Fish carcasses lay all around the bank and the remaining fish were swimming lethargically to their death in the murky poisoned water.

At approximately 9:30 a.m. Monday, July 18, I notified the Fish Kill hotline of a major fish kill in Ponte Vedra.

This scene was the retention pond on the southwest corner of A1A and Mickler Road. The most prevalent fish killed were gar.

Ocean’s Edge on the opposite side of A1A has a continuation of that retention pond waterway. It was displaying the same low- water problem with many dead fish around the ponds.

 

The Environmental Protection Agency advised me they would sample the water and determine the cause.

There are three plausible reasons for a fish-kill like this:

1. Extremely low water levels due to lack of rain. The lack of rain intensifies the salinity and chemical intensity in inland waters.

2. Chemical run-offs from the lawns of many homeowners along the waterfront. According to the University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences program, “Florida Yards and Neighborhoods,” our yards and neighborhoods are connected to our water resources. Herbicides, pesticides, and fertilizers should not be distributed within 10 feet of any waterway or retention pond.

3. Vegetation bloom observed from Corona Road south could be depleting water oxygen.

Ponte Vedra Municipal Service District Vice Chairman Gary Jurenovich showed me the storm systems, which carry off excess rainwater from Solana Road north of Christ Church and at the southern-most part of Morningside Drive, backing up to our Lady Star of the Sea property.

The water is collected in 25-foot Rinker Stormceptors that swirl the water and cause sediment to drop to the bottom. The residue is removed periodically by tanker trucks. The cleaned water then passes through a filtration system to the lagoons.

Many of these beautiful retention ponds are connected. Some of the water actually starts in Jacksonville Beach — so much of our lagoon water runs together at various points.

This week, just west of the corner of Corona Road and Ponte Vedra Boulevard at the bridge/dam crossing, the water to the south was low, green and algae-filled this week, while cleanliness and the usual water levels were seen to the north.

Doug Crane, past chairman of the Municipal Service District and a long-time resident of Ponte Vedra, told me the water level is at its lowest since 1981 when he purchased his home. We talked about the relationship of the Guana Dam controlling water levels to its north and its south, from the St. Augustine Inlet up through Vilano to the Mickler Road and A1A dam, and north to the Corona Road dam.

Janet Zimmerman, education coordinator for the Guana Tolomato Matanzas National Estuarine Research Reserve Environmental Education Center, said that with no rain the salinity in the water would be higher than usual on the north side.

Zimmerman referred me to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, where Tyler Mostller explained the function of the Guana dam, which has seven gates and is entirely controlled by the tide. Certain gates can be blocked or hinged depending on the desired flow of the water.

Mostller said the lake is lowered on purpose in the summer to increase vegetation growth along the mud banks. In the fall more water is allowed in, covering the vegetation that is good for fish, ducks and other wildlife.

He said the Mickler/A1A dam is controlled by the county and is especially useful during hurricane or strong northeasters. Mostller was aware of the fish kill and ordered water testing this week.

The mantra for most of us is ‘Don’t flood my area.’ So we have high-tech water control, but when Mother Nature holds back the rain, our wildlife, fish and birds suffer.

The Recreation Master Plan, which includes information about water resource management and fish, can be read at www.myfwc.com/media/305274/rmp_guanariver_final_09_2005.pdf

http://www.pontevedrarecorder.com/126114359.html

July 26, 2011