Project Work Plan

Study Title: Western Tamiami Trail Flows - Baseline Information and Response to CERP
Study Start Date: October, 2005   Study End Date: September 30, 2010
Web Sites: http://sofia.usgs.gov/
Location (Subregions, Counties, Park or Refuge): Tamiami Trail (US-41) from State Road 29 to County Road 92.
Funding Source: USGS Greater Everglades Priority Ecosystems Science (GE PES) and ENP Critical Ecosystems Studies Initiative (CESI).
Principal Investigator(s): Eduardo Patino and Lars Soderqvist
Study Personnel: Contract employees and students
Supporting Organizations: USGS, ENP, USACE, NOAA, SFWMD, Florida Gulf Coast University.
Associated / Linked Projects: USGS / USFWS - SIRENIA Manatee research; USGS - Priority Ecosystem Science Hydrology Projects (PES), Freshwater Flows to Northeastern Florida Bay, Southwest Coast Flows Project, TIME Modeling, SICS Modeling; USGS - Monitoring and Assessment Program (USACE MAP), Coastal Gradients Project; USGS National Wetlands Research Center (Lafayette, LA) - Ecological Research and Modeling; USACE - Tamiami Trail Culverts Project; ENP - Marine Monitoring Network; NOAA - Marine Circulation and Fisheries Studies; SFWMD - Picayune Strand Hydrologic Restoration project (Acceler8); SFWMD water quality studies - Hg studies; Florida Gulf Coast University (FGCU) - Oyster Reef Health in Pumpkin and Fakahatchee Estuaries: Baseline Monitoring for Ten Thousand Islands Restoration; Comprehensive Everglades Restoration Plan (CERP); Monitoring and Assessment Plan (MAP); Southwest Florida Feasibility Study.

Overview & Objective(s):

Figure 1. Western Tamiami Trail (US-41); Carnestown (StRd-29) to County Road 92 [larger image]

The coastal environment of south Florida has shown signs of ecological deterioration that is attributed to changes in freshwater inflows due to urban development, water management practices, and corresponding increases of salinity and nutrient content in estuarine waters. With plans to improve water levels and historic flow-ways in the Southern Golden Gate Estates (Picayune Strand) area north of Tamiami Trail to more natural conditions, changes are expected in the amount, timing, and distribution of freshwater discharge through bridges and culverts under US-41, altering current conditions in the wetlands and estuaries to the south. Hydrologic information throughout the Ten Thousand Islands and adjacent ecosystems is critical to the development of restoration strategies and for the evaluation of restoration results. With the implementation of the CERP projects "Picayune Strand Hydrologic Restoration project" and "Tamiami Trail (US-41) Culvert project", there is a need to determine current hydrologic conditions in areas south of US-41 (Figure 1). These areas will be greatly impacted by these CERP projects currently underway. There is little hydrologic information throughout the wetlands and estuaries within the study area that could be used in the construction and calibration of the MIKESHE subregional model currently being constructed under the auspices of the CERP Southwest Florida Feasibility Study. There is a critical need for information on freshwater flows across the Trail, ground-water information (including Specific Conductance/salinity) within the marshes south of the Trail, flows at or near the mouth of tributaries, water level, and salinity data throughout the area. The results of this study will provide information that currently does not exist on freshwater flows and salinity trends, effects of weather systems on flow patterns, and on how SGGE and Tamiami Trail Culverts restoration projects affect freshwater inflows and water quality of the estuarine ecosystem within the Ten Thousand Islands area.

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. First year focusing on the section between Faka-Union Canal and County Road 92, expanding east to State Road 29 in the second year of the study.
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.

Additionally, other federal and state agencies, universities, and local institutions conducting research in the area will be give access to all the information generated though this study.

Specific Relevance to Major Unanswered Questions and Information Needs Indentified:

This project is directly tied to the Monitoring and Assessment Plan (MAP), performance measures (salinity distributions), hydrodynamic model development and verification (MIKESHE and TIME/SICS expansion), and will provide baseline information on flows and salinity throughout the estuaries within the Ten Thousand Islands area.

Additionally, this effort is linked to projects listed in the DOI Science Document and to issues listed in the USGS Science Plan in Support of Everglades Restoration (Restoration goals)

Related projects listed in DOI Science Document:

1. Southwest Florida Feasibility Study
2. Picayune Strand Hydrologic Restoration
3. Tamiami Trail Culvert Project
4. Comprehensive Integrated Water Quality Feasibility Study
5. Ecological Community Recovery (Manatees)

USGS Restoration Goals:

1. Restoration goal 1A, "Get the Hydrology Right", by quantifying the current quantity, timing, and distribution of flows across Tamiami Train and into the coastal environments of the Ten Thousand Islands, and monitoring the ecosystem response to change.
2. Restoration goal 2A, "Habitats, Landscapes, and Ecological Processes", by providing pre and post restoration information on flow across Tamiami Trail. This information is necessary to link ecological response to hydrologic changes.

Status:
This project will supply critical hydrologic information related to CERP and other research efforts within the Picayune Strand and the Ten Thousand Islands areas. Discharge will be made available for all bridges and culverts across Tamiami Trail from State Road 29 to County Road 92.

Recent & Planned Products:

1. New project

WORK PLAN

Title of Task 1: Western Tamiami Trail Flows - Baseline Information and Response to CERP.
Task Funding: USGS Greater Everglades Priority Ecosystems Science (GE PES)/CESI
Task Leaders: Eduardo Patino, Lars Soderqvist
Phone: (239) 275-8448
FAX: (239) 275-6280
Task Status (proposed or active): Active
Task priority: HIGH
Time Frame for Task 1: FY-2006
Task Personnel: Contract employees

Task Summary and Objectives:
This task is designed to quantify freshwater discharge across Tamiami Trail, and provide necessary boundary information for the development and calibration of hydrologic models for the areas to the north and south of Tamiami Trail (Figure 1). The data can be used to calibrate the MIKESHE sub-regional model currently being constructed over the study area, and any other model developed for the wetlands and estuaries within the Ten Thousand Islands area to the south of Tamiami Trail.

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. First year focusing on the section between Faka-Union Canal and County Road 92, expanding east to State Road 29 in the second year of the study; 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.

Work to be undertaken during the proposal year and a description of the methods and procedures:
A maximum total of four flow stations will be installed at bridges west of Faka-Union canal, for the collection of stage, velocity, discharge, salinity (or Specific Conductance), and temperature data. Discharge measurements with an Acoustic Doppler Current Profiler (ADCP) instrument will be made at these and all other bridges (or culverts) along the Tamiami Trail, between Carnestown and County Road 92. During the second year of the study, work will be expanded east of Faka-Union Canal to State Road 29.

FY-06

1. Installation of a maximum total of four flow stations at bridges of Tamiami Trail between Faka-Union canal and County Road 92 for the collection of stage, velocity, discharge, salinity (or Specific Conductance), and temperature data.
2. Begin discharge measurements with an Acoustic Doppler Current Profiler (ADCP) or comparable instrument at these and all other bridges (or culverts) along the same section of Tamiami Trail.
3. Start developing velocity calibration ratings for all instrumented sites to calculate discharge records.
4. Begin correlation analyses to determine relations between instrumented sites and all other non-instrumented sites, in order to calculate individual flows across all bridges and culverts within the study area.

Specific Task Product(s):

1. Hydrologic records for WY-2006 to be made available at the USGS -SOFIA web address; April 2007.
2. Progress reports to be made available to PES and CESI (ENP) on an annual basis