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Thesis
Water quality in tidal creeks of the Pensacola Bay System with varying urbanization
University of West Florida Libraries
Master of Science (MS), University of West Florida
2024
Abstract
Coastal areas have been historically vital to human development, with their potential for abundant resources, convenient travel, and beautiful landscape. Due to increasing populations, coastal development has been expanding at a rapid pace. While large estuaries have been studied extensively, the importance of tidal creeks has only begun to be explored. Their smaller size makes them very sensitive to human disturbance, but that may make them a valuable tool in predicting or monitoring early signs of changes in water quality within the larger watersheds to which they are connected. A study of water quality and biofilm accumulation over an urbanization gradient and contrasting upstream and downstream sites was conducted, emphasizing nutrients (dissolved inorganic nitrogen, DIN, and dissolved inorganic phosphorus, DIP), chlorophyll a, and biofilm chlorophyll a. Urban sites generally had the greatest nutrient concentrations, particularly DIN. Chlorophyll a also followed the urbanization gradient, though not as closely. Analysis of the relationship between biofilm DNA and biofilm chl-a showed that the biofilm communities in upstream sites were composed primarily of non-photosynthetic organisms, while downstream sites had much higher proportions of photosynthetic organisms. However, extensive buildup of biofilms over each two-week growth period likely oversaturated the samples in some cases, highlighting the need for more frequent sampling in the examination of biofilm growth in tidal creeks. This study provides information about poorly studied systems with these results suggesting the potential for nutrient impairment based on DEP criteria, for Indian Bayou, Mulat Bayou, and Washerwoman Creek. Upstream and downstream sites were often similar to each other, suggesting tidal exchange. More consistent testing is needed to further examine the relationship between upstream and downstream water quality patterns.
Details
- Title
- Water quality in tidal creeks of the Pensacola Bay System with varying urbanization
- Resource Type
- Thesis
- Contributors
- Jane Caffrey (Committee Chair)Wade Jeffrey (Committee Member)Matthew Deitch (Committee Member)Philip Darby (Committee Member)
- Publisher
- University of West Florida Libraries
- Format
- pdf
- Number of pages
- 73
- Copyright
- © 2024 Julianna Leigh O’Bar
- Identifiers
- 99380569596706600
- Academic Unit
- Biology
- Language
- English
- Awarding Institution
- University of West Florida; Master of Science (MS)
- Theses and Dissertations
- Master of Science (MS), University of West Florida