Middle St. Johns - Florida Department of Environmental Protection

Water Quality Assessment Report: Middle St. Johns 471
LITTLE LAKE FAIRVIEW (3004H)
SILVER LAKE (3004D)
RESPONSE: It should be noted that Lake Fairview (3004B) and Lake Sue (2997I)
are currently only planning listed for nutrients. They do not meet the verification
threshold of the IWR for nutrients. Lakes Osceola North and Osceola South are
currently assessed as not impaired for nutrients. Orange County provided
paleolimnological evidence substantiating that the lakes listed above are regionally
unique and that their condition of low color and high TSI values indicate additional
investigation is warranted. Based on this information water segments 2997F, 2997J,
2997K, 2997M, 2997U, 29975, 3004E, 3004H, 3004N, 3009A, 3009C, 3023B,
3023E, and 3036A1 were retained on the planning list.
26. Long Branch (WBID 3030) is a tributary to the Big Econlockhatchee River Basin. It
provides drainage from the area east of the Big Econlockhatchee River and south of
Bithlo. Long Branch is impaired for iron, dissolved oxygen, and total coliforms.
CDM performed an assessment of the impairment conditions in Long Branch as part
of the Econlockhatchee River Basin Master Plan effort performed for Orange County.
The focus of the assessment was iron, dissolved oxygen, and total coliforms. Based
upon the data compiled for Long Branch, the following can be inferred from the
assessment.
• The Long Branch region has been shown as naturally high in iron content.
• Characteristics of the stream closely follow the characteristics that would
describe a black water creek system. These systems have historically low
dissolved oxygen concentrations.
• A significant amount of land previously used for as pasture for cattle grazing, is
being converted into a recreational use. Thereby, the source of the elevated
coliforms is being eliminated from the creek and the conditions, which have
caused the coliform impairment no longer are representative of the system.
Therefore, site-specific conditions exist in the basin that is not consistent with the
impairment assessment currently listed on the verified list. Recommendation:
Remove the Dissolved Oxygen, Iron and Total Coliform Impairment for Long Branch
from the Verified List [Orange County TMDL Analysis 5 PBS&J 100504.01 July
2003].
RESPONSE: For the Department to remove the iron listing for this segment from
the draft verified list, we would need information which clearly describes the source
of the iron in the stream, such that it could be categorized as a naturally occurring
condition. Other similar investigations conducted by the Department to pinpoint
sources of iron have included ruling out any anthropogenic land uses which might