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O 4. CONTINUED IN 1864, WOODWARD CLYDE, CONSULTANTS UNDER CONTRACT TO THE INDIAN RIVER LAGOON NATIONAL ESTUARY PROGRAM(LRLNEP), PUBLISHED EIGHT VOLUMES OF TECHNICAL REPORTS DESCRIBING THE HISTORICAL DATA REVIEWED, THEIR ASSESSMENT OF THE DATA REVIEWED, AND ITS RELIABILITY. THE THREE REPORTS CONSIDERED PERTINENT FOR INDIAN RIVER COUNTY ARE THE FOLLOWING: STATUS AND TRENDS SUMMARY OF THE LAGOON, THE PRELIMINARY WATER AND SEDIMENT QUALITY ASSESSMENT OF THE INDIAN RIVER LAGOON, AND LOADINGS ASSESSMENT OF THE INDIAN RIVER LAGOON. IN THESE VOLUMES OF LITERATURE, THE INDIAN RIVER COUNTY AREA OF THE LAGOON (FROM SEBASTIAN INLET TO THE 5T. LUCIE COUNTY) IN DESIGNATED BY WOODWARD CLYDE AS SEGMENT -3 (APPENDIX 4). SEGMENT 3, KNOWN AS THE SOUTH CENTRAL INDIAN RIVER LAGOON BASIN, IS FURTHER DIVIDED INTO 23 SUB•BASINS WITHIN THE BASIN. THE LARGEST POLLUTANT LOADINGS IN THIS SEGMENT ARE CONTRIBUTED BY THE LARGE BASINS THAT HAVE BEEN EXTENDED BY DITCHING AND MAJOR CANAL SYSTEMS, AS HAS OCCURRED IN THE INDIAN RIVER FARMS WATER CONTROL DISTRICT AREA, WHERE DITCHING HAS BEEN CONNECTED TO A CANAL SYSTEM AND THE INDIAN RIVER LAGOON. THE HIGHEST LOADINGS IN THE SOUTH CENTRAL INDIAN RIVER LAGOON SEGMENT OCCUR IN THE INDIAN RIVER FARMS WATER CONTROL DISTRICT SUB -BASINS, DUE TO THE CHARACTERISTICS OF THIS URBAN BUILT -OUT AREA WHICH UTILIZES EXTENSIVE DITCHING AND CANAL SYSTEMS DRAINING TO THE INDIAN RIVER LAGOON. WHEN COMPARED TO OTHER SEGMENTS THROUGHOUT THE INDIAN RIVER LAGOON REGION, IT WAS CALCULATED BY WOODWARD CLYDE THAT SEGMENT 4(ST. LUCIE COUNTY AREA) ACCOUNTS FOR THE HIGHEST SEGMENT•WIDE POLLUTANT LOADS, FOLLOWED BY SEGMENT 3 THE INDIAN RIVER COUNTY AREA, WOODWARD CLYDE NOTED THAT INDIAN RIVER FARMS WATER CONTROL DISTRICT AND SEBASTIAN RIVER WATER CONTROL DISTRICT ARE AMONG THE HIGHEST AREA LOADING RATES FOR THE ENTIRE WATER BODY. WOODWARD CLYDE ATTRIBUTES THESE HIGH LOADINGS TO THE INTENSE AGRICULTURAL USES OR THE COMBINATIONS OF URBAN AND AGRICULTURAL DEVELOPMENT. THE PROJECT WILL IDENTIFY SOLUTIONS TO FLOODING AND IMPROVING WATER QUALITY, THIS INDIAN RIVER LAGOON DOWN -STREAM OF THIS WATERSHED IS EXHIBITING SIGNS THAT WATER QUALITY PROBLEMS ARE DEVELOPING, THESE SIGNS INCLUDE REDUCTIONS IN SEAGRASS DENSITY AND COVERAGE OR INCREASING CLOSURES OR RECLASSIFICATION OF SHELLFISH HARVESTING AREAS.