PRESS RELEASE: May 5, 2015
~ Goals will act as the foundation for long-term restoration plan ~
HAVANA
– The Florida Department of Environmental Protection
held a public meeting last night to further develop water quality
restoration goals for Lake Tallavana. The restoration goals will address an excess
amount of nutrients in the lake. Once adopted,
these restoration goals will function as the primary objective for a long-term
restoration plan intended to eliminate pollutant sources and improve the lake’s
water quality.
“We want
the development of restoration goals to be an inclusive process,” said Tom Frick, director of the
Division of Environmental Assessment and Restoration. “These meetings are a
forum for us to coordinate with stakeholders and citizens interested in
protecting their community’s natural resources.”
The restoration goals, known as TMDLs or total maximum daily loads, define the maximum amount of a specific pollutant allowable in a waterbody that will still enable the waterbody to maintain its health and function. At this
meeting, DEP representatives provided an overview of the TMDL program and
accepted formal public comments on the TMDL development to date.
Nutrients
like nitrogen and phosphorous naturally exist in the water and are necessary
for the normal growth of aquatic plant and animal life. When too much nitrogen
and phosphorous are present, however, it can lead to rapid
algal growth or algal blooms, which can cause other water quality complications,
including habitat smothering or oxygen depletion in the water.
Lake
Tallavana is a 160-acre lake located west of Havana in Gadsden County that
drains to Lake Talquin through Hurricane Creek and the Little River.
More
information on the restoration goals can be found here.
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