- Neighbors who have been visiting the Wakulla Springs for years say they’ve noticed changes in the water.
- Researchers have been testing the water for years to look at water patterns
- Watch the video to see what researchers are finding out.
BROADCAST TRANSCRIPT:
Water quality
That's what The Spring Watch is monitoring at Wakulla Springs
It's a group of researchers and volunteers that have been testing the water for over 15 years.
"We're all concerned and we want to make sure it's here for our children and our grandchildren."
While researching the water, David Shepard noticed factors impacting water quality.
"We've got a find a way to limit agricultural, pollution and from septic runoff and there are several threats like over-extraction."
By boat, the Spring Watch evaluates the water and then takes it to a lab for further testing.
One thing they've noticed is the color.
"We're seeing a great increase in color and we're also seeing an increase in flow and a lot of that seems to be climate change with sea level rise."
Sean McGlyn has a PHD in aquatic biology and is involved in the research.
He says they've noticed sea levels rising and it's impacting wildlife and the water
"The water seems to be coming here, but it's not really salt water so it's quite mysterious where it's coming from."
With this water coming in, they've found marine species in the springs.
"Sheepshead are sometimes found here, but they're always here when it is salty and we're getting a blue crabs at times but they're all dead now because when it gets fresh again they die."
McGlyn says it can be hard for fresh and saltwater species to survive in both conditions, but these factors have brought marine life such as manatees.
"This could be due to salt water influences we're seeing great changes and manatees come in so that's a good thing and It's not all bad."
This research is on going and their findings go to DEP. To keep up with their latest data, you can track it on this website (http://www.mcglynnlabs.com)
