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New Water Quality Monitors for the Indian River Lagoon  June 6, 2014 | WMFE, Orlando - New water quality monitors will provide a sharper look at why the Indian River Lagoon is deteriorating. [Photo: Melissa Adams of the St. Johns River Water Management District explains how the new monitors will work. By Amy Green] The monitors will be submerged at five locations from Vero Beach north. They'll measure nutrients like nitrogen and phosphorus, which scientists believe are behind the lagoon's worst problems. David Hornsby of the St. Johns River Water Management District says it's the first time scientists will have real time data on the lagoon's condition. "We used to come out here and sample every other week. So two sample points a month. We now get 24 points a day. So it increases our resolution and helps our understanding of how things change particularly in the nighttime, how this system responds at nighttime." The data will help scientists determine what's working for the lagoon and what isn't. The Indian River Lagoon stretches across nearly half of Florida's East Coast. Widespread water quality problems have killed off pelicans, dolphins and manatees and more than half of the lagoon's seagrass coverage. |
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