Ichetucknee Trace Conservation Project with Alachua Conservation Trust
In September 2019, the Ichetucknee Alliance began partnering with Alachua Conservation Trust (ACT) in a project to acquire land, including conservation easements, in the Ichetucknee Trace.
The Trace is the historical route taken by the Ichetucknee River when it flowed from Alligator Lake in Lake City to where the Ichetucknee headspring is now.
The project is significant because the best way to protect the groundwater that flows through the Trace toward the Ichetucknee is to protect the land above the Floridan Aquifer from pollution and overuse of water. Pollution can seep into the groundwater through the porous limestone that is characteristic of this area, while water withdrawals throughout the Trace reduce the amount of water that is available for the springs.
ACT’s Ichetucknee Trace Conservation Project focuses on outreach to private landowners who may be able to contribute directly to protecting springs water quality and aquifer recharge through agricultural land easements, conservation easements, shorter term land management agreements and acquisitions. The Alliance’s role involves helping to publicize the project and to assist ACT in other ways as needed.
More information about the Ichetucknee Trace Conservation Project, including a full list of the project’s partners and contact information for ACT, is available here: