Pass using single-beam and airborne-lidar [light detection and ranging] hydrographic systems (fig. 24). Bathymetric data were acquired with the USGS boat-based method named SANDS, and the NASA method airborne-lidar system named EAARL. Both systems are specifically designed to map in very shallow water, that is, approximately 50 centimeters (cm) water depth. These systems were chosen because the average depth of Estero Bay is approximately 1.2 meters (m), with many areas inaccessible with a shallow-water survey boat. The focus areas mapped with the SANDS system were deeper channels in Estero Bay and offshore areas of the Caloosahatchee River and Estero Bay. The EAARL survey concentrated on Estero Bay, the Caloosahatchee River entrance, and Matalacha Pass.

Project survey lines.

Figure 24. Project survey lines. Yellow(lidar), red(sonar).
[Click to enlarge]

SURVEY HIGHLIGHTS


  • Area of Coverage The inshore survey area covered from Estero Bay to Matlacha Pass with water depths ranging from 0.3 to 3.0 m. Offshore, the survey area was from the shoreline out to 10 m water depth extending from the mouth of the Caloosahatchee River south to Wiggins Pass.
  • Survey Date Survey data were collected between February and June 2003.
  • Data and Formats Single-beam and lidar soundings, and bathymetric contour map. Number of soundings: 28,716,737.00. Comma-delimited text, ESRI point shapefile, and PDF formats. Due to size of the lidar data, the files are divided by USGS quadrangle boundaries.
  • Survey Control All data were processed relative to the WGS84(G1150) ellipsoid. In order to maintain the 15 km guideline, three new monuments were established within the Estero Bay and Matlacha Pass region 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. The estimated horizontal and vertical accuracy of the soundings is approximately 6 cm and 8 cm, respectively.

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