WATERSHEDS
We all live in a watershed — the area of land that drains to the same waterbody (such as a stream, lake, estuary, wetland, aquifer, or even the ocean). A smaller watershed can drain to a larger watershed. Memphis has four watersheds: the Loosahatchie, Wolf, Nonconnah, and Mississippi River watersheds. The Loosahatchie, Wolf, and Nonconnah watersheds eventually drain to the Mississippi River Watershed. The Mississippi River Watershed is the fourth largest in the world! It eventually drains to the Gulf, which becomes part of the North Atlantic Ocean. Every single person living in this city has a global impact through their watershed. Make your impact a positive one!
Meet your Watershed!
Wolf River- approximately 23 miles of the Wolf is impaired within Memphis limits
Nonconnah Creek – approximately 27 miles of the Nonconnah is impaired within Memphis limits
Loosahatchie River- approximately 26 miles of the Loosahatchie is impaired within Memphis limits
Mississippi River- approximately 47 miles of the Mississippi is impaired within Memphis limits.
The Memphis Sands Aquifer
The Memphis Sands Aquifer is part of the watershed, too! The clean and lovely taste of Memphis’ FAMOUS drinking water is largely thanks to this aquifer. Briefly defined, an aquifer is a body of permeable rock which can contain or transmit groundwater. In our aquifer, the underground water is filtered through sand that removes impurities from the water. The water then sits protected between layers of clay. The aquifer water is recharged at areas throughout Memphis as part of the water cycle. But even aquifer water is not free from the threat of pollution. There are portions of Memphis where the protective clay layer has been breached and pollution could more easily enter and contaminate aquifer water quality. Protecting storm water quality and green spaces can help protect our aquifer and famous drinking water! Learn more from the aquifer experts at CAESER!
Gurgle Factoid!
The water from Baker’s Pond in Mississippi flows northwest and merges with other waters to eventually become the Wolf River! The Wolf empties into the Mississippi River and then flows south to the Gulf of Mexico. Water is carried in many different ways, but in the end it still connects us via the watershed.