MODELING FLOW IN THE EVERGLADES AGRICULTURAL AREA IRRIGATION DRAINAGECANAL NETWORK/

The south Florida ecosystem and Lake Okeechobee are important water re source areas that have degraded due to changes in hydroperiod, water s upply, and water quality. Approximately 56 percent of the total phosph orus in water discharged from the Everglades Agricultural Area (EAA) i s in particulate form. Currently, farm-level best management practices are being implemented in the effort to reduce total phosphorus and se diment in off-farm discharges. The objective of this work was to devel op and calibrate a model describing water movement in primary EAA cana ls as a first step to development of a water quality (i.e., nutrient, sediment) model. The Netherlands-developed mechanistic flow and water quality model (DUFLOW) was adapted for the EAA. Flow, stage, geometry, canal network, and meteorological data, October 13, 1993, to February 13, 1994, were used to adapt and calibrate the DUFLOW model for EAA w ater level and flow in primary canals. Direct runoff discharge into th e primary canals from farm-pump stations was used as runoff input for the model. The model results are comparable to an independently-calcul ated water balance for the EAA. The calibrated flow model will be the basis for the calibration of sediment and chemical transport in the fu ture.