Just as we rely on these water sources, they’re equally as reliant on us. Increased development, over-use, and nutrient pollution all threaten many of Florida’s waterways. North Central Florida’s springs and rivers are especially impacted by overconsumption and overdevelopment, seen-to by the ever-increasing population levels of the state. This is why Alachua Conservation Trust (ACT) places great care into preserving and protecting Florida’s most precious resources through partnered regional projects and conservation easements.

For 33 years, ACT has worked to protect the unique parts of Florida, becoming a leader in statewide conservation over time. In these three decades, ACT has facilitated the conservation of more than 54,500 acres of Florida land, expanded our work into 16 counties, and now owns and manages nearly 5,000 acres of land with high conservation value.

Every acre protected not only safeguards the landscapes and ecosystems above ground, but also protects the extensive water systems beneath it.

According to Melissa Hill, former ACT Santa Fe River Basin Project Coordinator, Florida’s greatest concentration of springs lies within the 16 counties ACT works in. When land is protected, whether by direct purchase or conservation easements, those properties forever retain their conservation value. The areas become the very bridge between us and our rivers, springs, and aquifer.

“We’re at a fork in the road,” Hill said. “Either we carry on, business as usual…or we all come together and essentially save the state. Everyone has a part to play in the protection of our water.”

One of the ways ACT contributes to permanently protecting key pieces of the landscape that connect to the springs and aquifer is through conservation easements. To date, ACT has helped place conservation easements on 5,768 acres of land. And though these agreements are flexible in design, conservation easements all have one permanent promise in common: To safeguard the future of the landscape.

Each easement is different. Individually catered to every landscape and landowner, these agreements work to protect the true, natural character of a property. ACT works closely with property owners to place these easements on Florida land, ranging from Santa Fe River fronts to small stretches of wetlands. Landowners could also benefit from state, federal, and property tax benefits, all while seeing their landscapes preserved.

By protecting land from overdevelopment and intensification, conservation easements help preserve properties in their natural, scenic states. With their natural character intact for generation after generation, these areas essentially become a living legacy of land.

Another key benefit of a conservation easement is that it incorporates the ecological value of the land, taking into account whether the protection of the property will safeguard critical areas needed for water conservation. Simply put, one of the best ways to protect North Central Florida’s water quality is to preserve the land above the aquifer.

These protected natural spaces work as a sponge, filtering rain and groundwater as it seeps into the aquifer and makes its way through the state. Preventing land intensification and limiting the amount of development allowed on a land with high conservation and ecological value saves our aquifer, acre by acre.

Erica Hernandez, ACT’s Conservation Director, stressed that land conservation in Florida contributes to the health of our water systems, no matter where you are in the state.

“You can be living up on a hill or down on sandy soil, and you’ll still have an impact on the aquifer,” Hernandez said. “You don’t have to be sitting on a spring to impact it. Our geology is very unique, and it’s all connected. It’s part of the beauty of Florida.”

The Ichetucknee Trace, a now-dry riverbed that lies within the 400-square-mile Ichetucknee Springshed Basin, is one such area of Florida that has a direct impact on our springs and aquifer. The old riverbed is peppered with sinkholes and swallets, creating direct connections to our aquifer and water systems. High intensity land use within this vulnerable area would compromise our springs’ water quality and our aquifer’s recharge. Intensification of this landscape would also impact the deep, sandy soils surrounding the Ichetucknee Trace – soils that filter water as it makes its way through the landscape and bubbles up from the well-known Ichetucknee Springs.

Protecting the parcels within the Ichetucknee Trace in turn protects the precious waterways we have come to love. ACT’s Ichetucknee Trace Project uses agricultural land easements, conservation easements, and acquisition to preserve this area’s natural characteristics and ecological values.

Identified as a priority focus area for restoration by the state, the health of Ichetucknee Springs and River is impacted by nutrient pollution and loss of spring flow. But with the help of its current partners: The Florida Forest Service, The Howard T. Odum Florida Springs Institute, the Florida Department of Environmental Protection, the Suwannee River Water Management District, the Natural Resources Conservation Service, and the Ichetucknee Alliance, ACT hopes to combat these issues through easements and acquisition.

“It’s all about water quality and water quantity,” Hernandez said. “And the impacts of those water systems stretch so much further than their actual footprint. Our economy, our culture, our way of living here in Florida – it all hinges on the wellbeing of our water.”

As the eyes into the aquifer, Florida’s springs and rivers offer us a glimpse into the health of our drinking water. They support entire ecosystems, filled to the brim with undulating eelgrass and imperiled Florida species, such as the Florida manatee. They’ve also attracted people to the state for centuries, drawing people in with invitations of swimming, snorkeling, and exploration.

Immense sources of ecological, economical, and cultural prosperity, Florida’s springs and waterways are a unique and irreplaceable part of our landscape. With the help of our many partners and supporters, ACT hopes to continue protecting and preserving these natural, historic, scenic and recreational resources in Florida for as long as possible.