S O U T H F L O R I D A W A T E R M A N A G E M E N T D I S T R I C T

Excess nutrients found in stormwater runoff pose a risk to the Everglades. These nutrients flow from lawns, farms, roadways and

other developed areas. Stormwater treatment areas are constructed wetlands that remove excess nutrients. They play a

vital role in protecting and restoring America's Everglades.

Rainfall is South Florida’s primary source of fresh water. It nourishes plants, fills ponds and seeps into the underground aquifer, replenishing the drinking water supply. In excess, it drains away in the canal system that protects South Florida from flooding.

Stormwater runoff also carries nutrients off the landscape, especially fertilizers used in suburban, agricultural and urban settings. Scientists have determined that a common ingredient in fertilizer, phos- phorus, has put the fragile Everglades environment at risk. Phosphorus is a mineral that is essential for all life. It forms genetic material, builds bones and teeth and aids metabolism. But when excess phosphorus reaches natural wet- lands like the Everglades, it does more harm than good.

ON THE INSIDE

n Phosphorus and its impact

n Investing in a solution

n “Green” technology at work

n Meeting mandated goals

n Operating and maintaining an STA

n Sustainability for the future

Everglades Stormwater Treatment Areas Managed wetlands improving water quality

Phosphorus and Its Impact Nutrient concentrations, particularly phosphorus, were naturally ultralow in the Everglades. Its native wetland plants are adapted to this condition and thrive there. When a nutrient, such as phosphorus, enters this ecosystem in excess, plant growth is stimulated, producing an overabundance of undesirable vegetation. Cattail and other species respond with vigor, crowding out native wetland plants such as sawgrass and preventing the sun’s rays from reaching plants in the water. When this happens, aquatic insects, crustaceans and other invertebrates do not have enough to eat or enough oxygen to live, which means the fish and birds do not have enough to eat either.

Investing in a Solution The State of Florida has invested more than $1.8 billion in water-quality improvements aimed at lowering phosphorus levels. Two decades ago, before these improvements were put into place, phosphorus concentrations in Everglades-bound waters averaged more than 170 parts per billion (ppb). Today, as a result of Florida’s efforts, the concentrations in some discharges to the Everglades are as low as 12 ppb. Recognizing that more needs to be done to achieve the ultralow phosphorus water quality standard established for the Everglades, the State is committing significant additional funding and resources toward implementing further strategies.

“Green” Technology at Work Florida’s Everglades Forever Act of 1994 provided the momentum for this success story to date. It mandated and funded construction of treatment wetlands, known as Stormwater Treatment Areas (STAs). At present, 57,000 acres of land south of Lake Okeechobee have been converted to STAs. In western Palm Beach County, STA-3/4, at more than 16,000 acres, is the largest constructed wetland in the world. And more STAs are on the way, along with additional water storage features designed to improve STA performance.

Everglades Stormwater Treatment Areas use “green” technology to remove phosphorus from the water. Wetland plants, such as

cattail, southern naiad and algae, uptake phosphorus and use it in metabolic life processes. Phosphorus is stored in their roots, stems and leaves. Even after the plants die, sediments in the wetland retain phosphorus from the decaying plant matter. As a result, water flowing out of an STA has significantly less phosphorus than stormwater runoff flowing in.

By building STAs in key locations north of the Everglades, phosphorus in stormwater runoff can be reduced before it flows south into protected wetlands. The South Florida Water Management District’s regional canal system brings water to the treatment wetlands and then carries it into the Everglades.

Meeting Mandated Goals for Reducing Phosphorus The Everglades Forever Act and other legal requirements provided the District with specific guidelines to improve Everglades water quality. A regulatory source control component required the implementation of improved farming methods to reduce phosphorus amounts leaving the Everglades Agricultural Area and the C-139 Basin. Another key component was the Everglades Construction Project, which provided for initial construction of the STAs now in operation. At most locations throughout the Everglades, the long-term target concentration of 10 parts per billion of phosphorus is already being met.

In 2003, the Florida Legislature adopted the Long-Term Plan to provide for structural and vegetation enhancements to the STAs, including STA expansions completed in 2006 and 2012. To further improve water quality, in 2012, the State of Florida and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency reached consensus on additional Everglades Restoration Strategies. The agreed-upon technical plan includes more than 6,500 acres of new treatment area and 116,000 acre-feet of additional water storage. Expanded source controls will also be implemented, and a science plan will ensure continued research to further improve STA performance.

Stormwater treatment areas use “green” technology to

remove excess phosphorus, a nutrient that can harm the Everglades environment.

Plants are sometimes airlifted and released into an STA to help establish submerged aquatic vegetation.

Collecting and analyzing water samples is vital to wetland management.

Wildlife in the Wetlands Stormwater treatment areas are built specifi- cally for improving Everglades water quality. However, their vast, shallow waters and rich plant life also make them outstanding habitat for wildlife, including threatened and endan- gered species.

Wading birds, ducks and American alligators are found year-round in the treatment wet- lands. Migratory birds use them, too, visiting in abundance during winter months. Rabbits, bobcats, wild hogs, deer and the occasional Florida panther roam the banks and levees.

Because the STAs have a specialized cleansing function, public recreation is limited to activi- ties that do not disturb the water and soils. Visitors can enjoy nature viewing, and some fishing and hunting is allowed, under guide- lines of the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.

Keeping the treatment wetlands healthy and undisturbed is vital for Everglades restoration. Enhanced wildlife habitat is a great bonus!

Operating and Maintaining an STA An STA is a living wetland, affected by natural conditions such as weather (rainfall, drought, hurricanes), plant growth rates, wildlife and invasion of undesirable plant species. STAs have never before been used on the large scale now at work in the Everglades, so their operation and management is a process of ongoing learning and continual improvement.

Water quantity and water quality monitoring is a vital part of STA operations. Each treatment cell is monitored regularly to determine how the STA is performing. Operational decisions are then based on real-time data. STA performance data are continually assessed and are reported weekly, monthly and yearly. An annual summary is available in the South Florida Environmental Report, viewable online at www.sfwmd.gov/sfer.

Structural components of the STAs must be operated and maintained as well. These include more than two dozen pump stations, 350 water control structures and more than 600 miles of levees and canals. Mechanical repairs, preventative maintenance, erosion control and debris cleanup are essential and ongoing tasks.

Responding to extreme weather is a large part of the job, too. In 2005, hurricane winds uprooted much of the aquatic vegetation in the STAs and stirred up sediments. Repairing these living wetlands presented challenges, and the District has incorporated new design strategies to help protect STAs during high wind and rainfall events. The District has also learned to deal with prolonged droughts by altering STA operation and incorporating more water pumping flexibility into STA designs.

Sustainability for the Future Protecting Everglades water quality is a core mission responsibility and a strategic priority. STAs will continue to play a vital role in this effort. Sustaining and improving their effectiveness is essential. Continued construction, research and monitoring will help optimize the performance of water quality treatment technologies. The State of Florida and the South Florida Water Management District remain committed to achieving optimum phosphorus-reducing results.

Great egret

American alligator

Stormwater treatment areas are constructed wetlands that remove and store nutrients through plant growth and the accumulation of dead plant material in a layer of sediment.

The South Florida Water Manage ment District is a regional, governmental agency that oversees the water resources in the southern half of the state. It is the oldest and largest of the state’s five water management districts.

Our Mission is to manage and protect water resources of the region by balancing and improving water quality, flood control, natural systems and water supply.

JW06/14

DID YOU KNOW?

n Plants that cleanse water in stormwater treatment areas include emergent aquatic vegetation (EAV) like cattail, bulrush and spikerush. Submerged aquatic vegetation (SAV) examples include hydrilla, southern naiad and algae.

n Vegetation management is vital to STA success. Some herbicides are used to prevent invasive species from crowding out target plants.

n Treatment wetlands are also used in other parts of South Florida to improve water quality. North and east of Lake Okeechobee, treatment wetlands remove nutrients from water flowing into the lake, St. Lucie estuary and Indian River Lagoon.

n During the dry season, the STAs provide important foraging habitat for a wide variety of wading birds and ducks.

n Birds found in the treatment wetlands include roseate spoonbills, whistling ducks, white storks, little blue herons, eagles and hawks.

Varying in size, configuration and period of operation, STAs are shallow, freshwater marshes divided into treatment cells by interior levees, with water flows managed via pump stations, gates or culverts. By building STAs in key locations north of the Everglades, phosphorus in stormwater runoff can be reduced before it flows south into protected wetlands. The Everglades Stormwater Treatment Areas collectively comprise 57,000 acres of effective treatment area.

For more information

Up-to-date information about STA research, enhancement projects and other components of managing and improving the stormwater treatment areas can be found at www.sfwmd.gov/sta.

South Florida Water Management District 3301 Gun Club Road West Palm Beach, Florida 33406 561-686-8800 • 800-432-2045 www.sfwmd.gov

MAILING ADDRESS: P.O. Box 24680 West Palm Beach, FL 33416-4680

For more information on this subject, scan this QR code using a barcode reader app on your smartphone.

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A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q

Florida Count Code: FLSO 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 Total

Circle: STA5-Clewiston L1 Vitambi Miami West East 3B/3A 835 Deer Gate Manley Blumberg Each species

CountDate: 12/29/2018 12:00:00 AM

Species # or cw

Black-bellied Whistling-Duck 47 13 17 77

Fulvous Whistling-Duck

Snow Goose

Wood Duck 2 2

Gadwall

Eurasian Wigeon

American Wigeon 1 3 4

Mallard

Mottled Duck 11 34 45

Blue-winged Teal 14 6 20

Northern Shoveler 8 8

Northern Pintail 30 30

Green-winged Teal (American)

Canvasback

Redhead

Ring-necked Duck 1 24 25

Lesser Scaup

Hooded Merganser

Ruddy Duck

Northern Bobwhite

Wild Turkey 4 4

Pied-billed Grebe 3 1 4

Wood Stork 15 35 64 5 12 8 2 6 1 148

Double-crested Cormorant 22 9 12 28 32 4 1 10 3 121

Anhinga 13 1 17 86 23 5 21 166

American White Pelican 10 61 143 278 9 7 508

American Bittern

Least Bittern

Great Blue Heron (Blue form) 12 3 9 25 34 4 1 2 9 6 105

34

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A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q

Great Blue Heron (White form)

Great Egret 56 3 10 10 35 14 5 1 7 1 36 178

Snowy Egret 12 2 5 12 2 1 6 40

Little Blue Heron 14 1 12 5 10 7 1 1 1 9 6 67

Tricolored Heron 7 4 2 8 1 1 23

Cattle Egret 117 3 17 25 33 45 100 40 16 30 232 658

Green Heron 2 1 8 5 1 1 11 29

Black-crowned Night-Heron 4 6 4 1 15

Yellow-crowned Night-Heron 1 1

White Ibis 18 14 3 11 109 45 6 7 22 35 13 283

Glossy Ibis 21 57 34 32 21 3 168

Roseate Spoonbill 3 2 16 3 24

Black Vulture 18 8 7 6 33 23 4 99

Turkey Vulture 55 14 32 2 24 6 9 3 1 146

Osprey 1 1 1 6 12 4 1 1 4 31

White-tailed Kite 3 3

Snail Kite 2 3 5

Northern Harrier 6 13 4 15 9 2 3 4 56

Sharp-shinned Hawk

Cooper's Hawk 1 1 2

Bald Eagle (#Adult or Immature) 3 3

Red-shouldered Hawk 27 13 8 3 6 12 15 6 8 98

Short-tailed Hawk

Swainson's Hawk

Red-tailed Hawk 2 4 1 5 12

King Rail 1 1

Virginia Rail

Sora 1 1

Purple Gallinule 2 40 5 47

Western Swamphen

Gray-headed Swamphen 7 18 1 26

Common Gallinule 1 37 80 24 142

American Coot 2 532 534

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A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q

Limpkin 8 1 1 1 1 2 5 6 3 28

Sandhill Crane 66 1 9 76

Whooping Crane

Black-necked Stilt 1 1

American Avocet 1 1

Black-bellied Plover

Semipalmated Plover 2 2

Killdeer 38 30 10 6 18 1 39 142

Spotted Sandpiper

Solitary Sandpiper 1 1

Greater Yellowlegs 1 2 1 6 10

Willet

Lesser Yellowlegs 2 8 10

Stilt Sandpiper 10 10

Sanderling

Dunlin 35 35

Least Sandpiper 25 25

Western Sandpiper 75 75

Long-billed Dowitcher 200 150 50 4 404

Wilson's Snipe 1 1 7 2 11

Ring-billed Gull

Herring Gull

Caspian Tern 8 5 18 31

Forster's Tern

Black Skimmer

Eurasian Collared-Dove 12 2 14

Common Ground-Dove 10 4 1 1 22 8 3 2 3 54

White-winged Dove

Mourning Dove 138 5 62 13 5 9 114 174 520

Barn Owl 2 2

Eastern Screech-Owl

Great Horned Owl

Burrowing Owl

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A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q

Barred Owl 2 2

Common Nighthawk

Eastern Whip-poor-will

Ruby-throated Hummingbird 4 4

Belted Kingfisher 1 1 3 8 4 1 2 20

Red-bellied Woodpecker 3 13 2 2 1 21

Yellow-bellied Sapsucker

Downy Woodpecker 1 1

Northern Flicker

Northern Flicker (Yellow-shafted)

Pileated Woodpecker 1 1

Crested Caracara 6 3 2 1 3 2 17

American Kestrel 11 1 18 6 8 5 3 1 2 11 66

Merlin

Peregrine Falcon 2 1 1 1 1 1 7

Eastern Phoebe 15 8 9 11 2 6 4 55

Vermilion Flycatcher

Great Crested Flycatcher 1 3 1 1 1 1 8

Tropical Kingbird 2 2

Cassin's Kingbird

Western Kingbird

Gray Kingbird 0

Scissor-tailed Flycatcher

Loggerhead Shrike 8 1 1 3 3 16

White-eyed Vireo 3 1 1 5

Blue-headed Vireo 1 1

Blue Jay 1 9 3 13

American Crow 10 7 1 18

Northern Rough-winged Swallow 9 18 1000 1027

Purple Martin 0

Tree Swallow 55 167 26 60 75 300 20 46 389 1138

House Wren 7 7

Sedge Wren

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A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q

Marsh Wren

Carolina Wren 1 1

Blue-gray Gnatcatcher 2 21 2 1 10 4 2 9 51

American Robin

Gray Catbird 9 6 7 7 5 2 1 17 54

Northern Mockingbird 3 4 1 5 13

European Starling 2 2

Ovenbird

Northern Waterthrush 1 1

Black-and-white Warbler 5 5

Orange-crowned Warbler

Common Yellowthroat 55 3 15 22 10 1 6 1 56 169

Yellow Warbler 12 12

Palm Warbler 42 7 6 25 10 9 23 122

Pine Warbler 1 1 2

Yellow-rumped Warbler (Myrtle) 5 4 3 11 13 26 62

Yellow-throated Warbler 1 1

Prairie Warbler

Grasshopper Sparrow

Chipping Sparrow

Clay-colored Sparrow

White-crowned Sparrow

White-throated Sparrow

Savannah Sparrow 2 10 25 2 1 3 43

Swamp Sparrow 3 3 2 8

Eastern Towhee 1 1

Northern Cardinal 7 7 2 7 3 1 4 1 2 34

Blue Grosbeak

Indigo Bunting 1 1 1 23 26

Painted Bunting 3 2 5

Dickcissel

Red-winged Blackbird 64 54 21 40 83 10 1 368 641

Eastern Meadowlark 245 1 23 2 21 16 2 3 12 18 343

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A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q

Yellow-headed Blackbird

Common Grackle 35 17 43 5 150 2 1 1 43 297

Boat-tailed Grackle 27 1 20 20 89 35 4 4 60 260

Bronzed Cowbird

Brown-headed Cowbird 40 10 50

American Goldfinch

Total Number reported 1329 403 528 970 1712 2588 303 60 188 289 1673 10043

Species: 106

Great video link on calculating Shannon Diversity Index!

https://youtu.be/ghhZClDRK_g

Please review the supplemental Christmas Bird Count (CBC) Data that has been shared with us

by the Henry Glades Audubon Society. The following are expectations for the Lab Report

Data/Results section:

● As always please refer to report guidelines/example for formatting recommendations.

● Your Data/Result section: Use the CBC spreadsheet for choosing and analyzing

Shannon Diversity Index (SDI) for TWO of the ten sites censused all within STA ⅚

[choose from: L1, Vitambi, Miami, West, East, 3B/3A, Deer, Gate, Manly,

Blumberg]. I expect to see tables (one table for each site) that look similar (same

column headers) to that found in supplemental SDI guide linked here and in your

Canvas Module. Compare the Shannon Value found and try your best at telling me

why they may be different.

● Give me a Site History for the location of this CBC data set in your Intro!

● Delve into STA 5/6 background (invasive species pollution in cells, endangered

species use of STA resources, the function of STAs and how they can be considered a

type of restoration)

● Give me background on what the Christmas Bird Count and Audubon Society

is/are and that will lead you to your Data section. Please refer to the following link

for a source on Audubon history: https://www.audubon.org/about/history-audubon-

and-waterbird-conservation

The CBC is the longest running citizen science bird counting program in the world. A

link to questions on how the CBC is organized and funded can be found on the main

Audubon website link here : https://www.audubon.org/conservation/join-christmas-

bird-count

Restoration Ecology Lab

Shannon Diversity Index ​s H = ∑ - (P​i​ * ln P​i​) ​ i=1 where: H = the Shannon diversity index P​i ​= fraction of the entire population made​ ​up of species i S = numbers of species encountered ∑ = sum from species 1 to species S Note: The power to which the base e (e = 2.718281828.......) must be raised to obtain a number is called the​ natural logarithm​ (ln) of the number. To calculate the index:

1. Divide the number of individuals of species #1 (N​1​) you found in your sample by the total number of individuals of all species. For this exercise, we will use the Christmas Bird Count Data found in supplemental spreadsheet for field trip #3 to STA. This is P​i

2. Multiply the fraction by its natural log (P​1​ * ln P​1​) 3. Repeat this for all of the different species that you have. The last species is

species “s” 4. Sum all the - (P​i​ * ln P​i​) products to get the value of H

For example:

H = 0.223

High values of H would be representative of more diverse communities. A community with only one species would have an H value of 0 because P​i ​would equal 1 and be multiplied by ln P​i ​which would equal zero. If the species are evenly distributed then the H value would be high. So the H value allows us to know not only the number of species but how the abundance of the species is distributed among all the species in the community. For this lab report I want you to calculate the Shannon Diversity Index for TWO sites found in STA 5/6 [choose from: L1, Vitambi, Miami, West, East, 3B/3A, Deer, Gate, Manly, Blumberg]. I will want to see two tables (one for each site) like the above example. Please note that there are many blanks in the data for species that were not observed – I am expecting to see only observed species at each site in the table.

Birds N​i P​i ln P​i - (P​i​ * ln P​i​) Pigeon 96 .96 -.041 .039 Robin 1 .01 -4.61 .046 Starling 1 .01 -4.61 .046 Crow 1 .01 -4.61 .046 House sparrow

1 .01 -4.61 .046