The Santa Fe Swamp is 95-percent floodplain swamp. Along with
Lake Santa Fe and Little Lake Santa Fe, it serves as
headwaters of the
Santa Fe River, which drains into the
Suwannee River
The Suwannee River (also spelled Suwanee River) is a river that runs through south Georgia southward into Florida in the southern United States. It is a wild blackwater river, about long.U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset hig ...
and then finally the
Gulf of Mexico. It is located to the north of those lakes in
Bradford County and
Alachua County
Alachua County ( ) is a county in the north central portion of the U.S. state of Florida. As of the 2020 census, the population was 278,468. The county seat is Gainesville, the home of the University of Florida since 1906, when the campus ope ...
in
Florida.
Santa Fe Swamp Wildlife and Environmental Area
The Santa Fe Swamp Wildlife and Environmental Area (WEA) was donated to the
Suwannee River Water Management District
The Suwannee River Water Management District (SRWMD) is responsible for managing groundwater and surface water resources in a 15-county region in north-central Florida, United States. It is the smallest of five Florida water management districts. ...
in 1984 by
Georgia-Pacific Corporation
Georgia-Pacific LLC is an American pulp and paper company based in Atlanta, Georgia, and is one of the world's largest manufacturers and distributors of tissue, pulp, paper, toilet and paper towel dispensers, packaging, building products and r ...
. At that time, it was the largest and most environmentally significant donation in the state of
Florida's history. Allowable uses are wildlife viewing, hunting, bicycling, hiking, and horseback riding on administrative roads.
References
External links
Santa Fe Swamp Wildlife & Environmental Area- official site
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Landforms of Alachua County, Florida
Landforms of Bradford County, Florida
Swamps of Florida
Protected areas of Bradford County, Florida
Floodplains of the United States