Charlotte Harbor National Estuary Program
Quarterly Environmental Monitoring Summary
October 1 through March 31, 2005
High flows from Peace and Myakka. Water Quality was within normal ranges except for specific locations. There were higher than normal number of fish kills and sea turtle mortality through quarter.
Water Flows:
| Peace River Basin | Much higher than normal (by multiple times) |
| Myakka River | Much higher than normal (by multiple times) |
| Caloosahatchee | Normal, exceeding minimum flows |
| Estero Tributaries | Low |
Peace and Myakka Rivers had much higher flows than normal for the dry season, usually exceeding wet season flows. Caloosahatchee flows normal.
January – March Water Quality:
| Charlotte Harbor Proper/Lemon Bay | |
| Temperature | Normal |
| Salinity | Normal though slightly high in January |
| Color | Normal |
| Chlorophyll a | Slightly worse than normal |
| Total Nitrogen | Normal with a high load from Coral Creek in March |
| Phosphorous | Higher than normal |
| Dissolved Oxygen | Slightly worse than normal, with DO<2 from Pt Charlotte outfall in February |
| Near Bottom Dissolved Oxygen | Better than normal |
| Secchi Depth | Slightly better than normal |
| Turbidity | Slightly worse than normal, with high readings at Cattle Dock Point in February |
Water Quality was generally within normal ranges except for clear sources of pollutants. Coral Creek, Port Charlotte, and Cattle Dock Point were hot spots of poor water quality.
Habitat:
| Red Tide | Not present to low, but some medium counts in early March |
| Fish Kills | Several fish kills each month |
| Fish Lesions | None |
| Other kills | Turtle Mortality in all months |
| Sewage Spills | None |
| Shellfishing | All areas closed. |
| Seagrasses | Stable totals of seagrass in Charlotte Harbor and Lemon Bay. 2003 map from South Florida Water Management District is close to being distributed. |
Sea Turtle mortality and fish kills were high. Shellfishing was closed.