Assessment of estuarine water and sediment quality at Fort Pulaski National Monument: 2018 data summary

Starkey, Eric; Wright, Wendy; Cooper, Christopher

doi:10.36967/2266897

In July 2018 the Southeast Coast Network conducted an assessment of water quality at Fort Pulaski National Monument as part of the National Park Service Vital Signs Monitoring Program. Monitoring was conducted following methods developed by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) as part of the National Coastal Assessment Program (EPA 2010). Laboratory analysis measured chlorophyll a and total and dissolved concentrations of nitrogen and phosphorous. Field measurements included water temperature, pH, dissolved oxygen, and salinity. Water clarity, which requires a Secchi depth measurement, was obtained when possible. All measured parameters were rated as good, fair, or poor based on thresholds set by the EPA (2012). Water clarity was rated good at twenty-four sites (80%) and could not be sampled at six sites (20%) due to strong currents. Chlorophyll a concentration was rated fair at twenty-eight sites (93%) and poor at two sites (7%). Dissolved inorganic nitrogen (DIN) concentration was good at ten sites (33%), and fair at the remaining twenty sites (67%). Dissolved inorganic phosphorus (DIP) concentration was good at all thirty sites (100%). Dissolved oxygen concentration was rated good at five sites (17%) and fair at twenty-five (83%). A water-quality condition summary index was calculated for each site sampled in Fort Pulaski National Monument based on the categorical assessments of chlorophyll a, DIN and DIP concentrations, dissolved oxygen, and water clarity. This summary index indicated fair water-quality conditions at all thirty sites (100%). Based on the summary water-quality index rating for the monument, overall water-quality conditions at Fort Pulaski National Monument in 2018 were fair. For sediment, ecological condition was ranked as good at twenty-seven sites (90%) and fair at three sites (10%). As a result, no adverse effects to benthic organisms due to sediment contamination are anticipated at the majority of the sampled sites. This ranking was assigned according to the 2010 Environmental Protection Agency, National Coastal Condition Assessment (NCCA) thresholds for sediment chemistry.

Assessment of estuarine water and sediment quality at Fort Pulaski National Monument: 2018 data summary

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