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Legacy Phosphorus in Lake Okeechobee (Florida, USA) Sediments: a Review and New Perspective

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Legacy Phosphorus in Lake Okeechobee (Florida, USA) Sediments: a Review and New Perspective water Review Legacy Phosphorus in Lake Okeechobee (Florida, USA) Sediments: A Review and New Perspective Thomas M. Missimer 1,* , Serge Thomas 2 and Barry H. Rosen 2 1 Emergent Technologies Institute, U. A. Whitaker College of Engineering, Florida Gulf Coast University, 16301 Innovation Lane, Fort Myers, FL 33913, USA 2 Department of Ecology and Environmental Studies, Florida Gulf Coast University, 10501 FGCU Boulevard South, Fort Myers, FL 33965-6565, USA; [email protected] (S.T.); [email protected] (B.H.R.) * Correspondence: [email protected] Abstract: Lake Okeechobee is one of the largest freshwater lakes in the United States. As a eutrophic lake, it has frequent algal blooms composed predominantly of the cyanobacterium genus Microcystis. Many of the algal blooms are associated with the resuspension of a thixotropic benthic mud containing legacy nutrients. Since Lake Okeechobee has an area of 1732 km2 (40–50 km radius) and a mean depth of only 2.7 m, there is sufficient fetch and shallow water depth to allow frequent wind, wave, and current generated events, which cause sediment resuspension. Three types of mud exist in the lake including an immobile dark-colored, consolidated mud, a brownish-colored mud, which is poorly consolidated and mobile, and a dark-colored thixotropic, highly mobile mud that is a mixture of organic matter and clay-sized minerals. Altogether, these muds contain an estimated 4.6 × 106 kg of total phosphorus and commensurate high amounts of labile nitrogen. The thixotropic mud covers most of the lakebed and contains the suitable nutrient ratios to trigger algal blooms. A bioassay analysis of the thixotropic mud compared to the consolidated mud showed that it produced up to 50% more nutrient mass compared to the consolidated mud. The thixotropic mud does not consolidate, thus remains mobile. The mobility is maintained by the dynamics of the algal blooms and bacterial decay of extracellular secretions (transparent exopolymer particles) that bind sediment, transfer it to the bottom, and undergo bacterial digestion causing gas emissions, thus maintaining the organic/sediment matrix in suspension. Despite major efforts to control external nutrient loading Citation: Missimer, T.M.; Thomas, S.; into the lake, the high frequency of algal blooms will continue until the muds bearing legacy nutrients Rosen, B.H. Legacy Phosphorus in are removed from the lake. Lake Okeechobee (Florida, USA) Sediments: A Review and New Keywords: Lake Okeechobee; Florida; thixotropic mud; mud resuspension; legacy nutrients; harmful Perspective. Water 2021, 13, 39. algal blooms https://doi.org/10.3390/w13010039 Received: 21 October 2020 Accepted: 23 December 2020 Published: 28 December 2020 1. Introduction The occurrence and movement of labile forms of nutrients, mainly phosphorus (P) Publisher’s Note: MDPI stays neu- and nitrogen (N), in the environment have considerable impacts on many natural ecosys- tral with regard to jurisdictional claims tems. Transport and cycling of nutrients impact biological productivity, which in turn in published maps and institutional can cause numerous complex and commonly negative effects to various surface–water affiliations. bodies including lakes, rivers, and wetlands [1]. It is therefore important to understand the forms of anthropogenic P because it can be a limiting nutrient in inland environments, from source to sink, to ascertain how to control and remove it before it severely impacts a Copyright: © 2020 by the authors. Li- hydrosystem, sometimes leading to permanent damage. censee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This Excessive nutrient loading, in some cases causing imbalances, has altered some of the article is an open access article distributed largest natural hydrosystems in southern Florida. The literature indeed shows that the under the terms and conditions of the largest lakes, which are mostly located in north, central, and the northern portion of south Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) Florida (Lake Okeechobee, Lake George, Lake Seminole, Lake Kissimmee, Lake Apopka, license (https://creativecommons.org/ Lake Isokpoga, East and West Lake Tohopokaliga, Crescent Lake and Orange Lake) are licenses/by/4.0/). eutrophic to hypereutrophic [2,3]. Thus, this research reviews the sources and sinks of Water 2021, 13, 39. https://doi.org/10.3390/w13010039 https://www.mdpi.com/journal/water Water 2021, 13, x FOR PEER REVIEW 2 of 24 Water 2021, 13, 39 2 of 23 eutrophic to hypereutrophic [2,3]. Thus, this research reviews the sources and sinks of nutrients in Lake Okeechobee with emphasis on the accumulated legacy nutrients in nutrientsmuddy insediments Lake Okeechobee as well as with the emphasis strategies on to the remove accumulated the problematic legacy nutrients mud in from muddy the hy- sedimentsdrosystem. as well as the strategies to remove the problematic mud from the hydrosystem. TheThe Lake Lake Okeechobee-Everglades Okeechobee-Everglades natural natural system system is one is one of the of largestthe largest freshwater freshwater lakeslakes by by surface surface area area in in the the United United Sates. Sates. It is It hydraulically-connected is hydraulically-connected to a veryto a very large large sedgesedge and and graminoid graminoid dominated dominated moorland moorland [4 [4]] (Figure (Figure1). 1). Historically, Historically, the the Everglades Everglades hy- hydraulicdraulic continuum continuum once constitutedconstituted the the world’s world’s largest largest contiguous contiguous freshwater freshwater system system [5]. [5]. TheThe surface surface area area of of Lake Lake Okeechobee Okeechobee covers cove anrs areaan area of approximately of approximately 1732 1732 km2 withkm2 awith a 3 meanmean depth depth of of 2.7 2.7 m m and and an an estimated estimated volume volume of 5.2 of km5.2 km(Figure3 (Figure2). Its 2). deepest Its deepest portion portion is is aboutabout 4.7 4.7 m m when when the the lake lake stage stage stands stands at 4.2 at m4.2 [ 6m]. [6]. FigureFigure 1. 1.Lake Lake Okeechobee Okeechobee and and its associatedits associated watershed. watershed. Water 2021, 13, x FOR PEER REVIEW 3 of 24 Water 2021, 13, 39 3 of 23 80º40' Figure 2. Bathymetry map of Lake Okeechobee relative to a datum of 3.81 m above mean sea level [7]. Figure 2. Bathymetry map of Lake Okeechobee relative to a datum of 3.81 m above mean sea level [7]. The hydrology of Lake Okeechobee was drastically altered with the channelization of the Kissimmee River, coupled with the excavation of canals that connect it with the St. Lucie TheRiver hydrology to the east of and Lake the CaloosahatcheeOkeechobee was River dras totically the west, altered and thewith construction the channelization of the of theHerbert Kissimmee Hoover River, Dike coupled surrounding with the the lake excavation [8]. These alterationsof canals that prevented connect the it natural with the lat- St. Lucieeral River expansion to the ofeast the and lake the into Caloosahatchee the surrounding riparianRiver to wetlands, the west, which and the used construction to sequester of the Herbertnutrient-bearing Hoover Dike fine particulates surrounding issued the fromlake wind-driven[8]. These alterations lake resuspended prevented sediment the natural [9]. lateralWhile expansion the Kissimmee of the Riverlake into has undergone the surroun restorationding riparian by recreation wetlands, some meanders,which used it still to se- questerdrains nutrient-bearing an urbanized andfine agropastoralparticulates watershed.issued from Thus, wind-driven the direct lake discharge resuspended from the sed- Kissimmee River at the north side of the lake, coupled with back-pumping of water tied to iment [9]. While the Kissimmee River has undergone restoration by recreation some me- the agriculture activities at the south end of the lake, other types of anthropogenic water anders,discharges, it still drains and natural an urbanized system discharges and agropastoral (e.g., hurricanes) watershed. have altered Thus, thethe lakedirect hydrology discharge from andthe waterKissimmee quality River [10]. Therefore, at the north the P side load toof Lakethe lake, Okeechobee coupled has with been back-pumping over 500 metric of watertons tied per to yearthe agriculture over most of activities the past 30 at years the [south11]. Although end of the a portion lake, ofother this types P load of has anthro- left pogenicthe lakewater via discharges, the Caloosahatchee and natural and St. system Lucie rivers, discharges a very (e.g., large quantityhurricanes) of P remainshave altered in the lakethe lakehydrology as a legacy and P water reservoir, quality which [10]. is periodically Therefore, remobilized the P load byto stormLake Okeechobee activity. has been overBioavailable 500 metric nitrogentons per is year the limiting over most nutrient of the and, past as such,30 years it is an[11]. important Although nutrient a portion in of thisLake P load Okeechobee has left [12 the–14 lake]. However, via the P Caloosahatchee is a key nutrient and and contaminant St. Lucie withinrivers, thisa very ecosys- large tem since its excessive loading leads and amplifies the nitrogen limitation (i.e., secondary quantity of P remains in the lake as a legacy P reservoir, which is periodically remobilized nitrogen limitation) and thus is the focus of this research [15,16]. Phosphorus has indeed by stormled to activity. water quality issues within Lake Okeechobee, the Greater Everglades Ecosystem, Bioavailableand the major nitrogen discharge is rivers the limiting to the east
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