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Removing tons of `black mayonnaise' from lagoon - VeroNews: Indian River Lagoon Page 2 of 2 <br />WWOrld=renowned;experton,sedimentatioii,..Trefry'told the Senate Committee on Environmental <br />Preservation and Conservation there has been an "incredible expansion of muck" since he came to <br />the area in the 1980s, due to fertilizer runoff and other causes. <br />"Iti'is_like a cancer. tlia$;has beerirs'prea-d-i'­-g;" he said in December. "There are now between five <br />and seven million cubic yards of muck along the Brevard and Indian River County stretch of the <br />lagoon. That is enough to cover 1,000 football fields a yard high." <br />LTre�fry. said;besides`clo_udirigtheiwafer colui_n_n and;coritinually relea's'.i_ng nutrients that, feed algae <br />'.w^f.^.�•.... _ •l•C.� to i'w.n'.F'.-.—'_ f q».l'..'l.ral`, .S...a F•..• y <br />blooms; riiuck•accumulates toxiris andcontams.bacte`ria that'.depleteoxyen levels.in the;l`ago:on: It <br />�_smothers,all hfeforms,other than bacteria: "Wherever the muck=is; all habitable life is gone,'_' -.;he:'. <br />i said:' <br />"The lagoonfcould recover almost overnight-if-you.get a:clean sand`.bottom again; w_ith�sluiin and <br />crabs:and;oysters�coming.back along -with -seagrass an game:fish;"_Indian River -County -FIND r' <br />lCommissioner:P,aulD'riterifias,s`aid earlier th'i's"year: <br />"We realize $20 million is not going to fix the problem," Altman said. "It will take at least $100 <br />million over a five-year period to clean up most of the muck. But we need to get started and I <br />think we can make significant inroads with the $20 million." <br />The project is "expected to remove up to 672 tons of total nitrogen and 144 tons of total <br />phosphorous contained in the muck deposits," according to DEP. Those are the chemicals <br />responsible for feeding algae bloom and degrading lagoon ecology. <br />Brevard County staff aims to have dredges in the water by January 2015, after FIT scientists <br />complete their preliminary surveys. <br />The other $10 million of the current appropriation will be used to remove muck from the Eau <br />Gallie River, which empties into the lagoon. <br />"It is critical we remove these sediments from our waterways and get the Indian River Lagoon on <br />a pathway to health," Altman said. <br />http://www. veronews. com/news/indian_river_countyllagoonlremoving-tons-of-black-may... 9/29/2014 <br />