Banana River Water Quality
From Indian River Lagoon Project
As of January, 2021 the health of the Banana River lagoon's brackish water is not good.
Current seasonal water quality pattern:
April - June
- Summer rains bring nutrient laden stormwater into the lagoon.
- Water clarity declines to a dark, murky green.
June-September
- Algae thrives on the excess nitrogen and phosphorus, creating massive blooms that block sunlight from the seagrass.
- Decomposition of dead seagrass and algae consumes the water's oxygen and kills marine life.
- Protein molecules decomposing algae, seagrass and fish are attracted to both water and air, and when agitated by wind, create a smelly, dark foam on the lagoon's surface and shorelines.
October - December
- Summer rain's end, cooler temperatures, and wind disperse the biological mass. Much of it settles to the bottom to create black, slimy, muck.
- Oxygen and salinity levels return to normal.
January-March
- Water clears up revealing a lifeless, barren desert below.
