Potentiometric surface of the Floridan Aquifer, Southwest Florida Water Management District, May 1980

A May 1980 potentiometric-surface map of the Southwest Florida Water Management District depicts the annual low water-level period. Potentiometric levels decreased 5 to 36 feet between September 1979 and May 1980, in the citrus and farming sections of southern Hillsborough, southwestern Polk, northwestern DeSoto , Hardee, and Manatee Counties. Water levels in these areas are widely affected by pumping for irrigation and have the greatest range in fluctuations. Water-level decreases ranged from 0 to 8 feet in coastal, northern, and southern areas of the Water Management District. Generally, potentiometric levels were lower than previous May levels except in the northernmost and southernmost counties where water levels were 1 to 5 feet higher. (USGS)