Test wells used in the study, Surface-Geophysical Characterization of Ground-Water Systems of the Caloosahatchee River Basin, Southern Florida, 2001, USGS WRIR 01-4084 table 1

The Caloosahatchee River Basin, located in southwestern Florida, includes about 1,200 square miles of land. The Caloosahatchee River receives water from Lake Okeechobee, runoff from the watershed, and seepage from the underlying ground-water systems; the river loses water through drainage to the Gulf of Mexico and withdrawals for public-water supply and agricultural and natural needs. Water-use demands in the Caloosahatchee River Basin have increased dramatically, and the Caloosahatchee could be further stressed if river water is used to accommodate restoration of the Everglades.

Water managers and planners need to know how much water will be used within the river basin and how much water is contributed by Lake Okeechobee, runoff, and ground water. In this study, marine seismic-reflection and ground-penetrating radar techniques were used as a means to evaluate the potential for flow between the river and ground-water systems. The purpose of this report is to characterize the hydrogeologic framework of ground-water systems that are being simulated by the integrated ground- water/surface-water model for the Caloosahatchee River Basin.

This is accomplished through the interpretation of geophysical, lithologic, micropaleontological, and strontium-isotope data.