WATER RESOURCES OF ORANGE COUNTY 3
PURPOSE AND SCOPE OF INVESTIGATION
The purpose of this investigation is to furnish data that will be useful in the conservation, development, and management of the water resources of Orange County. Water is one of the most important natural resources and Orange County, with more than 50 inches of annual rainfall, hundreds of lakes, and the Floridan aquifer, is blessed with an abundant supply. However, the rainfall is not evenly distributed throughout the year, or from year to year, nor are there adequate storage reservoirs in all parts of the county.
Knowledge of all factors affecting the water resources of an area is necessary in planning for the protection, efficient development, and management of water supplies. Recognizing this need, the Board of County Commissioners of Orange County entered into a cooperative agreement with the U. S. Geological Survey to investigate the water resources of Orange County. The investigation is a joint effort by the three disciplines within the Water Resources Division of the Survey under the direction of W. F. Lichtler, project leader. The report was prepared under the supervision of C. S. Conover, District Chief, Water Resources Division, Tallahassee. It is the comprehensive report of the 5-year investigation and also incorporates information contained in an interim report (Lichtler, Anderson, and Joyner, 1964), a lake-level control report (Anderson, Lichtler, and Joyner, 1965), a groundwater availability map (Lichtler and Joyner, 1966), and a surface-water availability map (Anderson and Joyner, 1966), produced as byproduct reports of the investigation.
The report includes determinations of variation in lake levels, stream flow, chemical quality of surface and ground waters and ground-water levels, evaluation of stream-basin characteristics, delineation of recharge and discharge areas, investigation of characteristics of the water-bearing formations, assembly of water-use information and interpretations of water data.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
The authors express their appreciation to the many residents of Orange County who freely gave information about their wells and to various public officials, particularly the Board of County Commissioners, whose cooperation greatly aided the investigation.