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/ani <br />INDIAN RIVER COUNTY, FLORIDA <br />BOARD MEMORANDUM <br />TO: Jason E. Brown, County Administrator <br />THROUGH: Richard B. Szpyrka, P.E., Public Works Director <br />THROUGH: Eric Charest, Natural Resources Manager <br />FROM: Molly Klinepeter, Lagoon Plan Environmental Specialist <br />SUBJECT: Research Review Phase of the IRC Lagoon Management Plan: Update 1 <br />DATE: June 5, 2020 <br />BACKGROUND <br />On July 16, 2019, the Indian River County Board of County Commissioners (BCC) adopted an <br />outline for developing the County's Indian River Lagoon Management Plan for our portion of the <br />Indian River Lagoon (Lagoon). Staff was approved to use a multi -phased approach to develop this <br />plan over the timeline identified in Attachment A (Research Plan Timeline). The first phase was <br />the Research Review Phase, which identified 17 key factors that may be impacting the health of <br />the Lagoon in our area. Staff has been working with numerous departments and stakeholders <br />involved with the Lagoon to gather current scientific and data -based information about these <br />outlined factors. Following collection of this information, staff have been: <br />• consolidating available data <br />• identifying informational gaps <br />• preparing infographics to disseminate information learned <br />Staff is to present four quarterly presentations to the BCC about information collected. <br />This accompanying presentation is to inform the BCC about our findings during this first portion <br />of our research phase which focused on the 6 items identified in the approved timeline, focusing <br />on areas where more information may be needed in order to determine what impacts are <br />occurring. Supporting research on the summaries presented in this agenda is included as <br />Attachment B to this agenda. Due to Departmental staffing changes and the COVID-19 pandemic, <br />this first update to the BCC has been delayed, but staff remains committed to continuing their <br />respective research. <br />DESCRIPTIONS AND CONDITIONS <br />The approved topics to be discussed during the presentation are as follows: <br />1. Annual Rainfall Data <br />Rainfall's impacts on the Lagoon are complex, extending beyond just the temporary water <br />level increases associated with the rainfall events. Rainfall acts as one of the major contributors <br />of freshwater into the Indian River Lagoon estuary system, changing salinity levels which have far <br />reaching impacts on the Lagoon. Additionally, sediment transport associated with rainfall acts as <br />88 <br />