CERP Picayune Strand - SFWMD Groundwater Monitoring

This groundwater monitoring project will evaluate potential effects resulting from the Picayune Strand Restoration Project (PSRP) before, during and after restoration of the historic hydrologic regime. In 1999, the SFWMD began continuous real-time monitoring of two Lucky Lake freshwater wells located just south of I-75 in Southern Golden Gate Estates (SGGE). During 2003-4, the SFWMD began monitoring 23 SGGE freshwater wells located throughout the PSRP north of Tamiami Trail. Three additional SGGE estuarine wells were installed below Tamiami Trail in the Ten Thousand Islands National Wildlife Refuge (TTINWR) and Fakahatchee Strand Preserve State Park (FSPSP) coastal marshes in 2006. The 28 wells are located in east-west bands across the project area and into adjacent lands being hydrologically affected by the PSRP canal system. Well sites are also distributed throughout different vegetative habitats to assess whether a suitable hydrology will be restored to the major types of pre-development plant communities. Each well provides data to document surface and surficial aquifer water levels and hydroperiods. The estuarine wells also record salinity, water temperature and specific conductivity. Well data is sent to the SFWMD DBHYDRO database at 15-minute intervals; the current dataset includes DBKEY links for daily mean values recorded with Campbell Scientific Measurement and Control Dataloggers. Additional breakpoint data for these wells are accessible in DBHYDRO with other DBKEYS. This monitoring began during baseline monitoring for the project and will be continued, at a minimum, through the year 2050. The well data is analyzed annually to determine water level stages and hydroperiods. These results will be used to assess the effects of the project on the inland plant and animal communities, allowing identification of potential project modifications needed to further improve restoration benefits.