The Prairie Creek Watershed drains Newnan's Lake (a 6,000-acre lake west of the city) from the south on its way to Paynes Prairie and Orange Lake. Historically, the river drained into Paynes Prairie state preserve, providing the Prairie basin with much needed water. But in the early 1940s, Camp's Canal was constructed by the Camp family to divert most of the water to Orange Lake in order to block Prairie Creek from flooding the Prairie. Today, bass fisherman and fish camp owners along the lake put pressure on the State to maintain this diversion to the Lake under the assumption that the diverted water is important for healthy bass fishing. Paynes Prairie enthusiasts, meanwhile, fight for more Creek water to be allowed into the preserve, as it had historically done.

Do you live near Prairie Creek? Here’s what you can do to keep your water clean and the creek healthy:

Remember that all of our creeks, one way or another, make their way to the aquifer from which we get our drinking water. The fact that the creeks eventually make their way into the giant “well” from which we draw our drinking water supply is a good reason, among many, to protect them. Increased impervious area and decreased riparian buffers lead to more runoff going into the creeks during storm events. Runoff from yards and driveways carries pollutants like automobile fluids and wastes, detergents, fertilizers, pesticides, household chemicals, pet wastes, and plain trash down the stormdrains into the creeks. Even organic yard wastes – leaves, cuttings and landscape detritus - can overload the creek system. If you ever wondered where those storm drains actually drain to, the creek is your answer. In Gainesville, the runoff can carry considerable pollution into our treasured waterways, and it does.

You can help - keep pollutants off the streets; change your oil and dispose of it sensibly, keep up the maintenance on your vehicles to prevent leaks, use pesticides and fertilizers minimally if at all, dispose of pet waste hygienically, and put trash where it belongs! If you prevent pollution from entering the aquifer, you will be doing your part to protect the health of your community.

If you are lucky enough to live on a creek, you can maintain a healthy riparian buffer with native landscaping to effectively filter pollutants from the roadways. You can sign up for a creek cleanup with Adopt-A-River, or participate in our Watershed Action Volunteer program teaching kids about watersheds, or learn to landscape a Florida Friendly Yard. All of these efforts will help to protect the creeks from pollution.

Prairie Creek, Alachua County, Florida

GOOD PLACES TO VISIT THIS CREEK
The best place to visit Prairie Creek when the water is high is to put a canoe in the creek at Kate's Fish Camp located at 6518 SE Hawthorne Rd. When the water is lower, you can visit a beautiful walkway along the creek by parking at Kates Fish Camp and walking under the bridge to the walkway, or alternatively by bike via the lovely Gainesville-Hawthorne Trail . For an enjoyable creek adventure, you can also visit visit this creek at one of the city's beautiful Nature Parks such Alfred A. Ring Park, Loblolly Nature Center (part of the Hogtown Greenway) or the beautiful Split Rock Park.