A scientific review panel endorses the Southwest Florida Water Management District’s approach to setting minimum flows and levels (MFLs) for the Middle Peace River.
“This was an important endorsement because the methodologies and science used to develop minimum flows and levels on the Middle Peace River are the same that will be applied to freshwater river segments throughout the District,” said Martin Kelly, manager of the District’s Ecological Evaluation section.
A minimum flow or level is the limit at which further water withdrawals will cause significant harm to the water resources of the area and the related natural environment. The District’s Governing Board sets these limits as part of achieving the delicate balance between meeting human water needs and those of Florida’s natural systems.
According to the panel, the District’s staff collected impressive field data, including identifying two separate benchmark periods, to help determine MFL. A benchmark period is generally viewed as one minimally impacted by man. Benchmarks are used to compare and assess flow changes. Identifying multiple benchmark periods allows the District to consider natural flow differences between periods not affected by man. These considerations assist in developing MFL. In this case, the benchmarks were identified for extended wet and dry periods that last several decades.
The Panel members were Douglas T. Shaw, Ph. D., Clifford N. Dahm, Ph. D. and Stephen W. Golladay, Ph. D. Dr. Shaw was the panel chairman and is currently the Director of Conservation Science for the Florida Chapter of the Nature Conservancy. Dr. Dahm is Professor of Biology at New Mexico State University. Dr. Golladay is a research scientist with Joseph W. Jones Ecological Research Center in Newton, GA.
The panel strongly endorsed several concepts incorporated in the MFL document on the Middle Peace River, namely the identification of two separate benchmark periods; the application of multiple, independent approaches to identify the most protective minimum flows, and the development of minimum flows in terms of allowable percent flow reductions that vary by season and flow conditions.
The panel had no major changes or suggestions; recommending only that District staff continue to refine the concepts used to determine MFLs.
The Governing Board is slated to approve minimum flows for the Middle Peace River System this year. Once the board has approved the minimum flows, they must still go through the rulemaking process. Once the flows are adopted by rule, no withdrawals can be permitted that would cause the MFLs to be violated.
To learn more about Minimum Flows and Levels and the District’s adopted Priority List and Schedule visit the District’s Web site at www.WaterMatters.org/projects.