Perdido Watershed

Perdido River and Bay Watershed

Perdido Bay, a relatively small Florida estuary, drains about 300 square miles.  The center line of the bay forms the boundary between Florida and Alabama, with each state sharing about half the basins drainage area.  The Perdido River provides most of the bays fresh water.  Land uses within the Florida portion of the basin proximate to the bay are primarily urban and forested land, with the western edge of Pensacola undergoing rapid urbanization (see Perdido Land Use Map – 2004). The Alabama portion includes primarily agricultural and silvicultural as primary land uses.  The Perdido River and Bay basin has generally good water quality in its inlets and creeks.  However, the quality of the water within the basin is regularly lower than other basins in the NWFWMD.  The single largest source of pollution in this basin is the Champion Paper Mill located on Elevenmile Creek.  Water quality in this creek is very poor.  All other watersheds in the basin rank good to excellent and one creek, Tenmile Creek, shows improvement.  Because of its small, off-center inlet, the bays water quality changes rapidly depending on rainfall, wind, and tidal effects.  After periods of heavy rain and/or extended northerly winds, the bay develops extreme outflowing currents, rapid flushing, and low salinity.  During times of low rainfall and low wind, it flushes very poorly, concentrating the existing pollution.