Middle St. Johns - Florida Department of Environmental Protection

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Water Quality Assessment Report: Middle St. Johns
the 1970s. The pond’s appearance will be improved by flattening its
side slopes, eliminating fencing, and providing new landscape plantings
(URS, 2001).
The second project is the Thompson–Mathis Retention Area Expansion.
Additional land was acquired to expand the existing pond by
approximately two acres to provide water quantity and water quality
benefits. Appendix C summarizes restoration and protection efforts in the
basin, by planning unit.
Waters will not be placed on the Verified List if the Department
receives reasonable assurance that existing or proposed projects and/or programs
are expected to result in the attainment of water quality standards or
consistently improve water quality over time. Chapter 4 and Appendix D
contain additional information on the requirements for reasonable
assurance.
For this planning unit, no management plans or projects complying
with the Department’s guidance for reasonable assurance have been provided
for the 2002 list of impaired waters.
• Wekiva River Planning Unit
General Description
The Wekiva River planning unit, within portions of Orange, Seminole,
Lake, and Marion Counties, drains 240,123 acres (more than
376 square miles) and contains both spring-fed and blackwater streams.
Major tributaries include the Little Wekiva River, Rock Springs Run, and
Blackwater Creek (SJRWMD, 2002a).
The Wekiva and Little Wekiva Rivers, upstream of S.R. 434, are
designated as OFWs. The federal government has classified segments of
the Wekiva River as a Wild and Scenic River and the state as a Scenic and
Wild River. As specified by Florida’s 1988 Wekiva River Protection Act,
the Wekiva River also has special criteria for Environmental Resource
Permits (ERP), which are regulated by the SJRWMD. The act also
required local governments to amend comprehensive planning policy and
land development regulations to protect habitat and prevent wetland losses.
Water Quality Summary
Figure 3.11, a composite map of the planning unit, shows waters on
the 1998 303(d) list, the Planning List and Verified List, and potential
pollution sources. Water quality data collected from 209 sampling stations
were used for assessment (Appendix F).
Table 3.13 summarizes the water quality assessment status of all waterbody
segments in the planning unit.
Of the 100 waterbody segments in the Wekiva River planning unit, 67
have at least some type of data in the planning and/or verification periods,
but in many cases the data are insufficient for assessment of segments under
the IWR. Fifty-nine segments have sufficient data for assessment, and of
these, 15 are verified impaired for at least 1 parameter assessed, 1 meets the
impairment threshold for DO but not by a specific pollutant, 19 remain on
the Planning List as only potentially impaired, and 23 meet standards for
all parameters assessed.