Middle St. Johns - Florida Department of Environmental Protection

78 Water Quality Assessment Report: Middle St. Johns
Water Quality Improvement Plans and Projects
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.
• Deep Creek Planning Unit
General Description
Covering 175,454 acres (274 square miles), the Deep Creek planning
unit lies within portions of south Volusia, northwestern Brevard, and
northeastern Seminole Counties. Major waterbodies include Lake Ashby
and Lake Harney. Lake Ashby lies north of Lake Harney, and the Lake
Ashby Canal connects the 2 lakes. The Deep Creek and Lake Ashby tributaries
connect to the St. Johns River to the south. Volusia County operates
a park on Lake Ashby that includes camping facilities, picnic areas, and a
boardwalk. The planning unit is largely undeveloped (SJRWMD, 2002a).
Water Quality Summary
Figure 3.4, 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 from 30 monitoring stations were used for
assessment (Appendix F). Table 3.6 summarizes the water quality assessment
status of all waterbody segments in the planning unit.
Of the 25 waterbody segments in the Deep Creek planning unit, 14
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. Eight segments have sufficient data for assessment, and of
these, 4 are verified impaired for at least 1 parameter assessed, 1 remains on
the Planning List, 1 meets the threshold for impairment for DO but not by
a specific pollutant, and 2 meet standards for all parameters assessed.
Listed below are the verified impaired segments in the planning unit
with the parameters for which they are impaired.
St. Johns River Above Lake Jesup DO, nutrients (chlorophyll a)
Deep Creek–Lake Ashby Canal Cadmium, iron, lead, selenium
Lake Winnemissett
Lead
Lake Harney
DO, mercury in fish, nutrients
(trophic state index [TSI])
Other potential impairments in the planning unit include low DO
levels and metals in a couple waterbody segments, coliform bacteria in
Deep Creek–Lake Ashby Canal and mercury in fish tissue as indicated by
fish consumption advisories in the St. Johns River above Lake Jesup.