impacts analysis of the proposed Indian River Lagoon upland impoundment water preserve area (WPA) system on the St. Lucie Estuary in Martin County, Florida

The C-23, C-24, C-44, North St. Lucie, and Tidal St. Lucie drainage basins in southeastern Florida contribute major pollutant-laden discharges to the St. Lucie Estuary. One of the key goals of several of the Indian River Lagoon Restoration Feasibility Study (IRLRFS) project features is to reduce the timing and delivery of freshwater discharges to estuary receiving waters. The WPA option is the most widely accepted feature. This regional water quality improvement system has been mentioned as either the centerpiece, or major part, of the solution to the St. Lucie Estuary discharge problem. As a result, this research effort seeks to predict WPA water quality impacts to the St. Lucie Estuary. The goal is to utilize numerical water quality modeling techniques to arrive at changes in discharge loading quantities of selected parameters that may result from the operation of the WPA system per its preliminary design.