Chapter 3: Bivens Arm Lake 3.1 Introduction Bivens Arm is a small

Chapter 3: Bivens Arm Lake
Draft 10/24/02
3.1
Introduction
Bivens Arm is a small shallow lake located
in southwest Gainesville. The surface
area of the lake is approximately 189 acres
(Lakewatch 2000). Bivens Arm is a
unique environment which supports a wide
diversity of plant and animal life in an urban setting. The lake is part of the Tumblin Creek watershed. Tumblin Creek,
which is fed by small springs and seeps
originating upstream of Shands at AGH,
drains into Bivens Arm and is the primary
source of drainage into the lake. Bivens
Arm is also part of the larger Orange
Creek Basin and forms the northern extension of Paynes Prairie.
Figure 3.1 Location of Bivens Arm Lake in the
Tumblin Creek watershed.
The early history of Bivens Arm is not
well documented given that it is a relatively small body of water. The earliest
known use of the land around the lake was
as hunting grounds by Native Americans.
Beginning in the late 1800’s, the land was
used mostly for agricultural purposes including cattle ranching, swine farms,
vegetable farms, and orange groves. In
the 1930’s, Bivens Arm was designated as
a bird sanctuary and rookery which a resident ranger to cared for (Pickard 1994).
In 1965, the State of Florida designated
the lake area as a wildlife sanctuary (Bill
No. 1356 Chap. 65 1005). In 1981, the
City of Gainesville purchased the land
between the lake and Williston Road to
form the Bivens Arm Nature Park. This
park features a lush live oak hammock
habitat and marshlands, which periodically become inundated with rising water
levels from the lake.
Bivens Arm Lake
Bivens Arm is a solution lake in which the
underlying limestone has been eroded by
fluvial (water) processes. Sediments surrounding the lake are fine to medium
grained sands, silts, and clays, of PlioPleistocene age and those of the Miocene
age Hawthorn Group consisting of quartz
sands, silts, clays, phosphates, and carbonates (limestone and dolomite) (Scott 1988,
White 1970).
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Chapter 3: Bivens Arm Lake
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Bivens Arm Lake provides an ideal habitat for many species of plants and animals.
Alligators can often be seen basking on
the lake’s surface, and osprey and bald
eagles can be observed hunting overhead.
Other common bird species include herons, egrets, ibis, gallinule, cormorants,
and anhingas. Wildlife can best be observed from the Bivens Arm Nature Park,
as all other land around Bivens Arm is
privately owned or has limited access. An
array of freshwater fish exist in the lake
including native species such as the Florida largemouth bass and exotic species
such as blue tilapia. Angling on the lake
is a popular activity and species commonly caught include catfish, tilapia,
crappie, bass, and sunfish (bluegill and
shell-crackers).
location and impervious drainage basin,
the lake receives large quantities of stormwater runoff from urban and commercial
lots and surrounding roads including SW
13th Street (US 441) which bisects the lake.
The lake is classified as hypereutrophic as
indicated by the high levels of nutrients,
extensive algal and vascular plant growth,
and high productivity (Florida Lakewatch
2000). A summary of water quality parameters is presented in Table 3.1. In
many ways water quality in Bivens Arm is
similar to other large lakes in the Orange
Creek Basin. Total kjeldahl nitrogen
Parameter
Count
(n)
Mean
Alkalinity (mg/L)
19
82.47
Chlorophyll a (mg/L)
19
57.5
Dissolved Oxygen (mg/L)
69
9.7
Nitrate/Nitrite, dissolved (mg/L)
19
0.002
Orthophosphate (mg/L)
19
0.034
PH
65
8.78
Secchi (m)
19
0.637
Total Kjeldahl Nitrogen, total (mg/L)
19
1.437
Total Phosphorous, total (mg/L)
19
0.157
Turbidity (ntu)
13
16.115
Table 3.1 Water quality summary for Bivens
(TKN) levels are nearly identical or
slightly lower than other large lakes in the
region (Figure 3.2), however phosphorous
levels in the lake are among the highest
(Figure 3.3). High phosphorous levels
may be attributed to the flow of Tumblin
Creek through the phosphorous-rich Hawthorn Group materials, current and historical agricultural activities in the watershed,
and runoff from residential landscape and
turf grass fertilization.
Fishing on Bivens Arm Lake
3.2
Water Chemistry
Bivens Arm Lake is surrounded by a restaurant, a hotel, apartments, private residences, and restricted access University of
Florida property. According to
CH2MHILL (1993), up to sixty percent of
the basin is impervious. Due to its urban
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Chapter 3: Bivens Arm Lake
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native species of plants have become established in Bivens Arm. Of these species
four are classified as ‘Category I’ invasive
exotics by the Florida Exotic Plant Pest
Council and have been targeted for control within the lake.
4
TKN (mg/L)
3.5
3
2.5
2
1.5
1
Hydrilla (Hydrilla verticillata) was introduced to Florida in the 1950's and has become a major aquatic weed problem in
many waterbodies in the state. Several
strategies for control have been implemented in Bivens Arm. In the spring of
1999, Alachua County released 2500
Triploid Grass Carp into Bivens Arm to
provide a control mechanism to manage
the hydrilla that was engulfing the lake.
The management plan specified the addition of the grass carp combined with periodic spraying of the herbicide Aquathol-K
to reduce the levels of hydrilla. By summer 2000, the carp had cleared hydrilla in
all but the shallow bank areas of the lake.
In fact, the grass carp were so successful
in the summer of 2000 that there was no
additional spraying of Aquathol-K. This
change in vegetation is reflected in water
quality changes. After the removal of the
hydrilla, planktonic algae became the
dominant open-water plant species, turning the water a green color. The evidence
of this switch can be seen in the amount
of chlorophyll a in the water column. Figure 3.4, shows chlorophyll a levels remained steady in the years prior to the introduction of grass carp, but increased
sharply post- introduction.
Newnans
Lake
Lochloosa
Lake
Orange
Lake
0
Bivans
Arm Lake
0.5
Figure 3.2 Total Kjeldahl (TKN) values in
Bivens Arm and surrounding lakes
0.15
0.1
Newnans
Lake
Lochloosa
Lake
0
Orange
Lake
0.05
Bivans
Arm Lake
TP (mg/L)
0.2
Figure 3.3 Total Phosphorus (TP) values in
Bivens Arm and surrounding lakes
3.3
Aquatic Plant Management
Aquatic weeds have been a problem in
Bivens Arm since the 1950’s. Not all
aquatic plants pose a nuisance, as they provide a habitat for mating fish and their
eggs, protective cover for young fish, and
food and cover for lower trophic level organisms. The problem arises primarily
from non-native invasive species of
aquatic plants, which crowd out the native
species and quickly spread throughout the
water body (IFAS 2000). Several non-
Water hyacinth (Eichhornia crassipes)
was introduced into Florida in the late
1890's. Since that time it has spread to
become one of Florida's major invasive
plant problems. However, with current
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Chapter 3: Bivens Arm Lake
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Water lettuce (Pistia stratiotes) is an invasive species first recorded in Florida in
1765. It is less prevalent in Bivens Arm
and is controlled in the same manner as
water hyacinth.
Chlorophyll a
(uncorrected) (mg/m3)
180
160
140
120
100
80
60
Wild taro (Colocasia spp.) is an emergent
non-native invasive species which inhabits
the shoreline of many Florida wetlands. In
Bivens Arm this species has recently inhabited the shore and is becoming dominant along several areas. Control of this
species is slated to begin in 2002/2003
along state owned property.
40
20
0
1997
1998
1999
2000
Year
Figure 3.4 Chlorophyll values in Bivens Arm
Lake before and after the introduction of Grass
Carp.
3.4
Summary and Recommendations
Existing water quality data indicate elevated concentrations of chlorophyll a and
nutrients. Potential sources of elevated
nutrients fornd in Tumblin Creek and directed to Bivens Arm Lake include:
stormwater runoff containing fertilizers
from residential, commercial, and agricultural activities; leachate from landfill areas
in Tumblin Creek Park; wild animal and/or
pet waste; failing septic tanks systems;
leaking sanitary sewer lines or connections; and atmospheric deposition. Stormwater quality data indicate that nutrients
and suspended solids increase in Tumblin
Creek at US 441 (TUM441), directly upstream of and contributing to Bivens Arm
Lake.
plant control practices this plant is now
under control in most areas. In Bivens
arm, maintenance control (Haller, 1981)
of water hyacinth has been achieved and
only moderate amounts of control are necessary. Water hyacinth was the only
chemically controlled plant, and was controlled using Reward and 2,4-D.
The former discharge of air conditioner
and heating system water from the Park
16th apartments added an estimated one
MGD of groundwater, which is typically
low in nutrients, to Tumblin Creek and
Bivens Arm Lake. This discharge effectively served to augment the lake, keeping
the stage (or water level) relatively con-
Water Hyacinth (Eichhornia crassipes), an invasive exotic plant in Bivens Arm Lake
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Chapter 3: Bivens Arm Lake
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stant. The discharge ceased in April 2002
(Chapter 2, Section 2.4, page 2-7). Since
that time, the water level in Bivens Arm
Lake has dropped in response to low rainfall. The lake level is beginning to rise as
summer convective storms move into the
area, but will likely drop with the end of
the summer wet season.
City of Gainesvillemust work together to
secure funding for these efforts
Water quality monitoring is proposed to
continue on Bivens Arm Lake, as long as
the lake is accessible by boat. Recommendations outlined in the Chapter 2: Tumblin
Creek, Section 2.8 (page 2-17) apply to
improving the quality of Bivens Arm Lake
and should be implemented. Additionally,
consideration should be given to augmenting the lake with reclaimed water from the
GRU Main Street WRF. The existing water quality data should be evaluated in detail and the monitoring program modified
to address changes in the Tumblin Creek/
Bivens Arm watershed including the restoration of the wetlands on the north side of
the lake. As with all restoration activities,
there are large capital expenditures and
significant recurring operation and maintenance costs. The local partner agencies,
the SJRWMD, Alachua County, and the
Bivens Arm Lake at sunset
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