The Indian River Lagoon

Over the last couple of decades, the Indian River Lagoon (IRL) has seen an increasing amount of algal blooms caused by an excess of nutrients, most notably nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P). Algae being “photosynthetic microorganisms that are found in most habitats” (SJRWMD, 2007) and algal blooms being defined as a “rapid increase in the density of algae in an aquatic system... [that is] increased by nutrient pollution” (SJRWMD, 2007). Algae blooms contribute to the continuing loss of marine life in the IRL, including fish, marine mammals, and mangroves. Among other species lost because of algal blooms are sea grass, with some “areas losing up to 95 percent of their coverage.” (University of Florida, 2016). While current algae blooms are greatly
The IRL is a body of water that runs across several counties in east Florida and so it contains a large variety of biodiversity. It is even considered “one of the most species-diverse estuaries in North America” (Lapointe, Herren, Debortoli, & Vogel, 2015). The river itself contains several smaller bodies of water including the Mosquito Lagoon and the Banana River. Throughout the year, the climate of the Indian River ranges from “humid subtropical [to] distinct dry and wet seasons… [with] rainfall within the basin [averaging] 140–150 cm/yr, with 62% falling from June through October” (Lapointe, Herren, Debortoli, & Vogel, 2015). Algae blooms are influenced by a number of factors, climate and rainfall being only two of them. An initial factor that led to today’s regular occurrence of algae blooms is the Drainage Acts of Florida in 1916 which “permitted the creation of canals to drain uplands for agriculture, reduce flooding, and control mosquitos” (Lapointe, Herren, Debortoli, & Vogel, 2015). The Drainage Acts of Florida led to extreme changes in land uses that allowed much of land to be used for commercial and residency purposes. A comparison between the uses of land in 1920 and 2015 showed that “in 1920, only 4% of the land was classified as low-density residential, while 95% of land was forest/grass/pasture and 1% agriculture... [but is] now dominated by urban land uses (39%), followed by agriculture (24%), range (20.8%), wetland (12.1%), and natural forest (4.5%)” (Lapointe, Herren, Debortoli, & Vogel, 2015). Needless to say, dramatic changes in land use led to an increase in population and rapid urbanization in Brevard County. A Florida census showed that only “8,550” (Forestall, 1995) people lived in Brevard County