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Surficial Aquifer

 
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Surficial aquifer
 
 
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Surficial aquifers are shallow aquifer
Aquifer

An aquifer is an underground layer of water-bearing permeable rock or unconsolidated materials from which groundwater can be usefully extracted using a water well....
s typically less than 50 feet (15m), but thicknesses of about have been mapped.
icial aquifers system consists mostly of beds of unconsolidated sand, cavity-riddled limestone
Limestone

File:Limestone Formation In Waitomo.jpgLimestone is a sedimentary rock composed largely of the mineral calcite . The deposition of limestone strata is often a by-product and indicator of biological activity in the geology record....
 and shells, sandstone
Sandstone

Sandstone is a sedimentary rock composed mainly of sand-size mineral or rock Particle size . Most sandstone is composed of quartz and/or feldspar because these are the most common minerals in the Earth's crust ....
, sand
Sand

Sand is a naturally occurring granular material composed of finely divided rock and mineral particles.As the term is used by geologists, sand particles range in diameter from 0.0625 to 2 millimeters....
, and clay
Clay

Clay is a naturally occurring material composed primarily of fine-grained minerals, which show plasticity through a variable range of water content, and which can be hardened when dried and/or fired....
ey sand with minor clay or silt
Silt

Silt is soil or Rock derived granular material of a Particle size between sand and clay. Silt may occur as a soil or as suspended sediment in a surface water body....
 from the Pliocene
Pliocene

The Pliocene epoch is the period in the geologic timescale that extends from 5.332 million to 1.806 million years before present.The Pliocene is the second epoch of the Neogene period in the Cenozoic era....
 to Holocene
Holocene

The Holocene is a geological Epoch which began approximately 11,700 years ago . According to traditional geological thinking, the Holocene continues to the present....
 periods.

In most cases the flow system is undivided, though in places, clay beds
Clay

Clay is a naturally occurring material composed primarily of fine-grained minerals, which show plasticity through a variable range of water content, and which can be hardened when dried and/or fired....
 are sufficiently thick and continuous to divide the system into two or three aquifers.






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Surficial Aquifer
Surficial aquifers are shallow aquifer
Aquifer

An aquifer is an underground layer of water-bearing permeable rock or unconsolidated materials from which groundwater can be usefully extracted using a water well....
s typically less than 50 feet (15m), but thicknesses of about have been mapped.

Composition

Surficial aquifers system consists mostly of beds of unconsolidated sand, cavity-riddled limestone
Limestone

File:Limestone Formation In Waitomo.jpgLimestone is a sedimentary rock composed largely of the mineral calcite . The deposition of limestone strata is often a by-product and indicator of biological activity in the geology record....
 and shells, sandstone
Sandstone

Sandstone is a sedimentary rock composed mainly of sand-size mineral or rock Particle size . Most sandstone is composed of quartz and/or feldspar because these are the most common minerals in the Earth's crust ....
, sand
Sand

Sand is a naturally occurring granular material composed of finely divided rock and mineral particles.As the term is used by geologists, sand particles range in diameter from 0.0625 to 2 millimeters....
, and clay
Clay

Clay is a naturally occurring material composed primarily of fine-grained minerals, which show plasticity through a variable range of water content, and which can be hardened when dried and/or fired....
ey sand with minor clay or silt
Silt

Silt is soil or Rock derived granular material of a Particle size between sand and clay. Silt may occur as a soil or as suspended sediment in a surface water body....
 from the Pliocene
Pliocene

The Pliocene epoch is the period in the geologic timescale that extends from 5.332 million to 1.806 million years before present.The Pliocene is the second epoch of the Neogene period in the Cenozoic era....
 to Holocene
Holocene

The Holocene is a geological Epoch which began approximately 11,700 years ago . According to traditional geological thinking, the Holocene continues to the present....
 periods.

In most cases the flow system is undivided, though in places, clay beds
Clay

Clay is a naturally occurring material composed primarily of fine-grained minerals, which show plasticity through a variable range of water content, and which can be hardened when dried and/or fired....
 are sufficiently thick and continuous to divide the system into two or three aquifers. Complex interbedding of fine and coarse-textured rocks is typical of the system. These rocks range from late Miocene
Miocene

The Miocene is a Geologic time scale of the Neogene period and extends from about 23.03 to 5.33 million years before the present. As with other older geologic periods, the rock beds that define the start and end are well identified but the exact dates of the start and end of the period are uncertain....
 to Holocene
Holocene

The Holocene is a geological Epoch which began approximately 11,700 years ago . According to traditional geological thinking, the Holocene continues to the present....
 periods.

In Georgia
Georgia (U.S. state)

Georgia is a U.S. state in the United States and was one of the original Thirteen Colonies that revolted against United Kingdom rule in the American Revolution....
 and South Carolina
South Carolina

South Carolina is a U.S. state in the Southern United States of the United States. It borders Georgia to the south and North Carolina to the north....
, unnamed, sandy, marine terrace deposits of Pleistocene
Pleistocene

The Pleistocene is the epoch from 1.8 million to 10,000 years Before Present covering the world's recent period of repeated glaciations. The name pleistocene is derived from the Greek and ....
 age and sand of Holocene age comprise the system. These sandy beds commonly contain clay and silt.

In Florida
Florida

Florida is a U.S. state located in the Southeastern United States of the United States, bordering Alabama to the northwest and Georgia to the northeast....
, these aquifers are shallow beds of sea shells and sand that lie less than underground. They are separated from the Floridan Aquifer
Floridan Aquifer

The Floridan Aquifer is a portion of the principal artesian aquifer that extends into Florida and is composed of carbonate rock and located beneath the coastal regions of the Southeastern United States and is one of the world's most productive aquifers....
 from a confining bed of soil. Some have been contaminated by saltwater, yet they provide most of the public freshwater supply southwest of Lake Okeechobee
Lake Okeechobee

Lake Okeechobee, locally referred to as The Lake or The Big O is a freshwater lake in the U.S. state of Florida. It is the second-largest freshwater lake wholly within the continental United States, second only to Lake Michigan and the largest in the southern United States....
 and along the Atlantic coast north of Palm Beach
Palm Beach, Florida

The Town of Palm Beach is an upscale incorporated town in Palm Beach County, Florida, Florida, United States. The Intracoastal Waterway separates it from the neighboring cities of West Palm Beach, Florida and Lake Worth, Florida....
.

In surficial aquifers, the groundwater
Groundwater

Groundwater is water located beneath the ground surface in soil porosity spaces and in the fractures of lithologic formations. A unit of rock or an unconsolidated deposit is called an aquifer when it can yield a usable quantity of water....
 continuously is under unconfined and moves along the hydraulic gradient from areas of recharge to streams
STREAMS

In computer networking, STREAMS is the native framework in UNIX System V for implementing character devices.STREAMS was designed as a modular architecture for implementing full-duplex, bidirectional character I/O between kernel or user space processes and device drivers....
 and other places of discharge. Surficial aquifers are recharged locally as the water table
Water table

The water table is the level at which the ground water pressure is equal to atmospheric pressure. It may be conveniently visualized as the 'surface' of the Groundwater in a given vicinity....
 fluctuates in response to drought
Drought

A drought is an extended period of months or years when a region notes a deficiency in its water supply. Generally, this occurs when a region receives consistently below average precipitation ....
 or rainfall. Therefore, the temperature and flow from water-table springs varies.

Important surficial aquifers

The Biscayne Aquifer
Biscayne Aquifer

The Biscayne Aquifer, named after Biscayne Bay, is a surficial aquifer. It is a shallow layer of highly Permeability limestone under a portion of South Florida....
 is a surficial aquifer located in southeast Florida. It covers over , and is the most intensely used water source in Florida, supplying water to Dade County, Broward County
Broward County, Florida

Broward County is a county located in the U.S. state of Florida. As of 2000, the population is 1,623,018; this makes it the second most populated county in the state....
, Palm Beach County
Palm Beach County, Florida

Palm Beach County has the largest land area located in the U.S. state of Florida. As of 2007, the county had an estimated population of 1,351,236 , making it the third most populous in the state of Florida and the twenty ninth most populous in the United States....
 and Monroe County
Monroe County, Florida

Monroe County is a county located in the U.S. state of Florida. As of 2000, the population was 79,589. The United States Census Bureau 2006 estimate for the county was 74,737....
. The aquifer lies close to the surface and is extremely vulnerable to pollutants that leach through the shallow limestone bedrock. In some areas, it has been contaminated by fuel spills, industrial discharge, landfills, and saltwater.

The Sand and Gravel Aquifer stretches across the panhandle of Florida and is replenished with rainfall. Over the years water levels have dropped due to water-well use by pumping, and it has been contaminated by industrial waste
Industrial waste

Industrial waste is waste type produced by industry, such as that of factory, mill s and Mining. It has existed since the outset of the industrial revolution....
 and saltwater instrusion.

The Chokoloskee Aquifer is surficial aquifer that covers in southwest Florida. It is recharged by rainfall. It is believed that artificial drainage canals have lowered water levels and increased saltwater intrusion.

Sources