Located
on the east side of Tallahassee, Florida is a chain of watershed
called Lake Lafayette. Within this succession of lakes is Lake
Piney Z, which has undergone reconstruction in the past few years
in order to restore it to an improved condition. Because of its
connection to the Florida Aquifer, a major freshwater resource,
it is important for the lake to be healthy, pure, and properly
maintained. A neighborhood development in the close area of Piney
Z recently began, affecting the life and purpose of the lake.
A railroad track runs along side of the approximately 1.06 mile
long lake, which has a circumference of roughly 2.60 miles. On
the opposite side, a jeep trail follows the water's
edge. The picture to the right was taken from the jeep trail.
About ten finger dikes protrude into the lake, which were created
from piles of muck dredged from the floor of the body of water.
When the lake has completely undergone restoration, it will become
a place open to the Piney Z community for fishing, picnics, and
sightseeing.
The natural cycle of Lake Lafayette was that the lakes drained
themselves into the sinkhole and gradually filled back up. Many
years ago, the ends of Piney Z were levied off in order to contain
the water, and serve for duck hunting and fishing. More recently,
the City of Tallahassee drained the lake and scraped the muck
off the floor, a process that took a couple of years. The muck
was a massive buildup of dead vegetation and runoff from the Piney
Z subdivision after years of having nowhere to go; if the lake
had not been levied at both ends, the water flow would have carried
it away. If the lake still drained naturally, it would flow into
the sinkhole. Since neither of these processes occurred
for many years, the two or three feet of the lake's floor were
made up of useless muck. Bacteria in the muck uses dissolved oxygen
in the water that is a necessity to the fish and other life in
the lake. This process is called eutrophication. More generally,
excessive phosphorus from runoff and erosion nourishes surface
waters, causing algae to quickly multiply and cloud the water.
This prevents aquatic vegetation under water from getting the
sunlight it needs. The algae eventually die and decompose, lowering
the amount of dissolved oxygen. This sometimes occurs naturally,
but man can also contribute to eutrophication by polluting the
water.
Only a portion of the Piney Z underwent the process of being rid
of muck; it would have taken too much time and money to do the
entire lake. The numerous finger dikes, created for the purpose
for places to fish from, were created out of the muck scraped
from the floor, and eventually vegetation grew on them.
Karst topography is a landscape in which the characteristics allow
for the formation of sinkholes on the ground. Near rivers or small
bodies of water, namely in Florida above the Floridian aquifer,
a layer of permeable sand lies below the ground above the top
of the aquifer. Tertiary limestone is present below that, in which
the aquatic system flows. Thus, sinkholes form when perched water
lies in the sand. This creates a problem because when sinkholes
form they provide a link to the aquifer, which allows polluted
water to get into the system where our drinking water comes from.
The Florida aquifer is one of the largest aquifers in the United
States, lying beneath Florida, South Georgia, and parts of Alabama
and South Carolina and providing a major portion of our drinking
water. It is made up of porous limestone and divided into lower
and upper sections. Sand, clay, and gravel lie above and below
the aquifer. This entire setup of the Florida aquifer encompasses
Karst topography. The system of the aquifer is often set off track
by varying amounts of rainfall, dredging, and pumping. The sinkhole
that exists in Piney Z leads to the Florida aquifer, so the contents
of the water should be paid close attention to.
There are certain parameters that serve the purpose of measuring
the quality of water. Some of there consist of temperature, dissolved
oxygen, pH, turbidity, phosphates, and nitrates. The temperature
of the water is important because if man alters it, then the aquatic
ecosystem could be disrupted, hurting life in the water. Generally,
warm water streams should not exceed temperatures of 89°F.
A dissolved oxygen (DO) test measures the amount of gaseous oxygen
dissolved in the water. A certain amount is necessary to support
substantial aquatic life. The pH of water, the concentration of
H+ ions, indicates its acidic or basic nature. A range of 6.0
to 9.0 is acceptable to provide protection
for aquatic life. It is rare for the amount to be too high, but
if it is then it is harmful to fish. If the concentration is too
low, then aquatic life is put under much stress to survive. Turbidity
refers to the clearness of water. If water is not clear, the plants
underwater don’t receive as much sunlight as they need,
and therefore don’t produce the right amount of oxygen.
Phosphorus is an element critical for the growth of plants and
animals. Rainfall changes the amount of phosphorus in water, stimulating
the growth of plankton and aquatic plants and providing food for
fish. Thus, the population of
fish increases and increases the quality of the water. Too much
phosphate results in an abundance of algae, which uses oxygen
and eventually leads to eutrophication. Nitrates are one of the
most abundant elements. In bodies of freshwater, nitrogen-containing
compounds act as nutrients, but nitrate reactions in fresh water
result in the depletion of oxygen. Bacteria in water converts
nitrates to nitrites, which can produce a serious condition in
fish, called “brown blood disease.” In addition, if
the nitrite concentration exceeds a certain level and is consumed
by humans, it can be detrimental, especially to babies.
Some of the parameters mentioned above were included in the set
of information we gathered at Piney Z. Using the Global Positioning
System, we first located the latitude and longitude coordinates
at the sites where we collected data. We then obtained a beaker
of water from the lake and calculated its temperature with a probe
and a TI-83 calculator. We also measured the pH with this water
sample. Then, using dissolved oxygen kits, we determined the DO,
a process that required precision and accuracy.
Located
on the east side of Tallahassee, Florida is a chain of watershed
called Lake Lafayette. Within this succession of lakes is Lake
Piney Z, which has undergone reconstruction in the past few years
in order to restore it to an improved condition. Because of its
connection to the Florida Aquifer, a major freshwater resource,
it is important for the lake to be healthy, pure, and properly
maintained. A neighborhood development in the close area of Piney
Z recently began, affecting the life and purpose of the lake.
water's
edge. The picture to the right was taken from the jeep trail.
About ten finger dikes protrude into the lake, which were created
from piles of muck dredged from the floor of the body of water.
When the lake has completely undergone restoration, it will become
a place open to the Piney Z community for fishing, picnics, and
sightseeing.
occurred
for many years, the two or three feet of the lake's floor were
made up of useless muck. Bacteria in the muck uses dissolved oxygen
in the water that is a necessity to the fish and other life in
the lake. This process is called eutrophication. More generally,
excessive phosphorus from runoff and erosion nourishes surface
waters, causing algae to quickly multiply and cloud the water.
This prevents aquatic vegetation under water from getting the
sunlight it needs. The algae eventually die and decompose, lowering
the amount of dissolved oxygen. This sometimes occurs naturally,
but man can also contribute to eutrophication by polluting the
water.
protection
for aquatic life. It is rare for the amount to be too high, but
if it is then it is harmful to fish. If the concentration is too
low, then aquatic life is put under much stress to survive. Turbidity
refers to the clearness of water. If water is not clear, the plants
underwater don’t receive as much sunlight as they need,
and therefore don’t produce the right amount of oxygen.
Phosphorus is an element critical for the growth of plants and
animals. Rainfall changes the amount of phosphorus in water, stimulating
the growth of plankton and aquatic plants and providing food for
fish. Thus, the population of
fish increases and increases the quality of the water. Too much
phosphate results in an abundance of algae, which uses oxygen
and eventually leads to eutrophication. Nitrates are one of the
most abundant elements. In bodies of freshwater, nitrogen-containing
compounds act as nutrients, but nitrate reactions in fresh water
result in the depletion of oxygen. Bacteria in water converts
nitrates to nitrites, which can produce a serious condition in
fish, called “brown blood disease.” In addition, if
the nitrite concentration exceeds a certain level and is consumed
by humans, it can be detrimental, especially to babies.