Severn Sound Watershed Characteristics

The Severn Sound watershed is within the jurisdiction of the Severn Sound Environmental Association (SSEA). There is one upper tier municipality (Simcoe) and 9 lower tier municipalities. The large geographic area covered by the Source Water Protection region is quite diverse in terms of population density, economy, and land use. These differences represent a significant challenge for the development of a source water protection plan because of the associated variability of available information upon which to base the technical work, the differing stresses on water resources related to development pressure and population growth, and the differences in the nature, density and locations of threats to the quality and quantity of water resources.

Physiography
The Severn Sound Watershed is located within three (3) regional-scale physiographic regions as defined by Chapman and Putnam (1984): Carden plain, Simcoe uplands and the Georgian Bay fringe (Chapman and Putnam 1984).

Draining from the south, the North, Coldwater, Copeland, Sturgeon and Wye River and Hog Creeks are the six subwatersheds contained by the larger basin. In addition there is considerable drainage directly to Georgian Bay along the north shore of the Sound. The watershed has a total drainage area of about 1,361 Km², a maximum length of about 43 Km in a northwest-southeast direction and a maximum width of about 46 Km in a northeast-southwest direction. The streams occupy the flat-floored valleys within the watershed and many of them appear to be fed largely by springs along the valley sides.

• Black-Severn Watershed Characteristics
  
• Lake Simcoe Watershed Characteristics
• The Nottawasaga Valley Watershed Characteristics
• Severn Sound Watershed Characteristics