REPORT OF INVESTIGATIONS NO. 42


chemical quality had been collected in the vicinity as part of the
statewide data-collection programs.
 Many of the physical and hydrologic features of the area are
 ,iven in an interim report by Pride, Meyer, and Cherry (1961).
 General descriptions of the geology of the region have been
 ,iven by Cooke (1945), Vernon (1951), White (1958), and Stewart
 :1959). Stringfield (1936) defined and described the principal
 artesian aquifer of Florida.
 Analyses of water from surface and ground sources in the
 vicinity of the Green Swamp area are given in reports by Collins
 and Howard (1928) and Black and Brown (1951).


 METHODS OF INVESTIGATION

 Most of the data for the investigation were collected during
 the 4-year period from July 1958 to June 1962 and covered a wide
 range of hydrologic conditions.
 The investigation of the water resources of the Green Swamp
 area involves studies of water in three main physical environments:
 (1) precipitation, which occurs as rainfall; (2) surface water, which
 occurs on the surface of the ground; and (3) ground water, which
 occurs beneath the surface of the ground.
 Waters in these environments are interrelated. Thus, it was
 necessary to study the whole process or system, rather than any
 part, to understand and to evaluate the water resources of the area.
 The methods of studying water in each environment are
 different. Some characteristics of water in the three environments
 may be measured directly; some may be evaluated by analysis of
 representative samples from which results may be inferred; and
 some characteristics and quantities must be determined indirectly.
 For instance, the chemical characteristics of the water at a
 particular place can be used as an indication of the environment
 through which the water has passed. The surface materials in the
 Green Swamp area are relatively insoluble and the surface waters
 are therefore low in mineral content. The rock below the surface
 materials is relatively soluble and the contained water is
 considerably more mineralized. Mineralized streamflow in areas
 such as the Green Swamp, where industrial and municipal disposals
 into streams are minor, indicates ground-water inflow into streams.
 Therefore, the chemistry of the water can be used as a tool to give
 more complete evaluation of the hydrology of the area.