About SCCF & RECON


In 2007, the SCCF Marine Laboratory launched the River Estuary Coastal Observing Network (RECON) project to track changes in water quality from Lake Okeechobee to the Gulf of Mexico. It is a fully integrated, portable, real-time water quality monitoring system. The network is composed of eight biogeochemical sensors.   Seven will be deployed at fixed locations, which include the Caloosahatchee River, Pine Island Sound Aquatic Preserve, and San Carlos Bay.   One will be configured as a “mobile” unit which will be transported to specific sites as areas of interest are identified.   As of November 2007, the sensors have been received by SCCF and are being prepped for deployment, which has begun and will continue into the coming months.

The data generated from RECON will address specific resource management concerns such as:
  • degraded coastal water quality
  • loss and alteration of estuarine & watershed habitat
  • reduction of biodiversity, and
  • other problematic effects of pollution and invasive species

Through the foundation’s website, other scientific organizations, educators, policy makers and concerned citizens can view real time or archived data as well as graphical comparisons of one or more sensors.

Available data will include:
  • Physical measurements such as temperature, depth, salinity and turbidity from all sensor locations; water flow initially from one location
  • Chemical sensors including colored dissolved organic matter (CDOM), nitrate, and dissolved oxygen
  • Biological measurements, particularly chlorophyll a (an indicator of algal blooms)