Perdido River and Bay - Florida Department of Environmental ...

Water Quality Status Report: Perdido River and Bay
9
Executive Summary
Perdido River and Bay
The Water Quality Status Report for the Perdido River and Bay Basin
is developed in the first phase of the Florida Department of Environmental
Protection’s (Department’s) watershed management approach for restoring
and protecting water resources and addressing Total Maximum Daily
Load (TMDL) Program requirements. A TMDL represents the maximum
amount of a given pollutant that a waterbody can assimilate and
meet the waterbody’s designated uses. A waterbody that does not meet its
designated uses is defined as impaired. The watershed approach, which is
implemented using a cyclical management process, provides a framework
for implementing the requirements of the federal Clean Water Act and the
1999 Florida Watershed Restoration Act (FWRA) (Chapter 99-223, Laws
of Florida).
This Status Report provides a preliminary identification of impaired
waters in the Perdido River and Bay Basin that may require the development
and implementation of TMDLs, unless the impairment is documented
to be a naturally occurring condition that cannot be abated by a
TMDL, or unless a management plan that is already in place is expected
to correct the problem. Perdido River and Bay are interstate waters that
form the boundary between Alabama and Florida. The state line bisects
the middle of the river and bay. The focus of this report is on waterbodies
located within the state of Florida, where Florida water quality standards
and criteria can be applied to identify impaired waterbodies. A similar but
independent process also occurs in Alabama to identify impaired waters
requiring TMDLs.
This preliminary assessment, based on readily available data, will be
revised as additional data are evaluated. The report broadly characterizes
the basin’s setting and its surface water and ground water resources, permitted
discharges, land uses, and ecological status. It also identifies potential
surface water quality concerns and water quality monitoring needs, and
summarizes plans and projects that are under way or projected to improve
water quality. Tables 3.4 and 3.5 in Chapter 3 present the results of the
water quality assessment for each waterbody. Table 5.1 in Chapter 5
presents the current Planning List of potentially impaired waterbodies. The
report also provides the results of a preliminary ground water quality assessment
and discusses priorities for further evaluation, resource priorities, and
proposed actions. See Noteworthy in Chapter 1 for a description of the
contents of this report, by chapter.
In the Perdido River and Bay Basin, state, federal, regional, local governments,
and nongovernmental organizations are making progress towards
identifying problems and improving water quality. Through its watershed
management activities, the Department works with these entities to support
programs that are improving water quality and restoring and protecting
ecological resources. The Department’s TMDL Program objectives will be