Atmospheric Deposition

How does Atmospheric Deposition Relate to a Spring’s Water Quality?

Scientists from the Florida Department of Environmental Protection developed a modeling tool to figure out what is negatively impacting the water quality in our spings and found that the top two contributors to reduced water quality are nitrogen from septic tanks and urban turfgrass (also known as residential) fertilizers.   A relatively smaller contribution of nutrients was determined to be from Atmospheric Deposition.

How did this happen?

Atmospheric nitrogen comes from a number of sources, which include fossil fuel combustion and agricultural sources. Just like the Earth’s water, nitrogen has a “cycle” in the environment, and can occur as compounds in the air. Some forms of nitrogen can be deposited on land and water surfaces from rainfall. This is a relatively small amount and is diffuse, meaning spread widely over the area. Atmospheric nitrogen sources can be local, regional and beyond.  Cumulatively, the combustion of fossil fuels contributes to atmospheric deposition.

To learn more about the nitrogen cycle, visit: Britannica-phosphorus nitrogen cycles

What can I do?

To reduce your impact, you can:

• Consider ways to reduce your vehicle trips

                Coordinate your trips so that you are not driving unnecessary mileage.

• reThink Your Commute

                Ride a bike, walk , take public transportation, or car pool. To learn more, visit: Votran-Commute Options or Votran.

• Reduce your use of energy at home

                To conserve energy, turn off the lights when you’re not in the room, monitor your A/C temperature, and take shorter showers to reduce the hot water you use.

• Use alternative energy sources

                Explore options for your electricity like solar-powered sources. Also, ask your utility provider for more information about how these options may apply to you.

Individual actions to reduce fossil fuel use may seem small, but if many of us took the same actions this would collectively add up to a bigger impact.

What is the County doing?

• Green Infrastructure and resilience
  • Retention ponds not only mitigate flooding, they also help facilitate the nitrogen cycle. The plants and soil organisms around the retention pond utilize the nutrients from stormwater for growth.
  • Green infrastructure is an approach to stormwater management that protects, restores, or mimics the natural water cycle. (Definition source: americanrivers.org) Examples of green infrastructure include:
    • Rainwater harvesting
    • Rain gardens
    • Permeable pavement
    • Green roofs
    • Vegetative swales
  • The county has been promoting and facilitating green infrastructure projects through grant-funded initiatives. Two examples of these projects are the
    • “Community Resilience through Green Infrastructure” grant in the Spring Hill community Spring Hill Resilience
    • Save our Springs and River, a 319(h) Non-point source pollution grant  funded initiative Save our Springs and Rivers
  • In 2019, Volusia County Council approved two initiatives that move the county towards a more resilient future, the East Central Florida Regional Resiliency Action Plan and the East Central Florida Regional Resilience Collaborative.

                    A key part of these initiatives is using green infrastructure as a first line of defense. Through our resiliency efforts, we’re working hard to educate the public about green infrastructure and are promoting green infrastructure in projects to reduce the impacts of stormwater.  County of Volusia Resiliency Initiatives