The History of the Everglades Stormwater Treatment Areas.

Since the 1960’s it has been recognized that the runoff from the Okeechobee watershed can have adverse impacts on the sensitive Everglades ecosystem. By the mid 1980s, one solution to filter this runoff was the use of constructed wetlands called the Stormwater Treatment Areas (STAs). The primary pollutant in these systems was phosphorus (P), and these systems have been designed use various vegetation types to biologically reduce this pollutant load into the Everglades. This talk examines the history and performance of these systems since their creation, and highlights the basic functions and research questions relating to their efficiency of P removal, and concerns regarding their long-term sustainability.