Open-File Report 2008-1090
Open-File Report 2008-1090
By William H. Orem
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Drought and fire are natural environmental factors that have historically impacted and shaped the Everglades ecosystem. For example, drought and fire help to maintain the existing ecosystem biotic assemblage by periodically eradicating invading flora not adapted to living with this normal aspect of Everglades' ecology. Flora native to the Everglades are adapted to withstand normal drought cycles and all but the most intense fire conditions that burn into the peat substrate. Remobilization of nutrients and other elements from wetland soil following drought/fire and rewetting may actually stimulate plant re-growth, assisting in the recovery of the ecosystem from these events, and play a role in maintaining the geochemical balance of the ecosystem.
Although drought/fire cycles occur naturally in the Everglades' ecosystem, the frequency, intensity, and duration of these events have been altered by anthropogenic activities. The hydrology of the ecosystem has been changed by the construction of water management structures starting around 1900 and continuing through the 1970s. These structures include canals, levees, and pumping stations around Lake Okeechobee and within the Everglades. In addition, water management practices have preferentially moved water toward agricultural and urban areas and away from the Everglades during periods of low rainfall. One result of these practices has been more severe drought and fire cycles within the ecosystem compared to pre-development activity. A major goal of restoration efforts in the Everglades is to restore a more natural flow of water into the ecosystem to alleviate some of the extreme drought and fire conditions witnessed during the past several decades.
Background
Dry/Rewet Experiment Design
Analytical Methods
Results
Acknowledgments
References Cited
| Table 1. | Timeline for dry/rewet experiment. |
| Table 2. | Anion, sulfate, sulfite/thiosulfate, and nutrient samples collected from surface water for dry/rewet experiment. |
| Table 3. | Geochemical data collected on soil samples from dry/rewet experiment. |
| Table 4. | Concentrations of anions, sulfur species, and nutrients in water from dry/rewet experiment conducted on WCA 3A-15 soil. |
| Table 5. | Concentrations of anions, sulfur species, and nutrients in water from dry/rewet experiment conducted on STA-2 cell 1 soil. |
| Table 6. | Elemental C, H, N, and S composition of soil from dry/rewet experiment at sites WCA3A-15 and STA-2 cell 1. |
Orem, W.H., 2008, Chemical results of laboratory dry/rewet experiments conducted on wetland soils from two sites in the Everglades, Florida: U.S. Geological Survey Open-File Report 2008–1090, 22 p.
If required, the raw data supporting the numerical data reported in the tables in this report is available by contacting the author (William H. Orem, borem@usgs.gov)
U.S. Department of the Interior |
U.S. Geological Survey
URL: https://pubs.usgs.gov/of/2008/1090/
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