National Academies Press: OpenBook

Progress Toward Restoring the Everglades: The Fourth Biennial Review, 2012 (2012)

Chapter: Appendix A: National Research Council Everglades Reports

« Previous: Acronyms
Suggested Citation:"Appendix A: National Research Council Everglades Reports." National Research Council. 2012. Progress Toward Restoring the Everglades: The Fourth Biennial Review, 2012. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/13422.
×

Appendix A

National Research Council Everglades Reports

Progress Toward Restoring the Everglades: The Third Biennial Review, 2010 (2010)

This report is the third biennial evaluation of progress being made in the Comprehensive Everglades Restoration Plan (CERP), a multi-billion dollar effort to restore historical water flows to the Everglades and return the ecosystem closer to its natural state. The report finds that while natural system restoration progress from the CERP remains slow, in the past two years, there have been noteworthy improvements in the pace of implementation and in the relationship between the federal and state partners. Continued public support and political commitment to long-term funding will be needed for the restoration plan to be completed. The science program continues to address important issues, but more transparent mechanisms for integrating science into decision making are needed. Despite such progress, several important challenges related to water quality and water quantity have become increasingly clear, highlighting the difficulty of achieving restoration goals simultaneously for all ecosystem components. Achieving these goals will be enormously costly and will take decades at least. Rigorous scientific analyses of potential conflicts among the hydrologic requirements of Everglades landscape features and species, and the tradeoffs between water quality and quantity, considering timescales of reversibility, are needed to inform future prioritization and funding decisions. Understanding and communicating these tradeoffs to stakeholders are critical.

Progress Toward Restoring the Everglades: The Second Biennial Review, 2008 (2008)

This report is the second biennial evaluation of progress being made in the Comprehensive Everglades Restoration Plan (CERP), a multi-billion dollar effort to restore historical water flows to the Everglades and return the ecosystem closer

Suggested Citation:"Appendix A: National Research Council Everglades Reports." National Research Council. 2012. Progress Toward Restoring the Everglades: The Fourth Biennial Review, 2012. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/13422.
×

to its natural state. Launched in 2000 by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the South Florida Water Management District, the CERP is a multi-organization planning process that includes approximately 50 major projects to be completed over the next several decades. The report concludes that budgeting, planning, and procedural matters are hindering a federal and state effort to restore the Florida Everglades ecosystem, which is making only scant progress toward achieving its goals. Good science has been developed to support restoration efforts, but future progress is likely to be limited by the availability of funding and current authorization mechanisms. Despite the accomplishments that lay the foundation for CERP construction, no CERP projects have been completed to date. To begin reversing decades of decline, managers should address complex planning issues and move forward with projects that have the most potential to restore the natural ecosystem.

Progress Toward Restoring the Everglades: The First Biennial Review, 2006 (2007)

This report is the first in a congressionally mandated series of biennial evaluations of the progress being made by the CERP, a multi-billion dollar effort to restore historical water flows to the Everglades and return the ecosystem closer to its natural state, before it was transformed by drainage and by urban and agricultural development. The report finds that progress has been made in developing the scientific basis and management structures needed to support a massive effort to restore the Florida Everglades ecosystem. However, some important projects have been delayed because of several factors including budgetary restrictions and a project planning process that can be stalled by unresolved scientific uncertainties. The report outlines an alternative approach that can help the initiative move forward even as it resolves remaining scientific uncertainties. The report calls for a boost in the rate of federal spending if the restoration of Everglades National Park and other projects are to be completed on schedule.

Re-engineering Water Storage in the Everglades: Risks and Opportunities (2005)

This report reviews and evaluates not only storage options included in the plan, but also other options not considered in the plan. Along with providing hydrologic and ecological analyses of the size, location, and functioning of water storage components, the report also discusses and makes recommendations on related critical factors, such as timing of land acquisition, intermediate states of restoration, and tradeoffs among competing goals and ecosystem objectives.

There is a considerable range in the degree to which various proposed

Suggested Citation:"Appendix A: National Research Council Everglades Reports." National Research Council. 2012. Progress Toward Restoring the Everglades: The Fourth Biennial Review, 2012. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/13422.
×

storage components involve complex design and construction measures, rely on active controls and frequent equipment maintenance, and require fossil fuels or other energy sources for operation. The report recommends that, to the extent possible, the CERP should develop storage components that have fewer of those requirements, and are thus less vulnerable to failure and more likely to be sustainable in the long term.

The CERP imposes some constraints on sequencing of its components. The report concludes that two criteria are most important in deciding how to sequence components of such a restoration project: (1) protecting against additional habitat loss by acquiring or protecting critical lands in and around the Everglades and (2) providing ecological benefits as early as possible. The report recommends that methods be developed to allow tradeoffs to be assessed over broad spatial and long temporal scales, especially for the entire ecosystem, and gives an example of what an overall performance indicator for the Everglades system might look like.

Adaptive Monitoring and Assessment for the Comprehensive Everglades Restoration Plan (2003)

A key premise of the CERP is that restoring the historical hydrologic regime in the remaining wetlands will reverse declines in many native species and biological communities. Given the uncertainties that will attend future responses of Everglades ecosystems to restored water regimes, a research, monitoring, and adaptive management program is planned. This report assesses the extent to which the restoration effort’s “monitoring and assessment plan” included the following elements crucial to any adaptive management scheme: (1) clear restoration goals and targets, (2) a sound baseline description and conceptualization of the system, (3) an effective process for learning from management actions, and (4) feedback mechanisms for improving management based on the learning process.

The report concludes that monitoring needs must be prioritized, because many goals and targets that have been agreed to may not be achievable or internally consistent. Priorities could be established based on the degree of flexibility or reversibility of a component and its potential impact on future management decisions. Monitoring that meets multiple objectives (e.g., adaptive management, regulatory compliance, and a “report card”) should be given priority. Ecosystem-level, systemwide indicators should be developed, such as land-cover and land-use measures, an index of biotic integrity, and diversity measures. Region-wide monitoring of human and environmental drivers of the ecosystem, especially population growth, land-use change, water demand, and sea level rise are recommended.

Suggested Citation:"Appendix A: National Research Council Everglades Reports." National Research Council. 2012. Progress Toward Restoring the Everglades: The Fourth Biennial Review, 2012. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/13422.
×

Does Water Flow Influence Everglades Landscape Patterns? (2003)

A commonly stated goal of the CERP is to “get the water right.” This has largely meant restoring the timing and duration of water levels and the water quality in the Everglades. Water flow (speed, discharge, direction) has been considered mainly in the coastal and estuarine system, but not elsewhere. Should the restoration plan be setting targets for flows in other parts of the Everglades as well?

There are legitimate reasons why flow velocities and discharges have thus far not received greater emphasis in the plan. These include a relative lack of field information and poor resolution of numerical models for flows. There are, however, compelling reasons to believe that flow has important influences in the central Everglades ecosystem. The most important reason is the existence of major, ecologically important landforms—parallel ridges, sloughs, and “tree islands”—are aligned with present and inferred past flow directions. There are difficulties in interpreting this evidence, however, as it is essentially circumstantial and not quantitative.

Alternative mechanisms by which flow may influence this landscape can to some extent be evaluated from short-term research on underlying bedrock topography, detailed surface topographic mapping, and accumulation rates of suspended organic matter. Nonetheless, more extensive and long-term research will also be necessary, beginning with the development of alternative conceptual models of the formation and maintenance of the landscape to guide a research program. Research on maintenance rather than evolution of the landscape should have higher priority because of its direct impact on restoration. Monitoring should be designed for the full range of flow conditions, including extreme events.

Overall, flows approximating historical discharges, velocities, timing, and distribution should be considered in restoration design, but quantitative flow-related performance measures are not appropriate until there is a better scientific understanding of the underlying science. At present, neither a minimum nor a maximum flow to preserve the landscape can be established.

Florida Bay Research Programs and Their Relation to the Comprehensive Everglades Restoration Plan (2002)

This report of the Committee on Restoration of the Greater Everglades Ecosystem (CROGEE) evaluated Florida Bay studies and restoration activities that potentially affect the success of the CERP. Florida Bay is a large, shallow marine system immediately south of the Everglades, bounded by the Florida Keys and the Gulf of Mexico. Some of the water draining from the Everglades flows directly

Suggested Citation:"Appendix A: National Research Council Everglades Reports." National Research Council. 2012. Progress Toward Restoring the Everglades: The Fourth Biennial Review, 2012. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/13422.
×

into northeast Florida Bay. Other freshwater drainage reaches the bay indirectly from the northwest.

For several decades until the late 1980s, clear water and dense seagrass meadows characterized most of Florida Bay. However, beginning around 1987, the seagrass beds began dying in the western and central bay. It is often assumed that increased flows to restore freshwater Everglades habitats will also help restoration of Florida Bay. However, the CERP may actually result in higher salinities in central Florida Bay than exist presently, and thus exacerbate the ecological problems. Further, some percentage of the proposed increase in fresh surface-water flow discharging northwest of the bay will eventually reach the central bay, where its dissolved organic nitrogen may lead to algal blooms. Complicating the analysis of such issues is the lack of an operational bay circulation model.

The report notes the importance of additional research in the following areas: estimates of groundwater discharge to the bay; full characterization and quantification of surface runoff in major basins; transport and total loads of nitrogen and phosphorous from freshwater sources, especially in their organic forms; effects on nutrient fluxes of decreasing freshwater flows into the northeastern bay, and of increasing flows northwest of the bay; and the development of an operational Florida Bay circulation model to support a bay water quality model and facilitate analysis of CERP effects on the bay.

Science and the Greater Everglades Ecosystem Restoration: An Assessment of the Critical Ecosystems Study Initiative (2003)

The Everglades represents a unique ecological treasure, and a diverse group of organizations is currently working to reverse the effects of nearly a century of wetland drainage and impoundment. The path to restoration will not be easy, but sound scientific information will increase the reliability of the restoration, help enable solutions for unanticipated problems, and potentially reduce long-term costs. The investment in scientific research relevant to restoration, however, decreased substantially within some agencies, including one major Department of the Interior (DOI) science program, the Critical Ecosystem Studies Initiative (CESI). In response to concerns regarding declining levels of funding for scientific research and the adequacy of science-based support for restoration decision making, the U.S. Congress instructed the DOI to commission the National Academy of Sciences to review the scientific component of the CESI and provide recommendations for program management, strategic planning, and information dissemination.

Although improvements should be made, this report notes that the CESI has contributed useful science in support of the DOI’s resource stewardship interests and restoration responsibilities in South Florida. It recommends that the funda-

Suggested Citation:"Appendix A: National Research Council Everglades Reports." National Research Council. 2012. Progress Toward Restoring the Everglades: The Fourth Biennial Review, 2012. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/13422.
×

mental objectives of the CESI research program remain intact, with continued commitment to ecosystem research. Several improvements in CESI management are suggested, including broadening the distribution of requests for proposals and improving review standards for proposals and research products. The report asserts that funding for CESI science has been inconsistent and as of 2002 was less than that needed to support the DOI’s interests in and responsibilities for restoration. The development of a mechanism for comprehensive restoration-wide science coordination and synthesis is recommended to enable improved integration of scientific findings into restoration planning.

Regional Issues in Aquifer Storage and Recovery for Everglades Restoration: A Review of the ASR Regional Study Project Management Plan of the Comprehensive Everglades Restoration Plan (2002)

The report reviews a comprehensive research plan on Everglades restoration drafted by federal and Florida officials that assesses a central feature of the restoration: a proposal to drill more than 300 wells funneling up to 1.7 billion gallons of water a day into underground aquifers, where it would be stored and then pumped back to the surface to replenish the Everglades during dry periods. The report says that the research plan goes a long way to providing information needed to settle remaining technical questions and clearly responds to suggestions offered by scientists in Florida and in a previous report by the NRC.

Aquifer Storage and Recovery in the Comprehensive Everglades Restoration Plan: A Critique of the Pilot Projects and Related Plans for ASR in the Lake Okeechobee and Western Hillsboro Areas (2001)

Aquifer storage and recovery (ASR) is a major component in the CERP, which was developed by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) and the South Florida Water Management District (SFWMD). The plan would use the upper Floridian aquifer to store large quantities of surface water and shallow groundwater during wet periods for recovery during droughts.

ASR may limit evaporation losses and permit recovery of large volumes of water during multi-year droughts. However, the proposed scale is unprecedented and little subsurface information has been compiled. Key unknowns include impacts on existing aquifer uses, suitability of source waters for recharge, and environmental and/or human health impacts due to water quality changes during subsurface storage.

To address these issues, the USACE and SFWMD proposed aquifer storage recharge pilot projects in two key areas. The CROGEE charge was to examine a draft of their plans from a perspective of adaptive management. The report

Suggested Citation:"Appendix A: National Research Council Everglades Reports." National Research Council. 2012. Progress Toward Restoring the Everglades: The Fourth Biennial Review, 2012. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/13422.
×

concludes that regional hydrogeologic assessment should include development of a regional-scale groundwater flow model, extensive well drilling and water quality sampling, and a multi-objective approach to ASR facility siting. It also recommends that water quality studies include laboratory and field bioassays and ecotoxicological studies, studies to characterize organic carbon of the source water and anticipate its effects on subsurface biogeochemical processes, and laboratory studies. Finally, it recommends that pilot projects be part of adaptive assessment.

Suggested Citation:"Appendix A: National Research Council Everglades Reports." National Research Council. 2012. Progress Toward Restoring the Everglades: The Fourth Biennial Review, 2012. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/13422.
×

This page intentionally left blank.

Suggested Citation:"Appendix A: National Research Council Everglades Reports." National Research Council. 2012. Progress Toward Restoring the Everglades: The Fourth Biennial Review, 2012. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/13422.
×
Page 197
Suggested Citation:"Appendix A: National Research Council Everglades Reports." National Research Council. 2012. Progress Toward Restoring the Everglades: The Fourth Biennial Review, 2012. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/13422.
×
Page 198
Suggested Citation:"Appendix A: National Research Council Everglades Reports." National Research Council. 2012. Progress Toward Restoring the Everglades: The Fourth Biennial Review, 2012. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/13422.
×
Page 199
Suggested Citation:"Appendix A: National Research Council Everglades Reports." National Research Council. 2012. Progress Toward Restoring the Everglades: The Fourth Biennial Review, 2012. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/13422.
×
Page 200
Suggested Citation:"Appendix A: National Research Council Everglades Reports." National Research Council. 2012. Progress Toward Restoring the Everglades: The Fourth Biennial Review, 2012. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/13422.
×
Page 201
Suggested Citation:"Appendix A: National Research Council Everglades Reports." National Research Council. 2012. Progress Toward Restoring the Everglades: The Fourth Biennial Review, 2012. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/13422.
×
Page 202
Suggested Citation:"Appendix A: National Research Council Everglades Reports." National Research Council. 2012. Progress Toward Restoring the Everglades: The Fourth Biennial Review, 2012. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/13422.
×
Page 203
Suggested Citation:"Appendix A: National Research Council Everglades Reports." National Research Council. 2012. Progress Toward Restoring the Everglades: The Fourth Biennial Review, 2012. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/13422.
×
Page 204
Next: Appendix B: Status of Key Non-CERP Projects »
Progress Toward Restoring the Everglades: The Fourth Biennial Review, 2012 Get This Book
×
Buy Paperback | $54.00 Buy Ebook | $43.99
MyNAP members save 10% online.
Login or Register to save!
Download Free PDF

Twelve years into the Comprehensive Everglades Restoration Project, little progress has been made in restoring the core of the remaining Everglades ecosystem; instead, most project construction so far has occurred along its periphery. To reverse ongoing ecosystem declines, it will be necessary to expedite restoration projects that target the central Everglades, and to improve both the quality and quantity of the water in the ecosystem.

The new Central Everglades Planning Project offers an innovative approach to this challenge, although additional analyses are needed at the interface of water quality and water quantity to maximize restoration benefits within existing legal constraints. Progress Toward Restoring the Everglades: The Fourth Biennial Review, 2012 explains the innovative approach to expedite restoration progress and additional rigorous analyses at the interface of water quality and quantity will be essential to maximize restoration benefits.

  1. ×

    Welcome to OpenBook!

    You're looking at OpenBook, NAP.edu's online reading room since 1999. Based on feedback from you, our users, we've made some improvements that make it easier than ever to read thousands of publications on our website.

    Do you want to take a quick tour of the OpenBook's features?

    No Thanks Take a Tour »
  2. ×

    Show this book's table of contents, where you can jump to any chapter by name.

    « Back Next »
  3. ×

    ...or use these buttons to go back to the previous chapter or skip to the next one.

    « Back Next »
  4. ×

    Jump up to the previous page or down to the next one. Also, you can type in a page number and press Enter to go directly to that page in the book.

    « Back Next »
  5. ×

    Switch between the Original Pages, where you can read the report as it appeared in print, and Text Pages for the web version, where you can highlight and search the text.

    « Back Next »
  6. ×

    To search the entire text of this book, type in your search term here and press Enter.

    « Back Next »
  7. ×

    Share a link to this book page on your preferred social network or via email.

    « Back Next »
  8. ×

    View our suggested citation for this chapter.

    « Back Next »
  9. ×

    Ready to take your reading offline? Click here to buy this book in print or download it as a free PDF, if available.

    « Back Next »
Stay Connected!