A preliminary evaluation of hydrologic conditions of the Lakeland Ridge area of Polk County, Florida

The Lakeland ridge are covers about 300 square miles in north-west Polk County. The rapid growth of this area has resulted in an increase in ground-water withdrawals such that in 1968 about 67.5 million gallons per day was pumped to satisfy the demands of municipal, irrigation and industrial users.

Declines of water-levels of as much as 30 feet in the area cause pumps to lose suction and increase the hazard of upward migration of saline water. However, no widespread deterioration of water quality has been noted to date.

Considerable hydrologic data are available for the Lakeland ridge area. However, in order to give water managers a proper base for decisions that would allow for optimum utilization of the groundwater resources, more detailed data are needed about the hydraulic characteristics of the aquifer, the quantity of groundwater withdrawals, and the quality of water at various depths in the Floridan aquifer.