The Florida Area Coastal Environment (FACE) Program

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The Florida Area Coastal Environment
Program (FACE) Presented by Dr. John Proni U.S.
Department of Commerce National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration Atlantic Oceanographic
and Meteorological Laboratory Ocean Chemistry
Division
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The Vision

• To obtain a quality long-term, multiple site,
  coastal ocean database comprised of those
  environmental quantities needed to
• advance scientific understanding of under-sampled
  areas of the south Florida coastal environment
  and
• (2) to provide science-based guidance for
  infrastructure planning, operation and permitting
  while enabling optimum environmental protection.
  

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Examples of FACE Motivators

• Citizen-divers note algal blooms on some coral
  reefs in South Florida. Permitting authorities,
  e.g. the FDEP, are alerted to the situation, but
  lack a scientific basis to evaluate concerns.
  Long-term background data on the presence and
  types of algae and on nutrients are lacking.
• Consideration is given to creating a water
  quality standard for unionized ammonia.
  Background data in the coastal ocean is lacking
  in the South Florida area for this quantity. What
  is the accuracy of the present technology for
  determining this quantity?
• Health concerns about nutrient-laden waters are
  also raised by the diving community

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• APPROACH
• Program Steering Committee
• A Program Steering Committee has been formed
  with representatives from the Florida Department
  of Environmental Protection (FDEP), Florida, the
  Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Committee,
  the US Geological Survey (USGS), US Army Corps of
  Engineers (USACE), US Environmental Protection
  Agency (USEPA) and AOML/NOAA.
• A utilities work group exists in which issues of
  potential interest in FACE are discussed.
• A scientific steering committee is in the
  process of being formed.
• An administrative and financial process is
  evolving to provide long-term continuing support
  for FACE
• Field efforts under the FACE program have been
  underway for several years FACE precursor
  measurement programs began more than 30 years ago.

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Some Potential Nutrient Sources to the Coastal
Zone
Microbial Processes
Benthic Flux
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Essential Measurements
Long-term data sets

• BIOLOGY
• seagrass
• algae
• enterococci

• WATER CHEMISTRY
• salinity
• temperature
• turbidity
• chlorophyll-a
• dissolved oxygen
• nutrients (N,P,Si,NH4)
• stable isotopes

• PHYSICS
• ocean current speed, directions
• meteorology

• ESTABLISH PARAMETERS FOR
• background concentrations
• inlets
• outfalls
• septic tank fields
• rivers and canals
• upwelling

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Measurement Quality Control Assurance

• Quality control and assurance is basic to the
  FACE measurement program
• The coastal ocean nutrient measurement program
  for FACE is lead by Dr. Jia-Zhong Zhang,
  originator of the US EPA standard for nutrient
  measurements in the coastal ocean (US EPA
  Standard method 349, 353.4,366)
• The microbiology program for FACE is lead by Dr.
  Kelly Goodwin. A full suite of traditional and
  molecular analytical abilities for fecal
  indicators, source tracking markers, parasites,
  and pathogens.
• Require water type and parameter suite
  measurements to accompany nutrient measurements
• Utilize tracer, e.g. SF6, dye in water type data
  suites
• Deployed sensor maintenance program (biofouling)
  
• NERLAC certification underway

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Real Time Data and Episodic Event Measurements

• Hurricane and frontal system induced upwelling,
  currents, resuspension and nutrient releases
• Real time data for sensor performance
  evaluation, proactive guidance, episodic event
  sampling
• Integration of water quality monitoring network
  with hurricane storm surge, wind and surface wave
  field measurements (Environmental Sentinel
  System)

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South Central Regional Wastewater Treatment and
Disposal Board
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Discharge plumes
Mitigating Factors surrounding currents water
column stratification water inputs
precipitation temperature season (winter)
Initial dilution 28-50 to 1 f(currents, effluent
disch. rate)

• Treated wastewater may contain
• Metals (Cr, Cu, Ni, Pb, Ag,Zn, Fe, As)
• Pathogens (bacteria, protozoa, viruses)
• Nutrients (N, P)

As ambient current speed increases, plume
dilution also increases.
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Gulfstream Reef
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Nutrient dilution at outfalls
Source SEFLOE II data reported in EPA2003
Florida Class III water quality standard In no
case shall nutrient concentrations of a body of
water be altered so as to cause an imbalance in
natural populations of aquatic flora or fauna.
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Boynton Inlet
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FAU nutient samples collected in Boynton Inlet and near shore during FAU nutient samples collected in Boynton Inlet and near shore during FAU nutient samples collected in Boynton Inlet and near shore during FAU nutient samples collected in Boynton Inlet and near shore during FAU nutient samples collected in Boynton Inlet and near shore during
Sept. 2006. Nutrients are measured in mg/L. Sept. 2006. Nutrients are measured in mg/L. Sept. 2006. Nutrients are measured in mg/L. Sept. 2006. Nutrients are measured in mg/L.
Station Ammonia-N Nitrite-N Nitrate-N Orthophosphate-P Silica
A1 0.061 0.016 0.020 0.000 0.000
A2 N/A N/A N/A 0.000 0.000
A3 0.059 0.018 0.063 0.012 0.003
B1 0.036 0.014 0.038 0.000 0.003
B2 0.126 0.017 0.024 0.000 0.000
B3 0.025 0.021 0.063 0.002 0.000
C N/A N/A N/A 0.014 0.064
D N/A N/A N/A 0.003 0.002
E 0.027 0.023 0.027 0.046 0.129
F 0.036 0.025 0.022 0.074 0.193
G 0.017 0.024 0.046 0.081 0.274
H 0.049 0.025 0.520 0.071 0.274
I 0.012 0.022 0.063 0.084 0.353
J 0.038 0.022 0.058 0.096 0.241
K 0.207 0.028 0.319 0.090 0.692
L 0.230 0.017 0.017 0.046 0.193
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Port Everglades Inlet (PEI) deep water site CTD cast. Nutrients are measured in mg/L. Port Everglades Inlet (PEI) deep water site CTD cast. Nutrients are measured in mg/L. Port Everglades Inlet (PEI) deep water site CTD cast. Nutrients are measured in mg/L. Port Everglades Inlet (PEI) deep water site CTD cast. Nutrients are measured in mg/L. Port Everglades Inlet (PEI) deep water site CTD cast. Nutrients are measured in mg/L. Port Everglades Inlet (PEI) deep water site CTD cast. Nutrients are measured in mg/L. Port Everglades Inlet (PEI) deep water site CTD cast. Nutrients are measured in mg/L.
Depth (Feet) Nitrate-NNitrite-N Silica Nitrite-N Nitrate-N Orthophosphate-P Ammonia-N
0' 0.003 0.018 0.000 0.003 0.000 0.000
100' 0.000 0.014 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000
200' 0.000 0.022 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000
300' 0.034 0.062 0.004 0.030 0.001 0.000
400' 0.092 0.119 0.001 0.091 0.012 0.000
500' 0.204 0.263 0.000 0.204 0.039 0.000
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Thank You