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Groundwater-Surface Water Interactions and Relation to Water Quality in the Everglades

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Frequently-anticipated questions:


What does this data set describe?

Title:
Groundwater-Surface Water Interactions and Relation to Water Quality in the Everglades
Abstract:
At present there are few reliable estimates of hydrologic fluxes between groundwater and surface water in the Everglades. This gap in hydrological investigations not only leaves the water budget of the Everglades uncertain, it also hampers progress in understanding the processes that determine mobility and transformation of contaminants, such as mercury, sulfate and nutrients. The objective of this project is to quantify hydrologic exchange fluxes between groundwater and surface water and its effects on transport of contaminants in the Everglades. The research furthermore relates surface water and ground water interactions to past, present, and proposed management of surface-water levels and flows in the Everglades. The principal research sites are the Everglades Nutrient Removal Project (ENR), Water Conservation Area 2A (WCA-2A), and the freshwater wetlands of Everglades National Park. Results are being used to quantify ground-water exchange with surface flow, and to quantify the enhancement of chemical transformations of contaminants during transport across the interface between surface water and ground water.

Two data sets are available for this project. The Northern Everglades Research Site and Sample Information data set contains a summary of the site locations, data types, and measurement periods in ENR, WCA2A, and WCA2B. The Seepage Meters Site and Sample Information data set contains vertical fluxes across wetland peat surface measured by seepage meters at research sites in ENR, WCA2A, WCA2B, and WCA3A. Additional data can be found in the appendices of the Open-File Reports 00-168 and 00-483.

  1. How should this data set be cited?

    Harvey, Judson W. , 2005, Groundwater-Surface Water Interactions and Relation to Water Quality in the Everglades.

    Online Links:

  2. What geographic area does the data set cover?

    West_Bounding_Coordinate: -80.874686
    East_Bounding_Coordinate: -80.035983
    North_Bounding_Coordinate: 26.577616
    South_Bounding_Coordinate: 25.094265

  3. What does it look like?

    <http://sofia.usgs.gov/publications/fs/169-96/fig1.gif> (GIF)
    study sites

  4. Does the data set describe conditions during a particular time period?

    Beginning_Date: 1995
    Ending_Date: 1998
    Currentness_Reference: ground condition

  5. What is the general form of this data set?

    Geospatial_Data_Presentation_Form: digital files

  6. How does the data set represent geographic features?

    1. How are geographic features stored in the data set?

      Indirect_Spatial_Reference: Everglades

    2. What coordinate system is used to represent geographic features?

      Grid_Coordinate_System_Name: Universal Transverse Mercator
      Universal_Transverse_Mercator:
      UTM_Zone_Number: 17
      Transverse_Mercator:
      Scale_Factor_at_Central_Meridian: 0.9996
      Longitude_of_Central_Meridian: -81
      Latitude_of_Projection_Origin: 0
      False_Easting: 500000
      False_Northing: 0

      Planar coordinates are encoded using Coordinate Pair
      Abscissae (x-coordinates) are specified to the nearest 0.001
      Ordinates (y-coordinates) are specified to the nearest 0.001
      Planar coordinates are specified in survey feet

      The horizontal datum used is North American Datum of 1927.
      The ellipsoid used is Clarke 1866.
      The semi-major axis of the ellipsoid used is 6378206.
      The flattening of the ellipsoid used is 1/294.9786982.

      Vertical_Coordinate_System_Definition:
      Altitude_System_Definition:
      Altitude_Datum_Name: North American Vertical Datum of 1988
      Altitude_Resolution: 0.01
      Altitude_Distance_Units: feet
      Altitude_Encoding_Method:
      Explicit elevation coordinate included with horizontal coordinates

  7. How does the data set describe geographic features?

    Entity_and_Attribute_Overview:
    Data collected for vertical fluxes at each site include: general location, location and metd ID, peter prefill volume in ml, seepage-meter bag deployment - start/mid/end date, elapsed time in hours, water volume exchanged in miters, vertical flux in cm/day, valid measurement indicatr, and flux above minimum detection indicator.

    Data included in the summary of northern Everglades research site locations are site location, site ID, type of site (well, surface water levels, or seepage meter), depth from TOC in feet, # of seepage meters, type of data collected (H- head value, QW -water quality, SM - seepage meter, KP - peat hydraulic conductivity, QWP - peat water quality), nominal record period start and end, longitude and latitude, and state plane easting and northing in feet on NAD27.

    Entity_and_Attribute_Detail_Citation: USGS


Who produced the data set?

  1. Who are the originators of the data set? (may include formal authors, digital compilers, and editors)

  2. Who also contributed to the data set?

    Project personnel include Jim Krest, Jessica Thomas Newlin, and Eric Lerch. Past project personnel include Eric Nemeth, Katherine Randle, Jungyill Choi, Bob Mooney, Jonah Jackson, and Cynthia Gefvert.

  3. To whom should users address questions about the data?

    Judson W. Harvey
    U.S. Geological Survey
    Project Chief
    430 National Center
    Reston, VA 20192

    703 648-5876 (voice)
    703 648 5484 (FAX)
    jwharvey@usgs.gov


Why was the data set created?

For restoration of the Everglades to succeed there must be comprehensive knowledge about physical, chemical, and biological processes throughout the system. A key measure of success in the Everglades is the improvement or protection of water quality under changing hydrologic conditions. Although there is a basic understanding of how interactions between groundwater and surface water will affect water budgets under restoration, there is only a rudimentary understanding of how interactions between groundwater and surface water will affect water quality. Only field-oriented research and modeling can determine whether interactions between groundwater and surface water are currently storing pollutants in groundwater, how long those pollutants are likely to be stored in the aquifer, and under what changing management conditions associated with restoration will those pollutants be returned into the surface water system.


How was the data set created?

  1. From what previous works were the data drawn?

  2. How were the data generated, processed, and modified?

    Date: Unknown (process 1 of 6)
    A combined water balance and environmental tracer methodology is used to determine vertical exchange of water and solute at research sites in the Everglades system. The initial research in FY96/97 began at fourteen sites in the Everglades Nutrient Removal Area (ENR) and at seven sites in the north-central portion of Water Conservation Area 2A (WCA-2a). Fieldwork was expanded in FY97/98 to include a single site in WCA-2b, a single site in WCA-3a, and five sites in Taylor Slough.

    In total, flux measurements have been made at more than 30 study sites where mercury and nutrient fluxes are under study, including ENRI WCA-2a. and Taylor Slough wetlands. Groundwater hydraulic head and chemical measurements have been made at 60 sites; in collaboration with Mike Reddy (USGS, WRD, Boulder) peat porewater chemistry has been measured at six depths at 7 sites for almost 3 years. The major benchmarks of progress for the study are:

    1) Establish research sites on transects across the wetland interior in ENR, WCA-2A, and Taylor Slough (and single sites in WCA-2B and WCA-3A). Measure porewater solute concentrations and vertical seepage and quantify vertical fluxes of groundwater and surface water across the sediment interface using these two independent sources of information. Measure groundwater hydraulic heads and compute vertical hydraulic gradients (that indicate the direction of vertical fluxes and changes in that direction over time). Also measure hydraulic conductivity of the peat and layers within the aquifer and measure groundwater chemical and isotopic concentrations for use as tracers to quantify area-averaged fluxes to surface water

    2) Combine the site-specific vertical flux estimates described above with other water budget data (surface-water flow, precipitation, evapotranspiration) and other chemical data from surface-water locations. Use expanded data sets to constrain area-averaged water and chemical mass balance models in ENR, WCA-2a, and Taylor Slough

    3) Relate vertical exchange fluxes of water, mercury and nutrientsbetween ground and surface water to past and current water-level management strategies. Consider factors such as hydrogeologic characteristics, regional water balance, and effect of management of water levels in canals and in WCA-l

    Date: 2000 (process 2 of 6)
    Determined that recharge from the Everglades Nutrient Removal area (ENR) to ground water accounted for 30 per cent of the water pumped in to ENR for treatment during the years 1994-1998. Recharge varied by about a factor fo two over time and was positivley correlated with ENR water level and rate of pumping surface water into the ENR. In contrast, discharge from WCA-1 into ENR was a much smaller flux, according to our mass-balance and seepage-meter estimates. The estimates of discharge were a factor of four smaller than estimate developed by the South Florida Water Management District.

    Determined recharging water in ENR is transporting dissolved mercury downward through peat and into storage in the Surficial Aquifer. The conclusion is that dissolved mercury is being retained in the Surficial Aquifer as a result of biogeochemical reactions with aquifer surfaces.

    Efforts using major ions and radium isotopes have identified a significant flux of groundwater into Taylor Slough from the west side of the slough, but quantification of that flux has been slowed due to the lack of a documented analysis fo athe surface-water velocity data in Taylor Slough. There is also uncertainty about the effect of particle-reactivity of the radium isotopes that will be addressed in upcoming work. Finally there was the difficulty of identifying actual flow paths of Taylor Slough water south of Taylor Slough Bridge. Significant progress was made on that front in FY2000 by teaming up with Clint Hittle and Mark Zucker to coordinate wetland and coastal sample collections. Sampling from July, 1999 through November, 1999 identified the pathway of movement of large pulses of freshwater that resulted from Tropical Storm Harvey and Hurricane Irene from source areas that began in upper Taylor Slough, in lower L31-W canal, and in the C-111 canal.

    Completion of QA and QC of all of our measurements to date in Taylor Slough, including surface water staff measurements and ground water-level measurements, water depths, peat depths, estimates of peat hydraulic conductivity, and major-ion chemistry in surface and ground water is progressing. Our data set is the only type of its kind representing broad spatial patterns during time periods when intensive velocity gaging was being conducted in the Slough (September and November 1997, July 1998, and September 1999). A data report is presently being prepared after which all data will be made available on the SOFIA web site.

    Date: 2000 (process 3 of 6)
    Work in upper and lower Shark Slough began in FY2000 by cooperating with Ray Shaffranek (WRD) and Tom Smith (BRD) to obtain access for measuring distributions of peat depth, hydraulic conductivity of peat, vertical hydraulic gradients in peat, and to determine surface-water flow pathways using geochemical tracers. For the coming wet season we will cooperate with the Freshwater Discharge to the West Coast project to help determine flow pathways to the coast. Also in FY2001 we will use what we have learned about uranium isotopes in Taylor Slough to quantify groundwater discharge in Shark Slough. Eventually more wells may be needed in Shark Slough to determine regional hydraulic gradients and ground-water flow velocities in order to support accurate ground water modeling.

    Like the work in Everglades National Park, our work in the north Everglades involves developing and testing new methods to quantify groundwater-surface water interactions. Unlike the ENP work, our north Everglades work began earlier (in FY1996) and is now reaching maturity. Having completed the task of quantifying surface and ground water exchange fluxes, work is now emphasizing chemical reactions that occur at the interface between surface water and ground water. Interest is in those biogeochemical reactions that affect the fate of contaminants such as mercury, sulfate, and nutrients in the Everglades. At this stage fieldwork is largely complete (except for continuation fieldwork that has been funded by SFWMD). In large part activities at this point involve additional data analysis and modeling that are needed to reliably determine water fluxes and chemical reaction rates in flow paths connecting surface and ground water. The project is also developing model analyses that are compatable with the data sets to quantify the role of groundwater and peat in storing contaminants and releasing them slowly over time to surface water.

    Date: 2002 (process 4 of 6)
    Extensive use of traditional hydrogeologic methods to parameterize groundwater-surface water interaction models is impractical in many areas of the Everglades due to constraints on well construction. The project proposes to develop and test methods that are based on measurements in peat and in surface water to quantify groundwater-surface water interactions. The first approach involves estimating peat hydraulic conductivity, peat depth, and vertical hydraulic gradients in peat for input to the TIME model (i.e. The model that will couple surface and subsurface flow in Everglades National Park). Measuring the spatial distribution of hydraulic conductivity and vertical hydraulic gradients may prove quite useful, but it is possible that those measurements will be subject to small inaccuracies, that when upscaled, lead to large uncertainties in flux estimates in the Park wetlands as a whole. The proposal is to develop an independent means to corroborate our results based on innovative use of geochemical tracing methods.

    The advantage of using environmental geochemical tracers is flux estimates are obtained at larger spatial scales that are more similar to the scales of interest for practical problems of restoring flows and protecting water quality. The problem with using many of the existing methods in the Everglades is that the source waters to Everglades National Park have already interacted with groundwater, and therefore already have a 'groundwater' chemical signature. The ground water signature in Everglades source waters therefore interferes with the use of commonly used tracers to delineate groundwater interactions that occur within the Park. Our approach is to use Uranium series isotopes to quantify surface water and ground water interactions that occur within the confines of Everglades National Park.

    Date: 2003 (process 5 of 6)
    Our objective for FY03 is twofold, 1) to conduct a fundamental solute tracer experiment in the FIU/SERC flumes that will produce some of the first parameters describing solute transport in the Everglades (needed for water quality models), and 2) to expand the spatial scale of our measurements, using an extension of the radium tracer approach, to allow parameterization of solute transport at spatial scales of tens of kilometers.

    The detailed experimental study of solute transport in Shark Slough involves releasing by steady injection (for a period ranging between 4 and 24 hours) a small amount of salt solution (sodium bromide) in "flumes" in Everglades National Park. We will track both the downstream movement and longitudinal spreading of the tracer in surface water, as well as the exchange between surface water and peat porewater. Our collaborator, Jim Saiers from Yale University, will be conducting a co-injection of fine (neutrally-buoyant) latex particles to learn about processes affecting transport of fine particulate organic matter. As outlined above, we have particular interest in quantifying the rate and extent to which surface water and subsurface porewater are exchanged. This information is embedded within the surface-water tracer measurements but will be verified independently through measurements of concentrations of the bromide tracer in porewater of the peat. Our modeling will account for advection and longitudinal dispersion of solute in surface water, as well as the effects of exchange with peat porewater. Jim Saiers will have primary responsibility for measurement and modeling of fine particulate transport.

    Date: 2004 (process 6 of 6)
    Our objectives for FY04 are twofold, 1) continue conducting fundamental solute tracer experiments in the Everglades at the 10-m scale to quantify the fundamental physical transport processes, including surface-subsurface exchange, and its effects on solute transport in the Everglades, and 2) attempt to scale up results to the 10-km scale using an extension of our recently published radium isotope tracer approach, with the purpose of developing the parameter sets that are directly applicable in water-quality models.

    We are still active in publishing results from on-going (but nearly completed) investigations in Water Conservation Area 2A, and will add to the production line new products from FY03 activities in Shark Slough. In FY04/05 we plan to continue reporting our results. he first product in mid FY04 will document results from the bromide tracer test at an FIU flume facility in Shark Slough. The second product in mid to late FY04 will feature a watershed-scale modeling application in Taylor Slough that uses environmental radium measurements as well as detailed results from the bromide tracer test.

    Hydrologic Transport Processes Affecting Movement and Retention of Dissolved Constituents and Contaminants in the Everglades: The principal work to be conducted in FY04 include both 1) detailed experimental studies and modeling of solute transport at relatively small scales (10-m), combined with 2) synoptic investigations of natural distributions of radium isotopes and modeling of solute transport at larger scales (10- km) in Taylor and Shark Sloughs. The general plan for detailed experimentation involves releasing a bromide salt solution (NaBr) by steady injection (for a period ranging between 4 and 24 hours) into surface water in Everglades National Park. We track both the downstream movement and vertical and longitudinal spreading of the tracer in surface water, as well as the exchange between surface water and peat porewater. Of particular interest is quantifying the rate and extent to which surface water and subsurface porewater are exchanged. This information is embedded within the surfacewater tracer measurements but will be verified independently through measurements of concentrations of the bromide tracer in porewater of the peat. The modeling will account for advection and vertical and longitudinal dispersion of solute in surface water, as well as the effects of exchange with peat porewater.

    To obtain measurements and modeling necessary to scale up our information about solute transport to the watershed scale, the strategy is to modify the site-specific radium isotopic tracer technique that previously developed to quantify ground water and surface water interactions at a watershed scale. To accomplish the goal of scaling up, we will need to extend our site specific method using the radium tracer in a way that will allow us to quantify interactions between surface and subsurface water along a surface-water 'flowpath' in the main flow-ways in Shark Slough and Taylor Slough. Some kilometer-scale sampling of the radium tracer and other physical and biogeochemical parameters have already been completed in Taylor Slough. Similar work will be conducted in Shark Slough beginning either in the 1st or 2nd quarter of FY04. Modeling solute transport and dispersion at the 10-km scale will require not only the radium measurements, but also information from the detailed tracer studies and meterologic and hydrologic information from existing hydrology data sets and sources in the Park.

    Person who carried out this activity:

    Judson W. Harvey
    U.S. Geological Survey
    Project Chief
    430 National Center
    Reston, VA 20192

    703 648-5876 (voice)
    703 648 5484 (FAX)
    jwharvey@usgs.gov

  3. What similar or related data should the user be aware of?

    Bates, A. L. Orem, W. H.; Harvey, J.. W., 2001, Geochemistry of Sulfur in the Florida Everglades: 1994 through 1999: USGS Open-File Report 01-007, U.S. Geological Survey, Tallahassee, FL.

    Online Links:

    Bates, Anne L Orem, William H.; Harvey. Ju, 2002, Tracing sources of sulfur in the Florida Everglades: Journal of Environmental Quality v. 31 no. 1, American Society of Agronomy, Madison, WI.

    Online Links:

    Other_Citation_Details:
    The journal is published jointly by the American Society of Agronomy, Crop Science Society of America, and Soil Science Society of America
    Harvey, J. W. Krupa, Steven L.; Gefvert, , 2000, Interaction between ground water and surface water in the northern Everglades and relation to water budget and mercury cycling: study methods and appendixes: USGS Open-File Report 00-168, U.S. Geological Survey, Reston, VA.

    Online Links:

    Other_Citation_Details:
    Prepared in cooperation with the South Florida Water Management District
    Harvey, Judson W. Krupa, Steven L.; Gefvert, , 2002, Interactions between surface water and ground water and effects on mercury transport in the north-central Everglades: USGS Water Resources Investigations Report 02-4050, U.S. Geological Survey, Reston, VA.

    Online Links:

    Choi, J. Harvey, J. W., 2000, Quantifying time-varying ground-water discharge and recharge in wetlands of the Northern Florida Everglades: Wetlands v. 20, n. 3, Society of Wetland Scientists, McLean, VA.

    Online Links:

    Krest, James M. Harvey, Judson W., 2003, Using natural distributions of short-lived radium isotopes to quantify groundwater discharge and recharge: Limnology and Oceanography v. 48, n. 1, American Society of Limnology and Oceanography, Washington, DC.

    Online Links:

    Harvey, Judson, W Jackson, Jonah M.; Mooney, R, 2000, Interaction between ground water and surface water in Taylor Slough and vicinity, Everglades National Park, south Florida: study methods and appendixes: USGS Open-File Report 00-483, U.S. Geological Survey, Reston, VA.

    Online Links:

    Other_Citation_Details: Prepared in cooperation with Everglades National Park
    Harvey, J.W. Newlin, J. T.; Krest, J. M.; Ch, 2004, Surface-water and ground-water interactions in the central Everglades, Florida: USGS Scientific Investigations Report 2004-5069, U.S. Geological Survey, Reston, VA.

    Online Links:

    Harvey, J. W. Krupa, S. L.; Krest, J. M., 2004, Ground water recharge and discharge in the Central Everglades: Journal of Ground Water, Oceans Issue 2004 v. 42, n. 7, National Ground Water Association, Westerville, OH.

    Online Links:

    Other_Citation_Details: reprinted with permission from Judson W. Harvey et al.


How reliable are the data; what problems remain in the data set?

  1. How well have the observations been checked?

  2. How accurate are the geographic locations?

    All wells and horizontal measuring points were surveyed by global positioning (GPS). The location of measuring points are reported with reference to the North American Datum of 1927 (NAD 27). Using the Army Corps of Engineers program Corpscon, horizontal coordinates were transformed to Northings and Eastings in the Universal Transverse Metcator (UTM) coordinate system. Horizontal positions were gathered using either a Trimble PRO XR GPS unit, a Rockwell PLGR unit, or a Garmin unit. In all cases the accuracy is expected to be better than +/- 100 feet, which is suffiecient for this project.

  3. How accurate are the heights or depths?

    Vertical ground points near or on wells were surveyed using GPS techniques by USGS Geography personnel in October 1998. Elevations in the NAD 88 datum were derived from the observed NAD 83 ellipsoid heights and the NGS GEOID96 model. The estimated accuracy of derived elevations is +/- 0.07 meters.

    The elevations for vertical control points near wells were transferred to well top control points.

  4. Where are the gaps in the data? What is missing?

    not available

  5. How consistent are the relationships among the observations, including topology?

    not applicable


How can someone get a copy of the data set?

Are there legal restrictions on access or use of the data?

Access_Constraints: none
Use_Constraints: none

  1. Who distributes the data set? (Distributor 1 of 1)

    Heather S.Henkel
    U.S. Geological Survey
    600 Fourth St. South
    St. Petersburg, FL 33701
    USA

    727 803-8747 ext 3028 (voice)
    727 803-2030 (FAX)
    hhenkel@usgs.gov

  2. What's the catalog number I need to order this data set?

    Everglades hydrology and water quality data

  3. What legal disclaimers am I supposed to read?

    The data have no implied or explicit guarantees

  4. How can I download or order the data?


Who wrote the metadata?

Dates:
Last modified: 03-Mar-2009
Metadata author:
Heather Henkel
U.S. Geological Survey
600 Fourth Street South
St. Petersburg, FL 33701
USA

727 803-8747 ext 3028 (voice)
727 803-2030 (FAX)
sofia-metadata@usgs.gov

Metadata standard:
Content Standard for Digital Geospatial Metadata (FGDC-STD-001-1998)


This page is <http://sofia.usgs.gov/metadata/sflwww/gw-sw_wq_everglades.faq.html>

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