FLORIDA GEOLOGICAL SURVEY


the area and the flow is generally southward. Along the eastern
boundary of the area, drainage is toward the east and southeast
into the Kissimmee River basin. Other drainage from the Green
Swamp area is toward the southwest into the Hillsborough River
via a natural channel in eastern Pasco County.
 The subsurface drainage of the Green Swamp area is generally
poor. Ground-water levels in the interior of the area remain near
the surface most of the time, consequently the aquifers provide
little opportunity to store water from heavy rainfall. Ground-water
levels fluctuate through a greater range in the ridges that form the
eastern, southern, and western boundaries. The wide range of
fluctuation indicates better subsurface drainage and greater storage
capacity along the boundaries than in the interior.
 Subsurface drainage is through both the Floridan and the
 nonartesian aquifers but most is via the Floridan aquifer. Water
 percolates downward from the overlying nonartesian aquifer to the
 Floridan aquifer or enters exposed portions of the Floridan aquifer.
 Movement of ground water in the Floridan aquifer is generally
 outward in all directions from the southeastern part of the area.
 However, the areas contributing to the aquifer (p. 80) show that
 the predominant directions of ground-water movement are east and
 west. The ground-water divides in the aquifer shift slightly in
 response to demands in each contributing area. Most of the surface
 area that potentially would contribute recharge to the Floridan
 aquifer in Green Swamp lies within the Withlacoochee River basin.
 The distribution of ground-water outflow originating in each
 surface basin is shown in the tables on pages 116 and 117.

 CULTURE AND DEVELOPMENT

 The Green Swamp area is sparsely populated except for a few
 small towns and communities on the ridges along the border and
 along State Highway 33.
 Most of the land is in large tracts owned by private individuals
 or corporations. The only large tract of public land in the area is
 the Withlacoochee State Forest, part of which is within the
 boundaries of the Green Swamp area in Sumter, Hernando, and
 Pasco counties.
 The principal industry is agriculture. Much of the upland area
 has been cleared and planted in citrus groves. Other upland areas
 have been cleared and are used for cattle raising. Very little of
 the land is cultivated. The low swampland is unsuitable for