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• Groundwater modeling
• Groundwater recharge
• Groundwater monitoring networks
• Hydrogeologic Information System

Groundwater monitoring networks

Overview

The Resource Assessment Program staff within the District’s Bureau of Groundwater Sciences manage the District’s groundwater monitoring networks. Responsibilities of the program staff include:

• Design and construction of water level and water quality monitoring well networks, and spring discharge and water quality monitoring networks
• Coordinate with the District’s Division of Water Resource Information (WRI) regarding monitoring and maintenance of existing network stations
• Evaluate and refine the networks to optimize spatial and temporal data collection
• Evaluate and analyze the data collected from the networks using statistical, geostatistical, graphical and mapping methods to produce useful information
• Assess the effectiveness of the information derived from the networks to meet current and future water management needs
• Distribute and publish the network data, information and interpretations as required by users for water supply planning, minimum flows and levels, consumptive use permitting, and other District programs

The well and spring networks can be categorized into regional, baseline or project network types. The network types differ by purpose, geographic scale and the products derived from the data collection. However, there is considerable overlap among the network types, with data from wells in one network also used in another, where appropriate.

Observation well monitoring

The regional networks are designed to measure changes in the aquifer systems caused by human actions or long-term climatic variation, generally over broad areas such as the extent of a water management district or greater. The regional network wells are predominantly permanent, dedicated wells designated for long-term data collection. The Upper Floridan Aquifer (UFA) is the main groundwater supply source within the District, therefore, most regional network wells are completed within the UFA (Table 1).

Baseline networks quantify the impact of natural changes on the aquifer system in areas not significantly impacted by regional or local anthropogenic activities (for example, areas such as the Ocala National Forest). The natural baseline wells make up a subset of the regional network wells. Project network wells are primarily utilized by specific District projects and are used to measure changes in the aquifer systems on smaller scales than the regional network. The majority of wells included in the Projects Network are monitored to support modeling efforts to support the District’s Water Supply Planning Program. Monitoring at other locations directly supports the Minimum Flows and Levels (MFL) and Consumptive Use Permitting programs.

Water levels in most of the wells in all networks are monitored continuously as part of the WRI telemetry system or via digital recorders. A smaller number are visited at regular intervals, mostly monthly, for manual water-level measurements by WRI staff. Wells in the water quality networks are sampled quarterly, semi-annually or annually for analysis of major ion chemical constituents or salinity-related chemical constituents such as chloride concentration and total dissolved solids.

Monitoring of spring discharge and water quality

Discharge measurements and water quality monitoring at UFA springs are used mainly for regional and baseline analysis (Table 2). The spring networks include nearly all of the first and second magnitude UFA springs in the District, plus a few third-magnitude springs. Because these springs are the largest documented points of natural UFA discharge, their flow records provide an important indication of the amount of groundwater flowing through the Floridan aquifer system (FAS). Regular spring water quality monitoring (usually at a quarterly frequency) provides vital information about the chemistry and nutrient content of baseflow to stream and river systems.

The frequency at which spring discharge measurements are made ranges from continuously at Wekiwa Spring in Orange County to monthly or quarterly at most other springs. The development of statistical relationships between measured discharge and groundwater levels at nearby wells provides estimates of daily spring flow at some of the first- and second-magnitude springs.

For further information

For water level and spring discharge monitoring and water quality monitoring of wells and springs, contact Don Boniol at dboniol@sjrwmd.com or (386) 329-4188.