publications > scientific investigations report > water flow and nutrient flux from five estuarine rivers
U.S. Department of the Interior Water Flow and Nutrient Flux from Five Estuarine Rivers along the Southwest Coast of the Everglades National Park, Florida, 1997-2001by Victor A. Levesque
Abstract
Discharges from the Lostmans Creek, and Broad, Harney, Shark, and North River stations are influenced by semidiurnal tides, meteorological events, and surface- and ground-water inflow. Each of the five rivers is usually well mixed, having no greater than 500 microSiemens per centimeter at 25° Celsius difference in specific conductance from top to bottom during flood and ebb tides. Instantaneous flood discharges (water moving upstream) are typically of greater magnitude and shorter duration than instantaneous ebb discharges (water moving downstream). Instantaneous discharge data were filtered using a low-pass filter to remove predominant tidal frequencies, and the filtered data were used to compute daily mean and monthly mean residual discharges. Lostmans Creek, and Broad, Harney and Shark Rivers each contributed from 20 to 27 percent of the total measured discharge to the Gulf of Mexico, whereas North River contributed approximately 4 percent. The main discharge region of the Shark River Slough extends from as far north as Lostmans Creek to as far south as North River. North River discharge has similar response characteristics to the other four rivers measured, but with a lesser magnitude of discharge. Comparisons of monthly mean discharges from the Tamiami Canal flow control structures S-12-A, B, C, and D located on U.S. Highway 41 (Tamiami Trail) to the five station total monthly mean discharges indicate that the discharges from the five rivers are approximately 2 to 3 times the S-12- A, B, C, D discharges, and that the measured southwest coast discharge peaks lead the S-12-A, B, C, D discharge peaks by approximately 1 month. Residual total nitrogen and total phosphorus fluxes were estimated using linear regression models of discharge and flux. Monthly mean total nitrogen residual fluxes for the five southwest coast rivers ranged from approximately 0 to 390 short tons, whereas monthly mean total phosphorus residual fluxes ranged from approximately 0 to 6 short tons. Total nitrogen and total phosphorus residual fluxes at Lostmans Creek, and Broad, Harney, and Shark Rivers were similar in magnitude, each accounting for between 20 to 29 percent of the total measured residual flux. North River contributed between 3 to 4 percent of the total nitrogen and total phosphorus residual flux from the five rivers.
Conversion Factors, Acronyms, Abbreviations and Datum
SI to Inch/Pound
Temperature in degrees Celsius (°C) may be converted to degrees Fahrenheit (°F) as follows: Temperature in degrees Fahrenheit (°F) may be converted to degrees Celsius (°C) as follows: Specific conductance is given in microSiemens per centimeter at 25 degrees Celsius (µS/cm). Acronyms
Datum Horizontal coordinate information is referenced to the North American Datum of 1983 (NAD 83) For sale by U.S. Geological Survey, Information Services For more information about the USGS and its products: Any use of trade, product, or firm names in this publication is for descriptive purposes only and does not imply endorsement by the U.S. Government. Suggested citation: Levesque, V.A., 2004, Water Flow and Nutrient Flux from Five Estuarine Rivers along the Southwest Coast of the Everglades National Park, Florida, 1997-2001: U.S. Geological Survey Scientific Investigations Report 2004-5142, 24 p.
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