Project Work Plan

Study Title: Western Tamiami Trail Flows - Baseline Information and Response to CERP
Study Start Date: October, 2005   Study End Date: September 2010
Web Sites: http://sofia.usgs.gov/projects/westTT_flows
http://www.sflorida.er.usgs.gov/edl_data/index.html "End-of-Month Conditions in South Florida"
http://www.sflorida.er.usgs.gov/edl_data/index_qw.html "Manual Water-Level Measurements in South Florida"
Location: Tamiami Trail (US-41) from County Road 92 to State Road 29
Funding Source: USGS Greater Everglades Priority Ecosystems Science (GE PES) and ENP Critical Ecosystems Studies Initiative (CESI)
Other Complementary Funding Source(s): None
Funding History: FY2006; FY2007
Principal Investigator(s): Eduardo Patino / Lars Soderqvist
Study Personnel: Andrew Erickson

Supporting Organizations: National Park Service, U. S. Fish & Wildlife Service, National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Agency, South Florida Water Management District, Florida Department of Environmental Protection.

Associated / Linked Studies: Hydrodynamic and Bathymetic Characteristics of South Florida Estuarine and Coastal Systems (http://sofia.usgs.gov/projects/hires_bathy/); Southwest Florida Coastal and Wetland Systems Monitoring (http://sofia.usgs.gov/projects/sys_monitor/); Coastal Gradients of Flow, Salinity and Nutrients (http://sofia.usgs.gov/projects/coastal_grads/); Tides and Inflows in the Mangrove Ecotone (TIME) Model Development (http://sofia.usgs.gov/projects/time/); Effects of hydrological restoration on manatees: Integrating data and models for the Ten Thousand Islands and Everglades (http://sofia.usgs.gov/projects/integrating_manatee/); Modeling Hydrologic Flow and Vegetation Response across the Tamiami Trail and Coastal Watershed of Ten Thousand Islands NWR (http://sofia.usgs.gov/projects/hydro_flow_TT/).

Overview & Objective(s): The objectives of this study are: 1) To develop flow calculation techniques for bridges and culverts under US-41, between Carnestown and County Road 92; and 2) To provide support to on-going CERP and DOI studies populating hydrologic databases that can also be used by other federal and state agencies, universities, and local institutions conducting studies in the area.

Specific Relevance to Major Unanswered Questions and Information Needs Identified: This study provides researchers and resource managers with critical hydrologic data. The Picayune Strand Hydrologic restoration project is moving forward, and is expected to change the Quantity, Quality, Timing, and Distribution of freshwater flowing across the Tamiami Trail. This study will provide baseline information before and after the completion of the project, and will be made available to researchers and resource managers for the development and calibration of hydrologic models and the evaluation of restoration success.

Status: Task 1, Construction, instrumentation, and data collection at Tamiami Trail section from County Road 92, to Faka Union Canal, completed. Discharge measurements at all bridges and culverts along this reach, for instrument calibrations and correlation analyses have started.

Task 2 to begin in FY-2007.

Recent Products: None

Planned Products:

1. Annual progress reports - will include the summaries of 12 months of work and any interpretations made on information generated through the study during the first two years.
2. All study information and hydrologic data will be published annually and made available at http://sofia.usgs.gov/ for the first two years and in the South Florida Data Report all subsequent years, as part of the long-term data collection networks.
3. A final report will be prepared and published by December 31, 2007. This report will include documentation describing discharge computation techniques for monitoring flows along this reach of Tamiami Trail, all data and information generated through the study, and a description of the quantity, timing, and distribution of freshwater flows throughout the study area.

WORK PLAN

Title of Task 1: Construction, instrumentation, and data collection at Tamiami Trail section from County Road 92, to Faka Union Canal
Task Funding: USGS Greater Everglades Priority Ecosystems Science (GE PES) and ENP Critical Ecosystems Studies Initiative (CESI)
Task Leaders: Eduardo Patino, Lars Soderqvist
Phone: 239-275-8448
FAX: 239-275-6820
Task Status: Completed
Task priority: high
Time Frame for Task 1: October 1, 2005 - September 30, 2006
Task Personnel: Andrew Erickson

Task Summary and Objectives: The objective is to select 3 sites, construct and instrument them, and begin discharge measurements for instrument calibration and correlation analyses at all bridges and culverts under Tamiami Trail between County Road 92 and Faka Union Canal.

Work to be undertaken during the proposal year and a description of the methods and procedures: Three flow stations will be installed at bridges # 39, # 45, and #51, for the collection of stage, velocity, discharge, salinity (or Specific Conductance), and temperature data. Discharge measurements with an Acoustic Doppler Current Profiler (ADCP), or comparable instrument, will be made at these and all other bridges (or culverts) along the Tamiami Trail between County Road 92 and Faka Union Canal.

Specific Task Product(s): All data collected will be compiled and posted on SOFIA by April 31, 2007. Computed discharge will be made available soon after calibration ratings are completed. These ratings are expected to be completed during FY-2007.

Title of Task 2: Expansion of Task 1, to include the Tamiami Trail section between Faka Union Canal and State Road 29 to the east.
Task Funding: USGS Greater Everglades Priority Ecosystems Science (GE PES) and ENP Critical Ecosystems Studies Initiative (CESI)
Task Leaders: Eduardo Patino / Lars Soderqvist
Phone: 239-275-8448
FAX: 239-275-6820
Task Status: Active
Task priority: High
Time Frame for Task 2: FY2007; FY2008; FY2009; FY2010; October 1, 2006 - September 30, 2010.
Task Personnel: Andrew Erickson

Task Summary and Objectives: This task involves the collection of hydrologic time-series data at a total of seven stations, and discharge measurements at all bridges or culverts along the Tamiami Trail section between County Road 92 and State Road 29. The objective of this task is to develop a discharge monitoring method for this reach of Tamiami Trail.

Work to be undertaken during the proposal year and a description of the methods and procedures: Four sub-sections have been identified for the Tamiami Trail section between Faka Union Canal and State Road 29. One bridge per sub-section will be instrumented for monitoring stage, discharge, specific conductance, and temperature.

Velocity data will be collected with shallow water up-looking acoustic Doppler instruments at each instrumented site, calibrated with the use of an Acoustic Doppler Current Profiler (ADCP) or any other comparable instrument, and used in the computation of discharge.

Periodic discharge measurements will be performed at each instrumented site, and all other bridges or culverts along Tamiami Canal between County Road 92 and State Road 29.

Index-velocity ratings are used in conjunction with stage dependent cross-sectional area ratings to calculate discharge at stations without direct stage to discharge relations. These velocity ratings are developed by establishing relations between the mean cross-sectional velocity (from ADCP discharge measurements) and the in-situ water velocity recorded by the Doppler meter installed at the site. Linear regression techniques are used to determine the most suitable velocity rating for each site. Index ratings will be developed for all instrumented sites along this reach of Tamiami Trail. Measured velocity with the ADCP should cover most, if not all, of the expected velocity range at each site.

Regression techniques will be used to determine flow relations between instrumented and non-instrumented bridges/culverts and discharge to the south, for the entire section (County Road 92 and State Road 29) will be calculated using these relations.

Specific Task Product(s):

1. Annual progress reports - will include the summaries of 12 months of work and any interpretations made on information generated through the study during the first two years.
2. All study information and hydrologic data will be published annually and made available at http://sofia.usgs.gov/ for the first two years and in the South Florida Data Report all subsequent years, as part of the long-term data collection networks.
3. A final report will be prepared and published by December 31, 2007. This report will include documentation describing discharge computation techniques for monitoring flows along this reach of Tamiami Trail, all data and information generated through the study, and a description of the quantity, timing, and distribution of freshwater flows throughout the study area.