How does the Floridan Aquifer work?

The aquifer system generally dips below land surface to the south where it becomes buried beneath surficial sand deposits and clay. In areas depicted in brown in the image at the right, the Floridan aquifer system crops out and is again exposed at land surface.

Keeping this in consideration, how deep is the Floridan Aquifer?

Aquifer facts

The Floridan aquifer averages 1,000 feet thick, and freshwater can extend to a depth of 2,000 feet below land surface. Freshwater is thickest in the central portions of the state and rapidly thins toward the coast and the south.

What are some issues facing the Floridan Aquifer?

Floridan Aquifer System Groundwater Availability Study. Water resource managers are faced with several problems and issues with respect to the availability of groundwater from the FAS including (1) groundwater depletion, (2) saltwater intrusion, and (3) migration of groundwater divides.

Is the Floridan aquifer confined or unconfined?

In general, the Upper Floridan aquifer is confined over most of the central and southern portions of the District. However, the relatively thin and discontinuous clay confining units in the northern portion of the District result in the Upper Floridan aquifer becoming unconfined in nature over large areas.

What are three things that can damage the Floridan Aquifer?

Water resource managers are faced with several problems and issues with respect to the availability of groundwater from the FAS including (1) groundwater depletion, (2) saltwater intrusion, and (3) migration of groundwater divides.

How much area does the Floridan Aquifer cover?

about 100,000 square miles

Where are the largest aquifers in the world?

The Ogallala, also known as the High Plains Aquifer, is one of the largest underground freshwater sources in the world. It underlies an estimated 174,000 square miles of the Central Plains and holds as much water as Lake Huron.

Is Florida running out of water?

Florida is running out of drinking water from the Floridan Aquifer, our main source of drinking water which has been relatively clean, cheap and plentiful — until now. The average Floridian uses about 158 gallons per day. Over-development has depleted the drinking water supply in most parts of Florida.

What problems are associated with pumping too much water from our aquifers in Florida?

Saltwater intrusion occurs when wells are drilled too deep or when too much freshwater is pumped from the aquifer, allowing salt water to replace freshwater. The water stored in the aquifer is replenished, or recharged, by rainfall. On average, Florida receives 51 inches of rain each year.

Where does Orlando get its water?

Source Of Orlando Drinking Water

Orlando drinking water comes from Lower Floridan Aquifer, which is located a quarter mile underground. This deep aquifer is located underneath layers of sand and clay, as well as being underneath the Upper Floridan Aquifer and a layer of limestone.

How are aquifers formed?

Aquifers. An aquifer is a body of porous rock or sediment saturated with groundwater. Groundwater enters an aquifer as precipitation seeps through the soil. It can move through the aquifer and resurface through springs and wells.

What are the 3 main parts of the Floridan Aquifer?

In the southern half of the study area, including most of central and southern Florida, the Upper Floridan aquifer is thick and can be differentiated into three distinct zones, namely the uppermost permeable zone, the Ocala Lower-Permeability Zone, and the Avon Park Permeable Zone.

Why is the Floridan Aquifer important?

Floridan aquifer. It underlies the entire state of Florida and parts of Alabama, Georgia, Mississippi, and South Carolina. The Floridan aquifer system is one of the world's most productive aquifers and supplies drinking water for nearly 10 million people.

How deep do you have to dig to hit water?

Drilling a Water Well for household use will usually range from about 100 feet to 500 feet deep, but When drilling a new well for your home or business, the depth of the well depends on the geology and underground water levels of the area.

How long does it take for aquifer to rain?

The time it takes for surface infiltration to reach an aquifer as deep as 400 feet may take hours, days, or even years, depending on the rate of recharge. In some of the flood-irrigated areas, groundwater levels in nearby domestic wells rise within a few hours to days of flood-up.

What percentage of water on earth is potable?

While nearly 70 percent of the world is covered by water, only 2.5 percent of it is fresh. The rest is saline and ocean-based. Even then, just 1 percent of our freshwater is easily accessible, with much of it trapped in glaciers and snowfields.

What is the Floridan Aquifer made of?

The Floridan aquifer system, composed of the Upper and Lower Floridan aquifers, is a sequence of Paleogene carbonate rock which spans an area of about 100,000 square miles (260,000 km²) in the southeastern United States.