apalachicola riverkeeper the mission of apalachicola riverkeeper is to provide stewardship and...
TRANSCRIPT
Apalachicola Riverkeeper
The Mission of Apalachicola Riverkeeper is to provide stewardship and advocacy for the protection of the Apalachicola River and Bay, its tributaries and watersheds, in order to improve and maintain its environmental integrity
and to preserve the natural, scenic, recreational, and commercial fishing character of these waterways.
Apalachicola-Chattahoochee-Flint
(ACF) River Basin
•19,600 Sq Mi Basin
•Chattahoochee River -Corps operates 5 Federal Reservoirs
•Flint River - Breadbasket of the SE (no federal reservoirs)
Apalachicola-Chattahoochee-Flint
(ACF) River Basin
• Corps Authorized uses:
Hydropower, Flood Control, Navigation, Recreation, Fish & Wildlife, (Atlanta M&I added by Court)
• Other needs met:
Agriculture, M&I, Water Quality, Cooling, Recreation, Apalachicola River, Floodplain and Bay
Apalachicola River, Floodplain and Bay
Largest forested floodplain in Florida (112,000 acres)
Highest Species Diversity of any River System in
North America
UNESCO Biosphere Reserve
Outstanding Florida Water (OFW)
Fishing Sites
Link
ing
Coas
tal W
ater
shed
s to
Fis
herie
s Habitat Linkages – fisheries
Bay ProductivityBay ProductivityHarvestHarvest
$200 million Local Seafood Industry, 90% of Florida Oysters, and 10% of US
oysters, plus shrimp, crab and finfish.
In 1994, Five Million lbs. of Seafood
were produced from the Apalachicola Bay region.
90% of all harvested species must spend some part of their life cycle inshore on the
marsh and seagrass environment, even the grouper caught offshore must rely on
this healthy environment.
Commercial fisheries of Eastern Gulf value to west Florida over $5 Billion
dollars per year
Summary of Major Impacts:DECLINING RIVER STAGE
Reduced flowWoody debris removal
Loss of Fish Habitat and FishReduction of aquatic species
DRYING OUT OF FLOODPLAIN FORESTDecrease in Forests Density
Loss of 4 million treesDisconnected Sloughs
DECLINING SEAFOOD HARVESTRiver flow drives productivity of the Bay and Eastern Gulf
Loss of Nutrients and Organics Increased Salinity, Temperature and Disease
Chain reaction thru Food Chain
Natural Features
of river and floodplain
Point Bar used for
Disposal Site
Cut bank
Slough
Levee
Swamp
Main channel
Forest Types Distributed by Elevation
Floodplain slough
Upland
Swamps
High Bottomland Hardwoods
Main channel
Low Bottomland Hardwoods
River Level Controls Water in Floodplain
Floodplain slough
Upland
Swamps
High Bottomland Hardwoods
Main channel
Low Bottomland Hardwoods
River Level Controls Water in Floodplain
Floodplain slough
Upland
Swamps
High Bottomland Hardwoods
Main channel
Low Bottomland Hardwoods
River Level Controls Water in Floodplain
Floodplain slough
Upland
Swamps
High Bottomland Hardwoods
Main channel
Low Bottomland Hardwoods
River Level Controls Water in Floodplain
Floodplain slough
Upland
Swamps
High Bottomland Hardwoods
Main channel
Low Bottomland Hardwoods
High and Low Water Seasons(before 1954)
Floodplain slough
Upland
Swamps
High Bottomland Hardwoods
Main channel
Low Bottomland Hardwoods
Fall
Summer
Early Spring
Severe drought
Impacts of reduced flow and deeper, wider channel
High water
Impacts of reduced flow and deeper, wider channel
Low water
0
5,000
10,000
15,000
20,000
25,000
30,000
35,000
40,000
45,000
Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec
Flo
w,
in c
ub
ic f
eet
per
sec
on
d2007 Flow in relation to Average Flow
Apalachicola River at Chattahoochee, FL
Average flow 1922-2007
2007 flow
85% of Apalachicola
River fish species
use floodplain
Stagnant conditions develop if sloughs are isolated for long periods
Fish trapped in floodplain will
die if water dries up in
isolated pools
• From the time Crawfish emerge from the ground, they are a major food source for fish, eels, turtles, otter, frogs, snakes, beaver, possum, young alligator, birds, and raccoons.
• High water is the time when aquatic species migrate into the floodplain to spawn and forage.
Crawfish Integral Part of Food Chain
Crawfish Lifecycle
• After foraging above ground to regain weight, crawfish begin to spawn.
• In the mating process, males place a sperm packet on the underside of the female's belly.
Male top; female bottom
Crawfish Lifecycle
• She passes the eggs through the sperm down on to her tail and attaches them to the swimmerets, feathery apertures on the underside of the back section of her body.
• After the sperm packet is placed on the underside of the female crawfish, she curls up her tail and expresses the eggs.
• After being released into water columns by the mothers, babies settle to the bottom and begin to forage and grow.
• In 6-8 weeks they are large enough to catch in baskets.
Crawfish Lifecycle
Summary of Major Impacts:DECLINING RIVER STAGE
Reduced flowWoody debris removal
Loss of Fish Habitat and FishReduction of aquatic species
DRYING OUT OF FLOODPLAIN FORESTDecrease in Forests Density
Loss of 4 million treesDisconnected Sloughs
DECLINING SEAFOOD HARVESTRiver flow drives productivity of the Bay and Eastern Gulf
Loss of Nutrients and Organics Increased Salinity, Temperature and Disease
Chain reaction thru Food Chain