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Northern Planning Region

Weeki Wachee River

The Northern Planning Region encompasses the entirety of Hernando, Citrus and Sumter counties and portions of Lake, Levy and Marion counties. It is one of the more rural areas of the Southwest Florida Water Management District, with agriculture, rangeland, upland forest and wetlands constituting approximately 75 percent of all land uses. Population centers include Ocala, northern Sumter County and western Hernando County. The region includes extensive tracts of federal, state and District-owned conservation lands used and maintained for timber management, ecological restoration, public recreation and conservation purposes. Limestone mining activities occur primarily in Hernando, Sumter and Levy counties, with significant agricultural activities occurring throughout the region.

The Withlacoochee River is the dominant surface water feature of the region, which also includes the Weeki Wachee, Chassahowitzka, Homosassa, Halls, Crystal and Rainbow rivers. Lakes include Panasoffkee, Bonable, Rousseau and Tsala Apopka. Several first-magnitude springs are located in the region (the Rainbow, Crystal River, Chassahowitzka, Homosassa and Weeki Wachee Springs groups) along with numerous smaller springs of second-magnitude or less. The Floridan aquifer system, the principal storage and water-conveying aquifer in the Northern Planning Region, is overlain by a relatively thin sequence of sands, silts and clays. As a result, the Upper Floridan aquifer within the region is not under confined conditions as it is throughout much of the remainder of the District.

The Northern Planning Region is unique in comparison to the other planning regions in that demands are not projected to outpace available sources through the planning horizon of 2030. The region was included in this update of the District’s Regional Water Supply Plan in order to be proactive and minimize any issues related to future regional water supply demands and/or source development. Increases in water demands in the region for the 2005–2030 planning period are projected to be approximately 88.7 million gallons per day. As of 2010, it is estimated that these demands will be met through development of additional available groundwater sources, with conservation efforts and reuse projects being key components in offsetting or reducing the level of development needed for these additional groundwater sources.

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