|
 Explore
Your Watershed
 Kissimmee
River
Lake
Okeechobee
Everglades
Florida
Bay
EPA's
Watershed Site
|
 WHAT
IS A WATERSHED?
Technically, a watershed is the divide separating one drainage area from
another (Chow, 1964). The term "watershed" is commonly used
to refer to the entire area that water flows across, under and through
on its way to a common body of water. In hydrologic terms, watershed is
a land area that delivers runoff water, sediment and dissolved substances
to a major river and its tributaries. A watershed includes atmospheric,
surface and subsurface water.
WHY SO MUCH EMPHASIS ON SOUTH FLORIDA WATERSHEDS?
The watersheds of south Florida are in danger. Once, water flowed
freely from the Kissimmee River to Lake Okeechobee to the waters off the
Florida coast. Today, that flow has been interrupted, threatening the
sustainability of existing ecosystems. Life depends on water. Generation
after generation have come to this land of beauty – this quality
of life, which depends on water. Though we as citizens and stewards of
our natural resources, cannot contemplate a return to what once was, we
can mend the natural functions of the watersheds and restore a more natural
flow of water through the Kissimmee-Okeechobee-Everglades-Coastal system,
commonly referred to as the south Florida ecosystem.
|
