Springs Protection Zone established at Nichols Spring in Sumter County, FL
Nichols Spring location via MapCarta.com.
At its Nov. 30 - Dec. 1 meeting, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) approved a rule establishing a Springs Protection Zone for Nichols Spring and its associated spring run in Sumter County, which is the first created in Florida.
It was determined that anchoring, mooring, beaching and grounding of vessels had caused harm to bank vegetation, cypress trees and aquatic grasses in and around the spring. These activities will be prohibited within the Springs Protection Zone.
At its December 2021 meeting, the FWC Commission established the criteria and process used to create Springs Protection Zones. Staff members coordinated with Sumter County officials, the Southwest Florida Water Management District and Department of Environmental Protection to review whether Nichols Spring met the criteria for the creation of a Springs Protection Zone and held a public meeting for interested parties before approval.
The public will still be able to visit Nichols Spring but prohibited from anchoring, mooring, beaching or grounding a vessel within the spring or along the spring’s shoreline. The public will be able to anchor a vessel outside the protection zone and swim through the small spring run and into the spring. Tubes and rafts are not considered vessels in Florida and may still be used in the spring.