Muck Capping The Indian River lagoon

Not long before present day, Lake Okeechobee drained into the Indian River lagoon in southern Florida. Because of the draining, algae blooms, low salinity and murky water have plagued the lagoon. Lake Okeechobee has since stopped draining into the IRL, but the effects are still present. The quality of the lagoon has improved since the days of draining however, muck coats the bottom of the lagoon in some places reaching depths of 15 ft (4.75 meters) or more.

The muck isn’t just harmless ‘black mayonnaise,’ it blocks sunlight from reaching the lagoon floor, which hinders the basis of food production in the IRL, the seagrass. without the seagrass, the food chain falls into disrepair. Manatees, Green Sea Turtles, fish like Pinfish and other herbivorous fish, marine snails and conchs, sea urchins and other various invertebrates all consume sea grass in the Indian River Lagoon. many of these species are either Keystone species or the foundation of the food chain.

In the past, dredging has been used to try to alleviate the pain the muck brings. Dredging is very costly and disturbs many species. One recent solution that was proposed was muck capping. Compared to dredging, muck capping offers a far more cost-effective solution. though muck capping has disadvantages like the need for constant monitoring, the chance that muck seeps through and the risk of trapping harmful gases that will be dangerous later on, the pros outweigh the cons and showcases muck capping as a safe cost effective way to restore the Indian River Lagoon ecosystem.