Upper Lemon Bay Condition Report for 2014

Caution

2 out of 3 indicators were rated as PASS.

All three indicators must pass for the bay to be rated as PASS.

Learn more about how this report is created

Summary:

The health of Upper Lemon Bay improved markedly in 2014. Chlorophyll a concentration was significantly lower, and the mean concentration of phosphorus also diminished somewhat. Although nitrogen concentration increased and is still in the “Caution” range, it was a very slight rise, and the trend line for nitrogen is much flatter than in 2014, indicating a lessening of the seasonal increase typical in late summer/fall.

Water Quality: The rating for chlorophyll a was upgraded from “Caution” to “Good”, with the mean concentration of 0.0088 mg/l coming in just below the threshold of 0.0089 mg/l. Mean nitrogen concentration increased slightly, to 0.6455 mg/l, well above the threshold of 0.540 mg/l. Mean phosophorus concentration was slightly lower, and at 0.1323 mg/l is “Excellent”, roughly half the threshold concentration. The mean for chlorophyll a was calculated as an arithmetic mean and the means for nitrogen and phosphorus were calculated as geometric means (per the Numeric Nutrient Criteria outlined in the Florida Administrative Code, section 62-302.532).

Biotic Indicator: Measurement of the biotic indicator, seagrass, was performed in 2014 by the Southwest Florida Water Management District. Between 2012 to 2014, seagrass coverage in Lemon Bay (including both the Upper and Lower segments) increased from 3,727 to 3,913 acres, exceeding the combined target value of 3,890 acres. Upper Lemon Bay was not surveyed separately, but has a target level of 1,010 acres.

Upper Lemon Bay

Upper Lemon Bay
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Water Chemistry Ratings

Total nitrogen, total phosphorus, and chlorophyll a levels are monitored carefully by water resource managers and used by regulatory authorities to determine whether a bay meets the water quality standards mandated by the Clean Water Act. The trend graphs for these indicators are shown below, along with their target and threshold values. A target value is a desirable goal to be attained, while a threshold is an undesirable level which is to be avoided. An individual indicator receives an "Excellent" rating if its mean value is below the target, a "Good" rating if its mean value is above the target but does not exceed the threshold, and a "Caution" rating if the mean value exceeds the threshold. Learn More about these ratings and how they are calculated »

The charts below illustrate the general trend of water quality parameters. They show a six-month running average, which moderates high and low values in the data.

Chart Legend
  • Six-month Moving Average
  • Annual Mean
  • Target
  • Threshold
Good

Chlorophyll a

Units: ug/l Year
2014		 Historical
period of record
High 34.98 88.00
Mean 8.80 9.14 8.91926 6.7000000000
Low 1.58 0.37
No. of Samples 95 1473
  • Six-month
    Moving Average
  • Annual
    Mean
Caution

Nitrogen, Total

Score: Caution How was this determined?
Units: mg/l Year
2014		 Historical
period of record
High 1.120 2.800
Mean 0.646 0.27915062 0.5200000000
Low 0.405 0.000
No. of Samples 95 1467
  • Six-month
    Moving Average
  • Annual
    Mean
Excellent

Phosphorus, Total

Score: Excellent How was this determined?
Units: mg/l Year
2014		 Historical
period of record
High 0.230 0.880
Mean 0.126 0.175 0.09589482 0.2200000000
Low 0.050 0.050
No. of Samples 72 1150
  • Six-month
    Moving Average
  • Annual
    Mean

Dissolved Oxygen

Units: mg/l Year
2014		 Historical
period of record
High 8.20 12.00
Mean 5.39 6.04 1.58907 0.0000000000
Low 1.20 1.20
No. of Samples 71 2933
  • Six-month
    Moving Average
  • Annual
    Mean

Apparent Color

Units: PCU Year
2014		 Historical
period of record
High 140.00 280.00
Mean 28.35 31.25 28.27628
Low 5.00 5.00
No. of Samples 72 1149
  • Six-month
    Moving Average
  • Annual
    Mean

BOD, Biochemical oxygen demand

Units: mg/l Year
2014		 Historical
period of record
High 4.00 7.60
Mean 1.26 1.77 1.14481
Low 0.50 0.50
No. of Samples 72 1007
  • Six-month
    Moving Average
  • Annual
    Mean

Dissolved oxygen saturation

Units: percent (%) Year
2014		 Historical
period of record
High 113.00 180.07
Mean 81.08 89.27 19.68406
Low 42.00 21.60
No. of Samples 60 2604
  • Six-month
    Moving Average
  • Annual
    Mean

Karenia brevis ("red tide")

Units: #/l Year
2014		 Historical
period of record
High 1000.00 4480000.00
Mean 1000.00 30276.23 261908.48583
Low 1000.00 1000.00
No. of Samples 72 648
  • Six-month
    Moving Average
  • Annual
    Mean

Light Attenuation

Units: K(1/m) Year
2014		 Historical
period of record
High 2.78 3.85
Mean 1.01 1.09 0.51747 0.0000000000
Low 0.50 0.16
No. of Samples 60 986
  • Six-month
    Moving Average
  • Annual
    Mean

Nitrogen, Ammonia + Ammonium as N

Units: ug/l Year
2014		 Historical
period of record
High 244.00 359.00
Mean 35.85 26.49 36.31722
Low 5.00 5.00
No. of Samples 72 1151
  • Six-month
    Moving Average
  • Annual
    Mean

Nitrogen, Kjeldahl

Units: ug/l Year
2014		 Historical
period of record
High 1100.00 1330.00
Mean 632.50 546.65 204.22806
Low 400.00 0.05
No. of Samples 72 1150
  • Six-month
    Moving Average
  • Annual
    Mean

Nitrogen, Nitrite + Nitrate as N

Units: ug/l Year
2014		 Historical
period of record
High 80.00 130.00
Mean 11.15 9.08 11.22587
Low 5.00 5.00
No. of Samples 72 1581
  • Six-month
    Moving Average
  • Annual
    Mean

pH

Units: None Year
2014		 Historical
period of record
High 8.50 8.90
Mean 7.87 7.97 0.33057
Low 7.40 4.80
No. of Samples 66 2258
  • Six-month
    Moving Average
  • Annual
    Mean

Salinity

Units: PSS Year
2014		 Historical
period of record
High 35.00 41.50
Mean 29.50 29.96 5.2234
Low 3.30 3.20
No. of Samples 80 3239
  • Six-month
    Moving Average
  • Annual
    Mean

Specific conductance

Units: umho Year
2014		 Historical
period of record
High 52730.00 60590.00
Mean 45691.17 46142.05 7954.5674
Low 27580.00 5800.00
No. of Samples 60 1183
  • Six-month
    Moving Average
  • Annual
    Mean

Temperature, water

Units: deg F Year
2014		 Historical
period of record
High 89.78 93.02
Mean 78.15 77.73 8.87408
Low 65.30 46.76
No. of Samples 72 2974
  • Six-month
    Moving Average
  • Annual
    Mean

Turbidity

Units: NTU Year
2014		 Historical
period of record
High 6.50 66.00
Mean 2.99 2.96 2.08802
Low 1.00 0.21
No. of Samples 95 2718
  • Six-month
    Moving Average
  • Annual
    Mean

Annual Averages

Indicator Units 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 Trend
Dissolved Oxygen mg/l 6.45 5.10 5.76 6.28 5.39
Dissolved oxygen saturation percent (%) 75.50 74.97 90.43 91.86 81.08
Light Attenuation K(1/m) 1.07 1.08 1.18 1.32 1.01
Salinity PSS 28.87 30.70 32.84 27.65 29.50
Turbidity NTU 3.69 2.81 4.60 3.29 2.99

Other Measures of Bay Health

In addition to nutrient levels and chlorophyll concentration, dissolved oxygen levels, and water clarity are also objective indicators of bay health. These have complex interactive cycles which are affected by rainfall, temperature, and tidal action, as well as other factors. High nutrient levels (nitrogen and phosphorus) can stimulate excessive growth of marine algae (indicated by chlorophyll a level), resulting in reduced water clarity (and increased light attenuation) and depleted oxygen levels. Both plants and animals in a bay need oxygen to survive, and the seagrasses which provide food and cover for bay creatures need light for photosynthesis.

Bay Contour Maps (2014)

Contour mapping is one of the best ways to visualize spatial differences in coastal water quality. The interactive map shown below presents monthly data for one selected water quality indicator atop an aerial view of the bay. Choose a different water quality parameter from the list at the top to change the map. Learn More about Water Quality Contour Mapping »

Showing 2014 Monthly Contour Maps for: January
Loading interactive contour map viewer...
Contour Visibility:

Visit the Water Quality Contour Mapping Tool to view and compare monthly water quality contour maps for ten different water quality indicators. In addition, you can generate your own custom maps.

Contour Legend:

  • Less than 1 ug/l
  • 1.0 - 5.9 ug/l
  • 6.0 - 10.9 ug/l
  • 11.0 - 17.9 ug/l
  • Greater than 18 ug/l

Seagrasses

Among the most important habitats in Florida's estuarine environments, seagrass beds are indispensable for the role they play in cycling nutrients, supplying food for wildlife, stabilizing sediments, and providing habitat for juvenile and adult finfish and shellfish. Use the interactive map below to observe the size, density and location of seagrass beds from year to year. The graph shows how the total amount of seagrass in the bay has changed over time. Seagrass calculations are aggregates of patchy and continuous seagrass measurements only. Recordings of attached algae are not included in these summaries.
Learn More about Seagrasses »

Showing Seagrass Coverage for :
Loading interactive seagrass coverage viewer...
Loading interactive chart...
  • Target 1,010 acres

Visit our Seagrass page to discover the beauty and importance of seagrass habitats, and sign up to help monitor their health.

Impervious Features

Upper Lemon Bay is located within the Lemon Bay Watershed. View details about the Lemon Bay Watershed »

Rain that falls on land that is in a natural state is absorbed and filtered by soils and vegetation as it makes it way into underground aquifers. However, in developed areas, "impervious surfaces" impede this process and contribute to polluted urban runoff entering surface waters. These surfaces include human infrastructure like roads, sidewalks, driveways and parking lots that are covered by impenetrable materials such as asphalt, concrete, brick and stone, as well as buildings and other permanent structures. Soils that have been disturbed and compacted by urban development are often impervious as well. Learn more about Impervious Features »

The Sarasota County Stormwater Environmental Utility (SEU) mapped impervious surfaces in the County in 2014. A map showing impervious surfaces can be viewed using the interactive Sarasota NPDES Viewer.

10% of the land area within the Lemon Bay Watershed is covered by impervious surfaces

Impervious Surface Coverage by Type

Land Use / Land Cover

Land use within a bay's watershed has a major effect on its water quality. In general, less development means better water quality. Land Cover/Land Use classifications categorize land in terms of its observed physical surface characteristics (upland or wetland, e.g.), and also reflect the types of activity that are taking place on it (agriculture, urban/built-up, utilities, etc.). Florida uses as its standard a set of statewide classifications which were developed by the Florida Department of Transportation. Learn More about Land Use and Land Cover »

Upper Lemon Bay is located within the Lemon Bay Watershed. The chart below shows the land use / land cover characteristics for Lemon Bay Watershed within the boundary of this Water Atlas. View details about the Lemon Bay Watershed »

Acreage and Percentage within each Land Use / Land Cover Category for Lemon Bay Watershed
Land Use Classification 1990 2005 2011 2014 2017 2020 Trend
Urban & Built-up 11,33133.6% 12,87238.2% 13,58940.4% 13,58940.4% 14,05041.7% 22,46747.1%
Agriculture 2,5157.5% 2,3256.9% 2,2556.7% 2,2556.7% 2,0756.2% 2,0234.2%
Rangeland 2,2096.6% 4,47913.3% 4,11512.2% 4,11512.2% 3,66210.9% 3,5447.4%
Upland Forests 9,36027.8% 5,63716.7% 5,10915.2% 5,10915.2% 5,23115.5% 6,16812.9%
Water 3,1049.2% 3,43710.2% 3,50110.4% 3,50110.4% 3,58610.6% 7,28415.3%
Wetlands 4,68913.9% 4,26512.7% 4,37513% 4,37513% 4,35512.9% 5,14410.8%
Barren Land 290.1% 00% 00% 00% 00% 60%
Transportation and Utilities 4431.3% 6551.9% 7262.2% 7262.2% 7232.1% 1,0712.2%
Land Use Chart

Data Sources

The data sources listed below provided water quality data used to create the report on this page. Not all data sources provided data for every bay, and not every Bay Conditions Report used data from all listed data sources. While some data sources have no data for the scored year, they provided period-of-record (historical high, mean, low) data. Click on a data source name to review its metadata.