Mosquito Lagoon is part of the Indian River Lagoon system, North America's most diverse estuary. © John Emerson
Watershed Stats
Size of Basin: 155 square miles
Major Cities and Towns: New Smyrna Beach, Titusville, Cocoa, Rockledge, Merritt Island, Melbourne, Palm Bay, Sebastian, Vero Beach, Cape Canaveral, Cocoa Beach, Satellite Beach, Indian Harbour Beach, Indialantic, and Melbourne Beach
Counties: Fifty percent of the watershed lies within Brevard County, and smaller areas lie within Volusia and Indian River Counties
Major Water Features: Ponce de Leon Inlet, Jupiter Inlet, Mosquito Lagoon, Indian River Lagoon, Banana River, and St. Lucie River and Estuary
Overview
Tidal creek marshes along the Indian River Lagoon provide important habitat for fish and wildlife.
The Indian River Lagoon (IRL) watershed's land features date back to 420,000 years ago, shaped by the rise and fall of the sea. The basin's major waterbodies are three elongated saline lagoons: Mosquito Lagoon, the Indian River Lagoon, and the Banana River. These lagoons separate mainland Florida from a strip of barrier islands that extends north and south of two unique land features, Cape Canaveral and Merritt Island.
The red mangrove is essential to the health of Indian River Lagoon, providing habitat for juvenile fish and stablizing the lagoon shoreline.
The IRL watershed is an important economic and biological resource within Florida. More than 50 percent of the Florida east coast fish catch and historically 90 percent of Florida's clam harvest came from the basin (although clam harvests have declined in recent years). The basin is also an important producer of Florida's Indian River citrus. Biological diversity is high, with more than 4,000 animal and plant species recorded, including 36 rare and endangered animal species.
The IRL is North America's most diverse estuary, with more than 2,200 different species of animals and 2,100 species of plants.
Space exploration and the military have a prominent presence. Kennedy Space Center is located on north Merritt Island. The large tracts of land needed for security and spaceport facilities resulted in the acquisition of 140,000 acres of beaches, dunes, flatwoods, wetlands, and marshes for the Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge. The military maintains bases at Patrick Air Force Base and Cape Canaveral Air Force Base. Much of the industry in the Brevard County portion of the basin provides support for space exploration and military operations.
Growth in the basin, like much of Florida, has accelerated tremendously since the 1950s. The expansion of tourism, the space industry, and agriculture helped fuel growth. Since 1950, the combined population of Volusia, Brevard, and Indian River counties has increased from well under 200,000 people to about one million people. The population continues to grow and is projected to be about 1.4 million in 2020.
Human Impacts
Establishment of the space program at the Kennedy Space Center in the early 1960s led to explosive growth along the Indian River Lagoon, bringing prosperity but also negatively impacting water quality in the lagoon system. © Ian
The settlement of the IRL watershed and surrounding areas in the 1840s led to changes in the hydrology of the IRL system. In 1916, the system received drainage from about 572,000 acres. Today it receives drainage from 1.4 million acres. Much of this expansion was caused by draining parts of the Lake Okeechobee and upper St. Johns River watersheds for agriculture and development and diverting large quantities of fresh water to the IRL Basin via the C-1 and C-54 canals.
The 1916 Drainage Acts of Florida created special taxing districts to promote agriculture and provide flood and drainage control. A large part of the drainage activities performed from 1916 to 1950 modified almost all natural streams and interconnected lagoons within the IRL wateshed through the construction of canals. In addition, increased impervious surface area in the IRL watershed has contributed to increased stormwater runoff to the IRL system. All of these factors act to alter the timing and volume of stormwater releases to the lagoon system. About twice as much freshwater enters the IRL system compared with 100 years ago. A substantial amount of the stormwater volume is discharged in the first few hours after a storm event.
Additional drainage canals were dug to accommodate urban expansion and mosquito control. About 75 percent of the watershed's salt marshes, including those in the southern part of the IRL in Martin and St. Lucie Counties, have been impounded for mosquito control, reducing or eliminating their connection with the open waters of the lagoon system. North of Cape Canaveral, a 140-mile network of drainage ditches was dug specifically for drainage to control mosquitoes.
The waters of the Indian River Lagoon in Brevard County are critical habitat for the endangered Florida manatee . Brevard County also has the highest number of manatee deaths, including the highest number of watercraft-related manatee mortalities, of any county in the State.
The Intracoastal Waterway was built to create a deepwater channel for navigation. The channel is maintained to a depth of 12 feet north of Fort Pierce and 10 feet south of Fort Pierce. The construction and dredging process has changed the way water flows in the lagoon, and dredged material from the channel has been used to create spoil islands.
The construction of various causeways over the lagoon system has narrowed the open-water area, affecting lagoon water circulation, which is sluggish and mostly wind driven. Limited tidal flushing with the Atlantic Ocean and the long, narrow, and shallow nature of the lagoon system makes the lagoon system vulnerable to pollutants.
In recognition of these impacts, DEP, the St. John's River Water Management District (SJRWMD), and local governmental, scientific, educational, and citizen organizations are working to develop strategies for protecting and restoring water quality and quantity in the Indian River Lagoon watershed.
Interesting Facts:
- The IRL is North America's most diverse estuary, with more than 2,200 different species of animals and 2,100 species of plants.
- The IRL has 11 Outstanding Florida Waters (OFWs), including Canaveral National Seashore, Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge, and Archie Carr Wildlife Refuge.
- The IRL varies in width from half a mile to five miles and averages only three feet in depth.
- The IRL serves as a spawning and nursery ground for many different species of oceanic and lagoon fish and shellfish.
- The lagoon also has one of the most diverse bird populations anywhere in America.
- Nearly one-third of the nation's manatee population lives here or migrates through the IRL seasonally.
- The lagoon's ocean beaches provide one of the densest sea turtle-nesting areas found in the western hemisphere.
DEP, the SJRWMD, and local governmental, scientific, educational, and citizen organizations are working on numerous projects to restore and protect the Indian River Lagoon watershed.
Watershed Restoration Program
DEP has implemented a Watershed Restoration Program to identify "impaired" waters, identify sources of pollutants, and develop plans to reduce pollution in rivers, lakes, streams, and estuaries in the IRL Basin.
Additional Information:
DEP TMDL Program Website
DEP IRL Status Report Website
C-1 Rediversion Project
The project will divert the discharge from the Melbourne-Tillman Water Control District's C-1 Canal westward toward the Upper St. Johns River Basin. The project is expected to help Turkey Creek and the IRL meet pollutant load reduction goals (PLRGs) for reductions in nutrients and suspended solids. Other expected benefits include the recovery of 280 acres of seagrass beds, recovery of as much as 3,000 acres of shellfish beds, and reduced erosion of Turkey Creek's bank.
Additional Information:
SJRWMD Fact Sheet (PDF)
SJRWMD Website
Florida-Friendly Landscaping Education
DEP has supported educational efforts to encourage landscape maintenance companies and citizens to adopt Florida-friendly landscaping practices, which minimize use of fertilizers and reduce water consumption.
Additional Information:
Florida-Friendly Landscaping Website
Indian River Lagoon Blueway Program
The Indian River Lagoon Blueway Program-a partnership between the SJRWMD, South Florida Water Management District (SFWMD), county governments, DEP, and The Nature Conservancy-is a purchase program for environmentally sensitive or critical lands. It is loosely based on the greenways concept of connecting critical habitats or sensitive lands through upland corridors; however, in the case of a blueway, these lands are accessible and connected by water. The program has identified over 8,000 acres in about 600 parcels for purchase. Many of the lands identified for acquisition are wetlands and their associated uplands.
Additional Information:
DEP Florida Forever IRL Five-Year Plan (PDF)
The Nature Conservancy IRL Website
Comprehensive Conservation and Management Plan (CCMP)
In 2008, the Indian River Lagoon National Estuary Program (IRLNEP) produced a draft CCMP updating the action items in the 1996 document. Eleven years of implementation activities under the original CCMP have resulted in a remarkable amount of progress toward restoring and protecting the lagoon. However, new issues and threats, including climate change, toxic algae, and exotic invasive fauna and flora, have emerged since the 1990s.
Additional Information:
SJRWMD Draft 2008 CCMP Update (PDF)
Indian River Lagoon National Estuary Program (IRLNEP)
The program was established in 1990. The SJRWMD is responsible for providing staff support and locally administering federal funds. A Comprehensive Conservation and Management Plan (CCMP) for the IRL was completed in 1996 and updated in 2007.
Additional Information:
St. Johns River Water Management District Website
Indian River Lagoon North Feasibility Study
In 2002, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACOE), in cooperation with the SJRWMD, began studying the feasibility of carrying out restoration projects for the northern and southern parts of the IRL in Volusia, Brevard, and Indian River Counties. This activity is part of the overall Comprehensive Everglades Restoration Plan (CERP), which was developed in response to the environmentally undesirable impacts of flood control and drainage improvement activities between the late 1940s and the early 1980s. The major flood control project, the Central & South Florida (C&SF) Project, diverted large quantities of water from the Upper St. Johns Basin to the IRL system. The study will be submitted to Congress in 2008 as part of the reauthorization of the federal Water Resources Development Act.
Additional Information:
CERP IRL North Feasibility Study Website
Indian River Lagoon Surface Water Improvement and Management (SWIM) Plan
The first SWIM plan was prepared and approved in 1989, with subsequent updates in 1994 and 2002. The SJRWMD, which oversees the program, is working with federal, state, and local government and the private sector to restore this damaged ecosystem, prevent pollution from runoff and other sources, and educate the public.
Additional Information:
SJRWMD IRL SWIM Plan Website
Indian River Lagoon Muck Removal
The removal of muck deposits will substantially reduce a source of nutrients and turbidity in the IRL system. The central lagoon is the primary target area, because it contains a large number of muck deposits. The Eau Gallie River and Sebastian River are scheduled for muck dredging by 2010. Earlier muck removal projects in Turkey Creek and Crane Creek have been completed. A 10-year plan has been developed for the environmental maintenance dredging of the Intracoastal Waterway, which contains about 60 to 70 percent of the muck in the IRL Basin.
Additional Information:
SJRWMD Website
National Park and National Wildlife Refuges
About half of the wetlands and a large portion of the open water and uplands in the IRL Basin are under the jurisdiction of the National Park Service and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. In 2001, the National Park Service revised the Canaveral National Seashore Water Resource Management Plan, which directs water-related management and public use activities for a 5- to 10-year period. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is responsible for managing nearly 150,000 acres of national wildlife refuges. Comprehensive Conservation Plans are developed for water and land management in each refuge, and revised every 15 years.
Additional Information:
Archie Carr National Wildlife Refuge Website
Canaveral National Seashore Website
Merritt Island Wildlife Refuge Website
Special Districts and Florida Inland Navigation District
Water Control
Also known as Chapter 298 drainage districts, water control districts are special taxing entities created in 1916 by the Florida Legislature to promote agriculture. There are five active water control districts in the IRL Basin: Melbourne-Tillman, Fellsmere, Vero Lakes, Sebastian River, and Indian River Farms. The districts constructed and continue to maintain networks of drainage canals built largely to drain land for agricultural production. They are working with the SJRWMD, SFWMD, and USACOE to reduce the quantity and improve the quality of stormwater discharges.
Mosquito Control
A large part of the IRL Basin would be inhabitable without mosquito control. In 1926, the Indian River Mosquito Control District was the first district created by the Florida Legislature. Responsibility for mosquito abatement in the basin currently rests with Volusia County Mosquito Control, Indian River Mosquito Control District, and Brevard County Mosquito Control. Before the 1950s, control methods were based on ditching and draining of wetlands and spraying. From the 1950s to the 1970s, close to 75 percent of the coastal wetlands in the IRL Basin were impounded for mosquito control, since the salt marsh mosquito will not lay eggs directly on water.
Florida Inland Navigation District (FIND)
The Florida Legislature created the Florida Inland Navigation District (FIND) in 1927, spurred by the passage of the 1927 federal River and Harbor Act, which authorized the establishment and maintenance of an inland waterway starting in Jacksonville. FIND sponsors maintenance dredging of the Intracoastal Waterway along Florida's coast. It develops dredging plans, acquires and prepares sites for dredge spoil, and generally engages in activities that enhance navigation. FIND is partnering with the SJRWMD, SFWMD, and USACOE to provide cost-sharing and technical assistance with muck removal projects.
Additional Information:
Florida Inland Navigation District
Florida Mosquito Control Association
Florida-Friendly Landscaping Education
DEP has supported educational efforts to encourage landscape maintenance companies and citizens to adopt Florida-friendly landscaping practices, which minimize use of fertilizers and reduce water consumption.
Additional Information:
Florida-Friendly Landscaping Website
Video and Multimedia
