Thanks to a layer of porous limestone underlying much of the state, Florida has one of the world’s largest concentrations of freshwater springs. They’re an important source of drinking water for millions of Floridians as well as the site of quintessential Florida experiences like kayaking and manatee-spotting.
But, as Dr. Chris Meindl put it, “all is not well in Florida’s springs.”
The native Floridian, University of South Florida geography professor, and director of USF’s Florida Studies program spoke during the first 2025 installment of the Edward & Bonnie Foreman Biodiversity Lecture series.
His recent book, Florida’s Springs: From Geography to Politics and Restoration, is a multidisciplinary exploration of Florida’s springs system: how they formed, their cultural significance over the centuries, the modern factors imperiling them, and politics of their conservation.
The event took place on the heels of the Florida Springs Summit, which happened on February 8 on the Stetson Law campus.
“Springs are much discussed, but there’s an ongoing struggle for truth about springs – what ails them and how to fix them,” Meindl said. “There is very often a very genuine misunderstanding about selected aspects of springs.”
A critical yet vulnerable resource
The Florida Geological Survey has documented 1,115 springs throughout the Sunshine State, many of which constitute the Floridan Aquifer, a sponge-like rock formation lying beneath much of the state.
Much of Florida’s rainfall – which averages 54 inches annually – filters through soil on the surface down into the aquifer, where it eventually reemerges via springs that feed Florida’s rivers. Meindl said most Floridians would recognize the state’s “Big Five”: Homosassa Springs, Rainbow Springs, Silver Springs, Wakulla Springs, and Weeki Wachee Springs.
Crystal-clear and consistently cool year-round (72 degrees in many cases), they’ve been home to turn-of-the-20th-Century wellness retreats, the filming of Creature from the Black Lagoon, “mermaid” shows viewed via an underwater theater, and other aquatic activities. They are a source of municipal drinking water for much of the state as well as commercial bottled water sold nationally.
In winter, manatees seek springs to escape the chilly Gulf and Atlantic waters. In the summer, Floridians flock to them for a break from the heat.
Yet due to the aquifer’s porous nature, a variety of factors connected to industrialization and population growth in the Sunshine State are afflicting Florida’s springs with a variety of maladies: algae overgrowth connected with nitrogen and phosphorous pollution, slowed or even reversed flow, pollution from leaking septic tanks, and other ecological factors. “If it’s making its way to the surface, it’s going out throughout Florida’s springs,” Meindl said. “So we’ve got to be careful about what’s going on with land use.”
Complex problem, multifaceted solution
Since Florida’s springs underlie a variety of different landscapes with different geography, population density, and other environmental factors, Meindl said there is no blanket diagnosis or solution.
“Different springs need different prescriptions,” he said.
Conserving water use may be helpful in some areas, while addressing agricultural, residential, or industrial pollution would help in others.
The will among policymakers to pass comprehensive springs conservation laws also varies.
Over the years, the Florida Springs Task Force has published multiple reports with recommendations, though their proposals rarely make it into state law. In 2010, the state legislature passed a law requiring septic tank inspections and repairs when necessary, but later repealed it. The Springs Act, passed in 2016, relies on existing policy tools that have been around for decades, Meindl noted, but two-thirds of “springs restoration” money goes toward sewage treatment.
One of the most effective ways, Meindl said, to ensure that springs thrive might not be popular: leave them alone.
He noted how in 2020, when authorities closed springs to the public due to the pandemic, staff at Ichetucknee Springs State Park noticed how the vegetation surrounding the springs quickly grew back.
Original source can be found here.