Abstract
The Boynton Inlet (SE Florida, USA) is one of two tidal inlets connecting the Lake Worth Lagoon to the Atlantic Ocean. To quantitate the amount of anthropogenic materials reaching the South Florida coastal ocean and reef track, nutrient fluxes through the Boynton Inlet were measured during two 48-hour intensive studies conducted on June 4-6 and September 26-28, 2007. These studies combined analyses of water samples taken at regular intervals in the Boynton Inlet with acoustic Doppler current profiler (ADCP) measurements of the flow through the inlet. Data collected include concentrations of nutrients (silicate [Si], orthophosphate [PO 4 ], ammonium [NH 4 ], nitrate+nitrite [N+N]), isotope ratios of nitrogen, and physical parameters that included pH, salinity, total suspended solids (TSS), and turbidity. The study found a significant but highly variable flux of nutrients in the eight outgoing (ebb) tidal pulses sampled. Daily fluxes of nitrate+nitrite ranged from 16 to 565 kg N, silicate from 564 to 5197 kg Si, phosphate from 154 to 309 kg P, and ammonium from 34 to 354 kg N. These results are compared with other sources of nutrient inputs into the coastal environment. Inlets are a significant source of offshore nutrients.
Highlights
The near-shore ecosystems off of SE Florida are vital to the economy of the population of 5.5 million (Bureau of Census, 2010), through commercial and sport fishing, boating, diving, and swimming generating $2B in income and nearly 30,000 jobs annually (Johns et al, 2003)
The nutrient flux from the Boynton Inlet was found to be substantial, and quite variable, and comparable to, and at times exceeding that of nearby treated-wastewater plant ocean outfalls
The data suggest that excess rain and canal flow leads to elevated nutrient concentrations in the Boynton Inlet that are rapidly washed into the coastal ocean
Summary
The near-shore ecosystems off of SE Florida are vital to the economy of the population of 5.5 million (Bureau of Census, 2010), through commercial and sport fishing, boating, diving, and swimming generating $2B in income and nearly 30,000 jobs annually (Johns et al, 2003) As elsewhere, these ecosystems are subject to multiple stressors including chemical and microbiological pollution discharges, loss of natural habitat, climate change, and overfishing (Enochs et al, 2015, Vega-Thurber et al, 2014, Gregg, 2013, Helmle et al, 2011, Rabalais, 2005, Holland & Pugh 2010). Water quality measurements in the LWL of the three canals have been made by the Palm Beach County Department of Environmental Resources Management (ERM) and the South Florida Water Management District (SFWMD) (LWLI, 2013) These data are available through SFWMD's DBYHDRO website (www.sfwmd.gov/dbhydroplsql/show_dbkey_info.main_menu) and are summarized in Figure 3 for 1990-2008. The first 48-hour intensive was conducted on June 4-6, 2007, while the second sampling intensive was conducted on September 26-28, 2007
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