Current as of: Dec. 2011 (1) Trophic state indices (TSIs) and annual mean chlorophyll a values shall be the primary means for assessing whether a water should be assessed further for nutrient impairment. Other information indicating an imbalance in flora or fauna due to nutrient enrichment, including, but not limited to, algal blooms, excessive macrophyte growth, decrease in the distribution (either in density or areal coverage) of seagrasses or other submerged aquatic vegetation, changes in algal species richness, and excessive diel oxygen swings, shall also be considered. (2) To be used to determine whether a waterbody should be assessed further for nutrient enrichment, (a) Data must meet the requirements of subsections (2)-(4), (7), and (8) in Rule 62-303.320, F.A.C. (b) At least one sample from each season shall be required in any given year to calculate a Trophic State Index (TSI) or an annual mean chlorophyll a value for that year (for the purposes of this chapter, the four seasons shall be January 1 through March 31, April 1 through June 30, July 1 through September 30, October 1 through December 31), (c) If there are multiple chlorophyll a or TSI values within a season, the average value for that season shall be calculated from the individual values and the four quarterly values shall be averaged to calculate the annual mean for that calendar year, (d) For data collected after the effective date of this rule, individual TSI values shall only be calculated when the nitrogen, phosphorus, and chlorophyll data were collected at the same time and location, (e) If there are insufficient data used to calculate a TSI or an annual mean chlorophyll a value in the planning period, but there are data from at least four consecutive seasons, the mean TSI or mean chlorophyll a value for the consecutive seasons shall be used to assess the waterbody, (f) There must be an annual means from at least four years when evaluating the change in TSI over time pursuant to subsection 62-303.352(3), F.A.C., and (g) To be assessed under this rule, chlorophyll a data collected after the effective date of this rule shall be corrected chlorophyll a, except for data used to establish historical chlorophyll a levels. Corrected chlorophyll a is the calculated concentration of chlorophyll a remaining after the chlorophyll degradation product, phaeophytin a, has been subtracted from the uncorrected chlorophyll a measurement. (3) When comparing changes in chlorophyll a or TSI values to historical levels, historical levels shall be based on the lowest five-year average for the period of record. To calculate a five-year average, there must be annual means from at least three years of the five-year period. Laws implemented by this Rule: Florida Statutes § 403.062, 403.067 This Rule authorized by: Florida Statutes § 403.061, 403.067 ________________________________________________________________________
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