U.S. Department of the Interior

U.S. Geological Survey

Pamphlet to accompany

Scientific Investigations Map 3288

Prepared in cooperation with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers

Hydrogeologic Framework and Geologic Structure of the 

Floridan Aquifer System and Intermediate Confining Unit in 

the Lake Okeechobee Area, Florida

ATLANTIC OCEAN

Profile 1

Profile 2 Profile 3

Profile 4

St. Lucie 

Canal 

profile

LAKE 

OKEECHOBEE

Lake

 Istokpoga

Kissimmee River

St. Lucie Canal

BROWARD COUNTY

PALM BEACH 

COUNTY

MARTIN COUNTY

ST. LUCIE 

COUNTY

OKEECHOBEE COUNTY

OSCEOLA 

COUNTY INDIAN RIVER 

COUNTY

HENDRY COUNTY

COLLIER 

COUNTY

HIGHLANDS 

COUNTY

POLK 

COUNTY

GLADES COUNTY

ICU

IAS

ICU

IAS

BGTP-1

CLEW_IW-1

CLEWRO-PW1

FPL-IW2

GLF-5

GLF-6

HASR-DZMW

HIF-42

ICW-1

L2-TW

LAB-TW

LKOKEE_ASR

LRRO-IW1

MF-20

MF-37

MF-40 OKF-100

OKF-105

OUA-EW1

PB-1132

PBF-15

PBF-7

PSL-DMW

TFIW-1

W-15880

W-16182

W-17052

W-5409

W-5435

W-5438

W-5439

W-5441

GLF-0002 BREX-1

ROMP29A

C'

A

A'

X'

B

B'

C

D

D'

E'

E

X

Hydrogeologic Framework and Geologic 

Structure of the Floridan Aquifer System 

and Intermediate Confining Unit in the Lake 

Okeechobee Area, Florida

By Ronald S. Reese

Prepared in cooperation with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers

Pamphlet to accompany

Scientific Investigations Map 3288

U.S. Department of the Interior

U.S. Geological Survey
U.S. Department of the Interior

SALLY JEWELL, Secretary

U.S. Geological Survey

Suzette M. Kimball, Acting Director

U.S. Geological Survey, Reston, Virginia: 2014

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Suggested citation:

Reese, R.S., 2014, Hydrogeologic framework and geologic structure of the Floridan aquifer system and intermediate 

confining unit in the Lake Okeechobee area, Florida: U.S. Geological Scientific Investigations Map 3288, 8 sheets, 

plus 12-p. pamphlet, http://dx.doi.org/10.3133/sim3288.

ISSN 2329-132X (online)
iii

Contents

Abstract ..........................................................................................................................................................1

Introduction.....................................................................................................................................................1

Purpose and Scope ..............................................................................................................................4

Study Methods ......................................................................................................................................4

Hydrogeologic Framework...........................................................................................................................4

Geologic Features..........................................................................................................................................6

Upper Contact of the Ocala Limestone .............................................................................................7

Upper Contact of the Arcadia Formation..........................................................................................7

Summary and Conclusions...........................................................................................................................7

References .....................................................................................................................................................8

Appendixes ...................................................................................................................................................11

Figures

1. Map of study area showing wells used, seismic-reflection profiles, and 

stratigraphic and hydrogeologic section lines ........................................................................2

2. Chart showing correlation of hydrogeologic units as defined in this study with

stratigraphic units and their lithologies ....................................................................................5

Table

1. Selected wells used to update the hydrogeologic framework of the Floridan aquifer

system in the Lake Okeechobee study area, Florida ..............................................................3

Sheets

1. Stratigraphic and hydrogeologic section A–A’................................................................... link

2. Stratigraphic and hydrogeologic section B–B’ .................................................................. link

3. Stratigraphic and hydrogeologic section C–C’................................................................... link

4. Stratigraphic and hydrogeologic section D–D’ .................................................................. link

5. Stratigraphic and hydrogeologic section E–E’ ................................................................... link

6. Stratigraphic and hydrogeologic section X–X’................................................................... link

7. Upper contact of the Ocala Limestone and upper contact of the Avon Park 

Formation where the Ocala Limestone is not present....................................................... link

8. Upper contact of Arcadia Formation.................................................................................... link
iv

Conversion Factors

Multiply By To obtain

Length

foot (ft) 0.3048 meter (m)

mile (mi) 1.609 kilometer (km)

Flow rate

million gallons per day (Mgal/d) 0.04381 cubic meter per second (m3

/s)

Vertical coordinate information is referenced to the National Geodetic Vertical Datum of 1929 

(NGVD 29).

Horizontal coordinate information is referenced to the North American Datum of 1983 (NAD 83).

Altitude, as used in this report, refers to distance above the vertical datum.
Abstract 

 The successful implementation of aquifer storage and 

recovery (ASR) as a water-management tool requires detailed 

information on the hydrologic and hydraulic properties of the 

potential water storage zones. This report presents stratigraphic 

and hydrogeologic sections of the upper part of the Floridan 

aquifer system and the overlying confining unit or aquifer 

system in the Lake Okeechobee area, and contour maps of 

the upper contacts of the Ocala Limestone and the Arcadia 

Formation, which are represented in the sections. The sections 

and maps illustrate hydrogeologic factors such as confinement 

of potential storage zones, the distribution of permeability 

within the zones, and geologic features that may control the 

efficiency of injection, storage, and recovery of water, and thus 

may influence decisions on ASR activities in areas of interest 

to the Comprehensive Everglades Restoration Plan. 

Introduction

 The injection of potable water into an aquifer for later 

withdrawal, commonly referred to as aquifer storage and 

recovery, or ASR, has been proposed as a water-management 

strategy as part of the Comprehensive Everglades Restoration 

Plan (CERP) to help meet the water needs of agricultural, 

municipal, and recreational users, and for Everglades 

ecosystem restoration in central and southern Florida (U.S. 

Army Corps of Engineers and South Florida Water Management District, 1999). Excess water collected during the wet 

season is injected into an aquifer through an ASR well, stored, 

and withdrawn when needed during the dry season using the 

same well. Injected and recovered water from CERP ASR 

wells is intended to be used for maintaining water levels 

in Lake Okeechobee and wetland areas, and reduction of 

surface-water flows to estuaries and bays during storm events. 

To be economically viable, each well must have an operational 

capacity of 5 million gallons per day (Mgal/d) during injection 

(recharge) or withdrawal (recovery). Optimal application 

of ASR requires knowledge of the presence of extensive, 

permeable storage zones and their confinement, suitable water 

quality in these zones, and suitable source-water supplies.

The principal aquifer used for ASR in southern Florida 

is the Upper Floridan aquifer of the Floridan aquifer system. 

This system, consisting of the Upper Floridan aquifer, a 

middle confining unit, and the Lower Floridan aquifer, is 

overlain by the intermediate confining unit or intermediate 

aquifer system (Miller, 1986). 

A regional hydrogeologic framework of the Floridan 

aquifer system constructed under the CERP ASR Regional 

Study provides maps and hydrogeologic sections of major 

permeable zones in the system, including the Upper Floridan 

aquifer, in central and southern Florida (Reese and Richardson, 2008). Since preparation of this preliminary regional 

hydrogeologic framework, additional data have been collected 

in a seven-county area around Lake Okeechobee that allow 

for a more detailed identification of geologic features and a 

more refined hydrogeologic framework of the Floridan aquifer 

system, both of which are important to consider for ASR 

implementation (fig. 1). The additional data include data from 

wells that have been drilled into the Floridan aquifer system 

since 2004 (table 1); water-based seismic-reflection data from 

beneath Lake Okeechobee and the St. Lucie Canal (Collier 

Consulting, Inc., 2007); results of a study of the distribution 

of fractures within the Floridan aquifer system based on 

borehole image data collected from test wells in the study 

area (Emily Richardson, South Florida Water Management 

District, written commun., 2007); and lineaments mapped 

in south Florida using Landsat multispectral scanner false 

color images (June Mirecki, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, 

written commun., 2004). To address the need for an updated 

and refined hydrogeologic framework of the Floridan aquifer 

system and detailed geologic information, the U.S. Geological 

Survey (USGS), in cooperation with the U.S. Army Corps of 

Engineers, conducted a study from 2010 to 2012 under CERP 

as part of the final hydrogeologic framework study for the 

regional ASR program.

Hydrogeologic Framework and Geologic Structure of the 

Floridan Aquifer System and Intermediate Confining Unit 

in the Lake Okeechobee Area, Florida

By Ronald S. Reese
2 Hydrogeologic Framework and Geologic Structure of the Floridan Aquifer System and Intermediate Confining Unit

Figure 1. Map of study area showing wells used, seismic-reflection profiles, and stratigraphic and hydrogeologic section 

lines.

ATLANTIC OCEAN

Profile 1

Profile 2 Profile 3

Profile 4

St. Lucie 

Canal 

profile

LAKE 

OKEECHOBEE

Lake

 Istokpoga

Kissimmee River

St. Lucie Canal

BROWARD COUNTY

PALM BEACH 

COUNTY

MARTIN COUNTY

ST. LUCIE 

COUNTY

OKEECHOBEE COUNTY

OSCEOLA 

COUNTY

INDIAN RIVER 

COUNTY

HENDRY COUNTY

COLLIER 

COUNTY

HIGHLANDS 

COUNTY

POLK 

COUNTY

GLADES COUNTY

ICU

IAS

ICU

IAS

BGTP-1

CLEW_IW-1

CLEWRO-PW1

FPL-IW2

GLF-5

GLF-6

HASR-DZMW

HIF-42

ICW-1

L2-TW

LAB-TW

LKOKEE_ASR

LRRO-IW1

MF-20

MF-37

MF-40 OKF-100

OKF-105

OUA-EW1

PB-1132

PBF-15

PBF-7

PSL-DMW

TFIW-1

W-15880

W-16182

W-17052

W-5409

W-5435

W-5438

W-5439

W-5441

GLF-0002 BREX-1

ROMP29A

C'

A

A'

X'

B

B'

C

D

D'

E'

E

X

EXPLANATION

Location of all wells used in study

Seismic-reflection profile line and number Profile 1

C C' Stratigraphic and hydrogeologic section line

Well location and well number for 

well on section

PBF-15

ICU

IAS

Boundary between the intermediate confining 

unit (ICU) and intermediate aquifer system 

(IAS) from Arthur and others (2008)

0 5 10 MILES

0 10 KILOMETERS 5

0 10,000 20,000 METERS

0 30,000 60,000 FEET

27°40'

27°20'

1,200,000

1,100,000

27°00'

1,000,000

26°40'

900,000

26°20'

800,000

81°20' 500,000

FEET

81°00' 600,000 80°40' 700,000 80°20' 800,000 80°00' 900,000

Easting

Northing

Study

area

FLORIDA

Base from U.S. Geological Survey digital data

State Plane Florida East, Datum NAD 83
Introduction 3

Table 1. Selected wells used to update the hydrogeologic framework of the Floridan aquifer system in the Lake Okeechobee study 

area, Florida.

[ASR, aquifer storage and recovery; FPL, Florida Power and Light; MW, monitoring well; RO, reverse osmosis water treatment; SFWMD, South Florida Water 

Management District; USACE, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers; USGS, U.S. Geological Survey; WTP, water treatment plant; WWTF, wastewater treatment facility]

SFWMD Station Name Name/Description Total Depth 

(feet) Owner

Glades County

BREX-1 Brighton Seminole Reservation ASR test 1,616 Brighton Seminole

EXKR-MW18 Kissimmee River ASR MW 890 USACE

Hendry County

CLEW_IW-1 RO WTP injection well 3,505 City of Clewiston

CLEWRO-PW1 RO production well 1 1,450 City of Clewiston

CLEWRO-PW2 RO production well 2 1,200 City of Clewiston

CLEWRO-PW3 RO production well 3 1,250 City of Clewiston

CLEWRO-PW4 RO production well 4 1,253 City of Clewiston

Highlands County

HIF-42 Paradise Run exploratory well 1 1,802 SFWMD

Martin County

EXPM-1 Port Mayaca Exploratory ASR 1,380 SFWMD/USACOE

MF-40 Allapattah Ranch exploratory well on C-23 Canal 1,240 SFWMD

TFIW-1 Tropical Farms RO WTP injection well 1 3,200 Martin County Utilities

Okeechobee County

EXKR-1 Kissimmee River Exploratory ASR 953 USACE

EXKR-MW1 Kissimmee River ASR storage zone MW 880 USACE

EXKR-MW19 Kissimmee River ASR MW 880 USACE

OKF-105 S65C test well 2,500 SFWMD

OKF-106 Taylor Creek ASR pilot site Upper Floridan MW 818 SFWMD

OLI-IW1 Okeechobee Landfill injection well 1 3,506 Okeechobee Landfill, Inc.

OLI-MW1 Okeechobee Landfill MW 1 2,152 Okeechobee Landfill, Inc.

OUA-EW1 Cemetery Road WWTF injection well 1 3,200 Okeechobee Utility Authority

Osceola County

OSF-104 S65A exploratory well 2,500 SFWMD

Palm Beach County

BGTP-1 Belle Glade RO test production well 1 1,450 City of Belle Glade

BGTP-2 Belle Glade RO test production well 2 1,650 City of Belle Glade

FPL_FAW1 FPL West County Energy Center production well 1 1,700 FPL

FPL-IW2 FPL West County Energy Center injection well 2 3,250 FPL

LR_PW3 Lake Regions RO 1,450 Palm Beach County

LR_PW4 Lake Regions RO 1,450 Palm Beach County

LR_PW5 Lake Regions RO 1,450 Palm Beach County

LR_PW6 Lake Regions RO 1,450 Palm Beach County

LR_PW7 Lake Regions RO 1,450 Palm Beach County

LR_PW8 Lake Regions RO 1,350 Palm Beach County

LRRO-IW1 Lake Regions RO WTP injection well 1 3,500 Palm Beach County

PBF-15 L-8 Canal test well 2,300 SFWMD
4 Hydrogeologic Framework and Geologic Structure of the Floridan Aquifer System and Intermediate Confining Unit

Purpose and Scope

The purposes of this report are to (1) present a refined 

hydrogeologic framework of the intermediate confining 

unit or intermediate aquifer system and Floridan aquifer 

system and (2) identify geologic features that may affect 

confinement of ASR storage zones in the Floridan aquifer 

system and the recovery of injected freshwater in the study 

area. This report presents six stratigraphic and hydrogeologic 

sections of the Floridan aquifer system, extending from the 

upper part of the Lower Floridan aquifer to the land surface. 

Lithostratigraphic boundaries and marker horizons identified 

include, from oldest to youngest: the upper surface of the 

lower Avon Park Formation, the upper surface of the Avon 

Park Formation, the upper surface of the Ocala Limestone, the 

upper surface of the Suwannee Limestone, the upper surface 

of the lower Arcadia Formation, and the upper surface of the 

Arcadia Formation. Hydrogeologic units identified include, 

from shallowest to deepest: the surficial aquifer system, the 

intermediate confining unit or intermediate aquifer system, the 

Upper Floridan aquifer, the middle semiconfining unit 1, the 

Avon Park permeable zone, the middle semiconfining unit 2, 

the uppermost major permeable zone of the Lower Floridan 

aquifer, and the Lower Floridan confining unit. Contour maps 

of the upper contacts of the Ocala Limestone and Arcadia 

Formation also are presented.

Study Methods

Data from 363 wastewater-injection, water-supply, 

ASR, test, and monitoring wells were used to construct cross 

sections of hydrogeologic and geologic units and maps of 

geologic contacts. General information for these wells is 

stored in the South Florida Water Management District’s 

(SFWMD) hydrogeologic database DBHYDRO (South 

Florida Water Management District, 2013), and in the USGS 

Ground Water Site Inventory (GWSI) database (appendix 1). 

The primary well identifier used in this study is the SFWMD 

station name (appendix 1).

Upper formation contacts and marker horizons identified 

in this study were defined on the basis of available lithologic 

descriptions and borehole geophysical data, including gamma 

ray (GR), sonic interval transit time, and resistivity data. 

Lithologic data were obtained from the Florida Geological 

Survey (2012), several previous studies (Cunningham 

and others, 2001b; Reese and Memberg, 2000; Ward and 

others, 2003), SFWMD well construction reports, and other 

well construction reports. The well construction reports 

are available in DBHYDRO. Recognizable patterns in the 

borehole geophysical data were used to correlate stratigraphic 

units between wells. Hydrogeologic unit boundaries for major 

permeable zones and flow zones in the Floridan aquifer system 

were identified using borehole geophysical data, including 

flowmeter, borehole fluid resistivity, fluid temperature, GR, 

caliper, formation resistivity (composite resistivity of rock 

and groundwater), and sonic interval transit time (related 

to formation porosity) data. Hydraulic packer and aquifer 

test data also were used to help identify the permeable 

zone boundaries.

The depths of formation contacts in all wells used in 

constructing the maps and stratigraphic and hydrogeologic 

cross sections, the source, if other than interpreted in this 

study, and the types of data available and used are given in 

appendix 2. The types of data used to determine these boundaries have been given a quality rating of 1 through 5, with 

1 being the most complete and reliable and 5 being lithologic 

description only.

Maps of the upper contacts of the Suwannee Limestone 

and Arcadia Formation and the base of the Peace River 

Formation, were interpolated from interpreted seismicreflections beneath Lake Okeechobee and the St. Lucie Canal 

(Collier Consulting, Inc., 2007). These maps were then used 

to assist in mapping the structure of upper contacts of the 

Ocala Limestone and Arcadia Formation for this report. To 

construct the structure maps for the Ocala Limestone and 

the Arcadia Formation, the reported depth values along the 

seismic-reflection profiles (Collier Consulting, Inc., 2007) were 

converted to altitude, incorporated into a dataset of geologic 

contact altitudes from wells outside the lake, and interpolated. 

Hydrogeologic Framework

The Floridan aquifer system in central south Florida 

is a thick sequence of predominantly carbonate rocks that 

includes, in ascending order, the upper part of the Cedar Keys 

Formation of Paleocene age, the Oldsmar Formation of early 

Eocene age, the Avon Park Formation of middle Eocene 

age, the Ocala Limestone of late Eocene age, the Suwannee 

Limestone of Oligocene age (Miller, 1986), and a basal part 

of the Arcadia Formation of the Hawthorn Group (Parker 

and others, 1955; Shaw and Trost, 1984; Reese, 2004; fig. 2). 

The Hawthorn Group contains the Arcadia and Peace River 

Formations (Scott, 1988) and ranges in age from possibly 

late Oligocene to early Pliocene (Wingard and others, 1994; 

Guertin and others, 2000; Cunningham and others, 2001a, 

2003). Overlying the Hawthorn Group and extending to the 

surface are the Tamiami Formation of Pliocene age, various 

formations of Pleistocene age, and undifferentiated sediments 

of Holocene age. The upper contacts of the Avon Park Formation, the Ocala Limestone, the Suwannee Limestone, and the 

Arcadia Formation were mapped or indicated on stratigraphic 

and hydrogeologic sections in this study (sheets 1–6). All of 

these formations are present throughout the study area except 

for the Ocala and Suwannee Limestones. These two formations are thickest in the western part of the study area and are 

absent in the eastern part (Shaw and Trost, 1984; Miller, 1986; 

Arthur and others, 2008). Arthur and others (2008) indicate 

the Suwannee Limestone is absent east of the western parts of 

Highlands and Glades Counties.
Hydrogeologic Framework 5

Series Geologic formation or 

lithostratigraphic unit Lithology Hydrogeologic unit Approximate 

thickness, in feet

Holocene 

to 

Pliocene

Holocene-age undifferentiated

 and 

Pleistocene-age formations1

Quartz sand; silt; clay; shell; 

limestone; sandy shelly limestone 

Surficial 

aquifer system

Water-table/

Biscayne aquifer

90–250 

Confining beds

Gray limestone aquifer

Confining unit

Intermediate confining unit or

intermediate aquifer system

25–420

Upper Floridan 

aquifer

25–480 

Lower 

Floridan 

aquifer 

(includes 

permeable zones 

and confining units)

Boulder 

Zone 400–6503

1,700–2,0003

Miocene 

to 

possibly 

Late 

Oligocene

Eocene 

Middle

Paleocene Cedar Keys 

Formation

Dolostone and dolomitic 

limestone

Massive anhydrite beds Sub-Floridan confining unit

Tamiami 

Formation

Silt; sandy clay; sandy, shelly

limestone; calcareous sandstone; and quartz sand

Hawthorn Group

Peace

River

Formation

Interbedded silt, quartz sand,

gravel, clay, carbonate,

and phosphatic sand

Arcadia Formation

Carbonate mudstone

to grainstone; claystone;

shell beds; dolomite;

phosphatic and quartz

sand; silt; and clay 

Sandy, molluscan limestone; phosphatic

quartz sand, sandstone, and limestone

 Floridan aquifer system

Avon Park Formation

Fossiliferous, lime mudstone

to packstone and grainstone;

dolomitic limestone; and

dolostone; abundant 

cone-shaped benthic 

foraminifera 

Oldsmar Formation

? 

270–800

1,200?

Avon Park permeable zone

Early

? ? 

Middle semiconfining 

unit 2

Upper

Lower 

30–220 Uppermost

permeable zone

 Middle 

semiconfining 

unit 1

Lower

Focus of this study

Upper

Micritic limestone, dolomitic limestone, 

and dolostone

60–750

100–860

Ocala Limestone2

Suwannee Limestone2

Late

Early Oligocene Molluscan, carbonate packstone to grainstone

with minor quartz sand and no phosphate 

Chalky carbonate mudstone, skeletal packstone

to grainstone, and coquinoid limestone with no 

siliciclastic and phosphatic content 

Mid-Hawthorn aquifer

Sandstone

aquifer

Confining unit

Confining unit

1 Pleistocene-age formations in southeastern Florida–Pamlico Sand, Miami Limestone, 

 Anastasia Formation, Fort Thompson Formation, Key Largo Limestone

2 Geologic unit missing in eastern parts of study area

3 Thicknesses are from the southeastern Florida part of the study area

Figure 2. Chart showing correlation of hydrogeologic units as defined in this study with stratigraphic units and their lithologies. 

Modified from Reese and Richardson (2008).

In addition to the indicated formation contacts, two 

marker horizons, the informal upper contacts of the lower 

Avon Park Formation and lower Arcadia Formation, were 

identified in this study, primarily on the basis of borehole 

geophysical data and correlation between wells (fig. 2; 

sheets 1–6). The upper contact of the lower Avon Park 

Formation was previously referred to as the middle Avon 

Park marker horizon, or MAP, in southern and central Florida 

(Reese and Richardson, 2008), and it is sometimes associated 

with a thin interval (10 to 30 ft thick) of low GR activity 

compared to background levels. The marker horizon at the 

upper contact of the lower Arcadia Formation is identified 

by a distinct increase in GR log activity caused by an abrupt 

increase in phosphorite content. This lower Arcadia Formation 

marker horizon corresponds to the base of a previously defined 

“lower Hawthorn marker unit” mapped in Lee, Hendry, and 

Collier Counties (Reese, 2000), Palm Beach County (Reese 

and Memberg, 2000), and Martin and St. Lucie Counties 

(Reese, 2004). Lithology in the upper Arcadia Formation 

above this marker horizon is characterized by lime mudstone 

and claystone.

The hydrologic unit superjacent to the Floridan aquifer 

system is the intermediate confining unit in the eastern 

part of the study area, or intermediate aquifer system 

in the western part of the study area (figs. 1 and 2). The 

intermediate confining unit or intermediate aquifer system 

confines the Upper Floridan aquifer and separates it from 

the surficial aquifer system. In Hendry and Collier Counties, 
6 Hydrogeologic Framework and Geologic Structure of the Floridan Aquifer System and Intermediate Confining Unit

the intermediate aquifer system includes the sandstone 

aquifer, principally in the Peace River Formation, and the 

mid-Hawthorn aquifer in the uppermost part of the Arcadia 

Formation (fig. 2; Smith and Adams, 1988; Reese and 

Richardson, 2008). The intermediate confining unit and 

intermediate aquifer system include most of the Hawthorn 

Group and, in some areas, part of the Tamiami Formation.

The upper part of the Floridan aquifer system is divided 

into three major permeable zones and two semiconfining units, 

and listed in descending order, they are the Upper Floridan 

aquifer, middle semiconfining unit 1, Avon Park permeable 

zone, middle semiconfining unit 2, and upper permeable 

zone of the Lower Floridan aquifer. The Upper Floridan 

aquifer commonly includes a basal part of the Arcadia 

Formation (Shaw and Trost, 1984; Reese and Memberg, 2000; 

Reese, 2004), which in this report is included in the lower 

Arcadia Formation (fig. 2). The base of the Avon Park permeable zone is commonly near or just above the marker horizon 

at the upper contact of the lower Avon Park Formation, and 

the upper boundary of the Avon Park permeable zone can 

extend hundreds of feet above this marker horizon. The upper 

boundary of the upper permeable zone of the Lower Floridan 

aquifer is below the marker horizon at the upper contact of the 

lower Avon Park Formation in most areas. 

The upper boundary of the Upper Floridan aquifer is 

always below the upper contact of the lower Arcadia Formation and commonly coincides with or occurs immediately 

above the upper contact of the Ocala limestone. The lower 

boundary extends down into the upper part of the Avon Park 

Formation in most of the eastern half of the study area. An 

assessment of geologic or hydrogeologic unit thickness is best 

conducted using isopach maps if sufficient data are available 

to construct them. A cursory assessment was conducted using 

the stratigraphic and hydrogeologic sections. The Upper Floridan aquifer ranges in thickness from 25 ft in well BREX-1 

(sheet 1) to 480 ft in well BGTP-1 (sheet 5) and is generally 

thickest around the southern end of Lake Okeechobee. 

Flowmeter, packer test, and aquifer performance-test data 

indicate that much of the Ocala Limestone and the upper part 

of the Avon Park Formation are not very transmissive in areas 

to the southwest, west, and northwest of Lake Okeechobee and 

are not included in the Upper Floridan aquifer (well L2-TW, 

sheet 3; LAB-TW, sheet 2; BREX-1, sheet 1; and ROMP29A 

and OKF-105, sheet 6).

The middle semiconfining unit 1 separating the Upper 

Floridan aquifer and Avon Park permeable zone varies from 

100 ft thick in well MF-40 (sheet 1) to 860 ft thick in well 

OKF-105 (sheet 6). Middle semiconfining unit 1 generally 

thins to the east of Lake Okeechobee near the Atlantic coast. 

The Avon Park permeable zone is present in all crosssection wells deep enough to penetrate it. Lateral hydraulic 

connectivity within this permeable zone, however, is uncertain 

in some areas. Thickness of the Avon Park permeable zone, 

based on the sections, ranges from 25 ft in well L2-TW 

(sheet 3) to 420 feet in well PSL-DMW (sheet 1). The Avon 

Park permeable zone is generally thinnest at the southern 

end of Lake Okeechobee and thickens to the northwest of 

Lake Okeechobee (well ROMP29A, sheet 6). Well-to-well 

hydraulic connectivity within the rocks designated as Avon 

Park permeable zone is uncertain on the eastern side of Lake 

Okeechobee and near the Atlantic coast. In some areas near the 

Atlantic coast, the Avon Park permeable zone is hydraulically 

connected with the Upper Floridan aquifer, for example, at the 

MF-40 site (sheet 1). Aquifer testing at this site indicates the 

upper part of the Avon Park permeable zone is hydraulically 

connected to the Upper Floridan aquifer (Sunderland, 2008).

A thick section of permeable, fractured limestone above 

the Avon Park permeable zone in the Avon Park Formation is 

present in some wells in the study area (BREX-1, OKF-100, 

and W-17052; sheets 1, 5). This section, which is hundreds of 

feet thick, may or may not be hydraulically connected to the 

Avon Park permeable zone, and the development of fractures 

may be highly localized. The occurrence of highly fractured 

limestone in wells BREX-1 and OKF-100 is indicated by 

borehole video, formation microresistivity images, and caliper 

and sonic data (Missimer Groundwater Science, 2007; U.S. 

Army Corps of Engineers, 2002). A 250-ft section of fractured 

limestone above the Avon Park permeable zone is indicated 

in well W-17052 by caliper (sheet 5) and sonic data curves, 

high drilling rates, and the loss of large volumes of cement 

during casing installation (Geraghty and Miller, Inc., 1991). 

Fracturing in the upper part of the Avon Park Formation is also 

indicated in well MF-40 (sheet 1; Sunderland, 2008).

The middle semiconfining unit 2 separating the Avon 

Park permeable zone and upper permeable zone of the 

Lower Floridan aquifer ranges in thickness from 60 ft in well 

W-17052 near the southeastern shore of Lake Okeechobee 

(sheet 5) to 750 ft in well W-16182 near the Atlantic coast 

(sheet 3). Generally this unit is thinnest in wells near Lake 

Okeechobee. The thickness of the upper permeable zone of 

the Lower Floridan aquifer ranges from about 30 ft in well 

W-15880 (sheet 1) to 220 feet in FPL-IW2 (sheet 3).

All aquifers and major permeable zones in the Floridan 

aquifer system contain brackish to saline groundwater in 

most of the study area. The Upper Floridan aquifer contains 

fresh groundwater only in the northern parts of Okeechobee 

and Glades Counties and in most of Highlands County 

(Sprinkle, 1989).

Geologic Features

Geologic features identified in this study could affect 

recovery of freshwater injected into potential storage zones 

in the Upper Floridan aquifer and Avon Park permeable zone 

that contain brackish to saline groundwater. Maps showing 

the configuration of the upper contacts of the Ocala Limestone 

and Arcadia Formation illustrate local features that may 

influence decisions on ASR placement and well construction 

activities (sheets 7 and 8). Three hydrogeologic factors that 

may control recovery are confinement of storage zones, 
Summary and Conclusions 7

distribution of the permeability within storage zones, and 

the structural setting (Reese, 2002). Fracturing, faulting, and 

associated vertical dissolution and karst collapse could reduce 

the vertical confinement of selected storage zones. These 

features could allow injected freshwater to move upward, 

making it less likely to be recovered, or allow for saline water 

to move upward into the storage zone during recovery and 

mix with the injected water. Fracturing within storage zones 

that increases the transmissivity of the storage zone could lead 

to the loss of injected freshwater due to increased dispersive 

mixing. Buoyancy forces could cause the movement of 

freshwater away from injected wells located in structural lows 

or in areas of higher dip. 

Upper Contact of the Ocala Limestone

The altitude of the upper contact of the Ocala Limestone 

ranges from 351 ft below NGVD 29 in the northwestern part 

of the study area to 1,177 ft below NGVD 29 in the southern 

part, following the regional dip to the south and southeast 

into the south Florida basin (Miller, 1986; sheet 7). The Ocala 

Limestone thins to the south and east, and in southeastern Palm 

Beach and northeastern Broward Counties, this formation is 

absent. Beyond the extent of the Ocala Limestone, mapped 

contours represent the upper contact of the Avon Park Formation 

(sheet 7). The upper contact of the Ocala Limestone is an unconformity, and the absence of this formation in this area could be 

the result of complete erosion of the unit (Miller, 1986).

Prominent surface depressions in the mapped upper 

contact of the Ocala Limestone, showing as much as 200 to 

300 ft of relief or offset, occur along the southwestern and 

northeastern sides of Lake Okeechobee (sheet 7). In one of 

the depressions along the west-southwestern edge of the 

lake, the altitude is almost 1,000 ft below NGVD 29 at well 

W-5436. Other features of this mapped surface include (1) an 

elongate structural low extending from near the center of 

Lake Okeechobee, dipping through the southeastern corner 

of the lake, and continuing into southeastern Palm Beach 

County, (2) a narrow structural high extending and dipping to 

the southeast along the Kissimmee River from north of Lake 

Istokpoga in Highlands County into Okeechobee County, and 

continuing into the northern part of Lake Okeechobee, and 

(3) a broad structural high in the west-central part of Lake 

Okeechobee defined to the west by the low at the southwestern 

corner of the lake (sheet 7).

Upper Contact of the Arcadia Formation

Some geologic features shown on the map of the upper 

contact of the Ocala Formation are also visible on the map 

of the upper contact of the Arcadia Formation, as well as 

additional features (sheet 8). Altitude for the upper contact 

of the Arcadia Formation ranges from 92 ft below NGVD 29 

in the northwestern part of the mapped area to 797 ft below 

NGVD 29 in the southeastern part along the Atlantic coast. 

Geologic features shown on this map include (1) depressions 

along the southwestern and northeastern sides of Lake 

Okeechobee (with less relief than on the mapped upper contact 

of the Ocala Limestone), (2) a structural or erosional low in 

the southeastern part of Lake Okeechobee extending to the 

southeast, and (3) a structural or erosional high along the 

Kissimmee River extending southeastward into the northern 

part of Lake Okeechobee. This latter feature extends further 

to the southeast beneath Lake Okeechobee than it does on 

the mapped upper contact of the Ocala Limestone. Some of 

the paleotopographic relief associated with the upper contact 

of the Arcadia Formation is likely the result of erosion, and 

several lows shown on this map that are not present on the 

mapped upper contact of the Ocala Limestone may be, at 

least in part, due to erosion. These paleo-depressions include 

(1) a low in the west-central part of Lake Okeechobee based 

on seismic-reflection data, (2) a low that extends to the 

northwest from the northwestern side of Lake Okeechobee 

through central Highlands County and Lake Istokpoga, and 

(3) a narrow elongate low that extends from the southwestern 

corner of Lake Okeechobee to the southwest into northwestern 

Hendry County. 

The low in the west-central part of Lake Okeechobee 

appears to connect with the three other lows extending 

from the northwest, southwest, and southeast of Lake 

Okeechobee. This low has been previously identified as a 

paleo-river channel incised into the upper part of the Arcadia 

Formation (Collier Consulting, Inc., 2007). Incision into the 

Arcadia Formation was identified in the western parts of 

seismic-reflection profiles 1 and 2 in this area (sheet 8), and 

this erosional low is interpreted to be filled in with deltaic, 

siliciclastic deposits that are part of the Peace River Formation. This paleo-river channel identified in the west-central 

part of Lake Okeechobee is likely a northern, upstream 

extension of a quartz-sand-filled channel mapped to the south 

in Hendry, Palm Beach, and Broward Counties (Cunningham 

and others, 1998). 

Summary and Conclusions

This report presents a refined hydrogeologic framework 

of the Floridan aquifer system and identifies geologic features 

that may affect placement of aquifer storage and recovery 

(ASR) wells in the areas of interest to the Comprehensive 

Everglades Restoration Plan to use ASR as a water-management tool around Lake Okeechobee. New data used in this 

report were collected after a preliminary hydrogeologic 

framework study, and they include data from additional wells 

drilled and water-based seismic-reflection profiles collected 

within Lake Okeechobee and a nearby canal. This report 

presents (1) six stratigraphic and hydrogeologic sections of 

the upper part of the Floridan aquifer system and the overlying 

intermediate confining unit or intermediate aquifer system, 

and (2) maps of the altitude of upper contacts of the Ocala 
8 Hydrogeologic Framework and Geologic Structure of the Floridan Aquifer System and Intermediate Confining Unit

Limestone and the Arcadia Formation. The upper contact of 

the Ocala Limestone is commonly near the upper boundary 

of the Floridan aquifer system, and the upper contact of the 

Arcadia Formation is in the overlying intermediate confining 

unit or aquifer system.

Three major permeable zones within the Floridan 

aquifer system—the Upper Floridan aquifer, Avon Park 

permeable zone, and uppermost major permeable zone of the 

Lower Floridan aquifer—are shown on the stratigraphic and 

hydrogeologic sections and for the most part, were found to 

be continuous in the study area. The middle confining unit 

of the Floridan aquifer system is divided into two middle 

semiconfining units separated by the Avon Park permeable 

zone. Delineation of the Avon Park permeable zone and upper 

permeable zone of the Lower Floridan aquifer follows a 

stratigraphic marker horizon used to define the upper contact 

of the lower Avon Park Formation. Hydraulic connectivity 

within the Avon Park permeable zone is uncertain between 

some areas, such as between wells on the east side of Lake 

Okeechobee and wells farther to the east near the Atlantic 

coast. In some eastern areas near the Atlantic coast, the Avon 

Park permeable zone is hydraulically connected with the 

Upper Floridan aquifer.

The altitude of the upper contacts of the Ocala Limestone 

and Arcadia Formation were mapped using well data and 

seismic-reflection data from beneath Lake Okeechobee. 

Pronounced depressions, with relief up to 300 feet occur along 

the northeastern and southwestern sides of Lake Okeechobee. 

Other elongate paleotopographic highs and lows were also 

mapped. The origin of some geologic features could be related 

to karst collapse structures, which are commonly observed 

along the seismic-reflection profiles in Lake Okeechobee, or 

possibly be associated with regional tectonic movement.

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Appendixes

Appendixes 1–2 are available for download at http://dx.doi.org/10.3133/sim3288 in the 

following formats:

1. Inventory of all wells used to update the hydrogeologic framework and 

 geologic structure in the Lake Okeechobee study area, Florida, 2010.................MS Excel

2. Formation contact depths determined or used in this study and sources 

 of information .................................................................................................................MS Excel
Appendix 2

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12 Hydrogeologic Framework and Geologic Structure of the Floridan Aquifer System and Intermediate Confining Unit
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