North Indian River Lagoon
The 2024 health assessment for the North Indian River Lagoon is “okay” with variability across the five health indicators. There were clear signs of seagrass coverage improvement within the basin. However, there were a moderate number of wastewater spills with “okay” water quality and harmful algae assessments. No sediment health data are available for the North IRL basin, highlighting a potential for future research.
Harmful Algal Blooms
From August 1, 2023 to August 1, 2024, the North Indian River Lagoon experienced one harmful algal bloom event. The median value of chlorophyll-a concentration in the basin for the year was 11.0 ug/L with an average concentration value of 21.4 ug/L. Overall, the North IRL earned a HAB assessment of “okay”.
Seagrass Coverage
Compared to 2023 seagrass coverage, the North Indian River Lagoon earned a “better” assessment for 2024 coverage due to a significant increase in seagrass in the basin.
Sediment Health
There are no sediment data available for the North Indian River Lagoon. Sediment quality studies are an area where we need to expand research efforts to inform Lagoon health and restoration projects.
Wastewater Spills
From 2023 to 2024, there were 31 wastewater spills that affected the North IRL watershed with four releasing into the Lagoon. All four of those spills (between 800 and 90,000 gallons) released untreated wastewater.
Water Quality
Water quality in the North Indian River Lagoon was “okay” in 2024. The health indicator assessment is based on averaging pH, turbidity, total nitrogen, total phosphorus, dissolved oxygen, and chlorophyll-a values in the basin. The North IRL received a “good” for pH and dissolved oxygen, “okay” for turbidity, total phosphorus, and chlorophyll-a, and “very poor” for total nitrogen.
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